Preacher’s Corner: Washing Our Hands—and Souls

If you haven’t heard, it might be too late already. It’s flu season—or should we say, flu seasons. Not only do we have to contend this year with the regular, I-feel-so-bad-I-think-I’m-going-to-die influenza, but now we have the infamous Swine Flu on top of it. What to do? We’re told that our best defense against these attacks is to wash our hands thoroughly and often. In fact, to help us remember how long we’re supposed to scrub our hands, a person on the radio recently suggested that we should wash with soap and water for as long as it took to sing the first stanza of Amazing Grace. I found that suggestion startlingly refreshing. Not counting to a 100 or spelling MISSISSIPPI ten times but singing Amazing Grace. Suddenly, I feel like washing my hands more often! “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found; was blind, but now I see.” And just like that, I discover that not only have my hands been washed but so has my soul. Not only are the germs rinsed away but also the fear, the despondency, the lack of hope and joy that so often cover my soul like a nasty case of the flu. Those timeless words, that opening stanza, restores my soul to health. What a wonderful way to be reminded of what many consider the most beloved hymn of all time. So maybe having to deal with one flu season on top of another is not all bad. Now we know to wash both our hands and our souls several times a day.