One evening a missionary and his wife were reading together in their African home. They were startled by the loud voice of a young native woman calling through the door.
“Lady,” she called, “tell this poor girl about the good God.”
The missionaries went to the door to see what was going on. There stood a young woman whose face was covered with dirt, and her hair was matted and dirty. The missionary’s wife thought to herself, “She looks more like a wild animal than a girl.”
They were told that the girl had come a long way to hear “the words from the missionary.” They invited the girl to come in and spend the night with them. She was taken to her room, and then the missionary and his wife prayed together. They prayed for help and guidance to say the right things to this girl so that she might understand that she was a sinner and needed to be saved from her sins, and that the Lord Jesus Christ was the only One who could save her.
Suddenly, a few minutes after the girl had been shown to her room, there was a loud scream. Before the missionaries could move they heard her running down the stairs. The terrified girl ran into the room. She was breathing hard, and she looked as though she were about to faint.
“Why didn’t you tell me there was an animal in my room?” she gasped.
“There is no animal in your room,” said the missionary. “My wife will go back to your room with you.”
“No! No! It will jump on us!” said the girl, pulling back.
Taking the girl by the hand, the missionary’s wife led the frightened girl gently, but firmly, back to the room. “Now, show me what scared you,” she said.
The girl pointed to the mirror on the wall above the dresser. Then the missionary realized that the girl had never seen a mirror before. It was her own reflection that had frightened her.
“That’s you,” she explained to the girl. “It’s a reflection just like when you walk beside a river and see the nearby trees in the water.”
After watching a few of her motions copied by the mirror’s reflection, the girl was convinced that the “animal” was herself. “I’m so dirty and ugly,” she said to the missionary. “Can I be clean like you?”
The missionary’s wife saw to it that the girl got a bath. Then she washed her hair and braided it for her. She was given a clean, flowered-print dress to put on. Looking at her new image in the mirror the girl said, “I’m clean and pretty now.”
“Yes,” agreed the wife, “but only on the outside.” Then she went on to tell the young girl that on the inside she was just as “dirty” as she was before. She showed her from the Bible that God sees us “dead in trespasses and sins.” “Each one of us is like that,” she explained to her. “Everyone in your village, everyone in Africa, everyone in the whole world is a sinner. To make things worse,” she added, “God hates sin and sin cannot be in His presence.”
The young woman looked sadly at her missionary friend. “Then can I be clean on the inside, too?” she asked.
“Yes,” answered the missionary, “but it’s not by taking a bath and putting on a clean dress. The only way that we can be clean on the inside is to be washed by something that can wash away our sins from God’s sight.”
“What will do that?” the girl asked anxiously.
The missionary turned to 1 John 1:77But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. (1 John 1:7) and read, “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” She went on to explain to the girl how the Lord Jesus suffered on the cross for the sins of those who believe on Him. She showed the girl other verses from the Bible that told of the love of God and His Son for sinners just like her.
The girl listened carefully to everything. Then in simple faith she asked the Lord Jesus to wash away her sins and be her very own Saviour.
Now she was clean on the inside, too.
ML-07/05/1987