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Hey everybody this is Steve, and we survived the Snowpocalypse.
Only about six inches of snow fell in New York City so, I decided to take a walk.
I'm in Green-Wood cemetery in Brooklyn,
which is one of the most beautiful places in New York City.
It's even more beautiful covered in snow.
I love snow days I mean who doesn't.
Do you wanna build a snowman?
And as I look at the snow and how beautifully it reflects the
light of the sun I can't think but look at it with the eyes of a bee,
and think about how it symbolizes our relationship with God.
Psalm 50, or 51 depending on how you number them,
is the quintessential Psalm of Repentance.
Reflecting on his sin, desperate for forgiveness and mercy, King David cries out to God,
"Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean, wash me and I shall be whiter than snow."
Snow, which is so clean and pure, is symbolic of our ideal spiritual state.
Just like there's incredible beauty in the freshly fallen snow,
there is incredible beauty in a person who's loving, peaceful, gentle.
Yet snow doesn't stay clean very long.
If you live in a city especially as big and busy as New York,
you know how fast the pure snow can be transformed into a disgusting mess.
It starts illumined reflecting the light of the sun;
it ends up a shadow of itself darkened and gross.
It's kind of the situation David was in.
This great Old Testament figure looked upon Bathsheba,
who was married, and was filled with ***.
And he arranged to have her husband, who was a soldier named Uriah,
fight in the most dangerous front lines of battle so he would be killed.
We're talking about King David, a prophet from the Old Testament,
who we venerate as a saint and depict in icons.
By the grace of God he defeated Goliath,
and saved the people of Israel, and God chose him to be their king.
He served God and Israel with wisdom and love,
yet over time, sin began to creep into his heart.
This brave leader who was so loved by his people somehow got to the point
where he was willing to kill one of his people to satisfy his ***.
It seems impossible but when you look at the pure snow
it could seem impossible that it would turn into disgusting muck.
This transformation doesn't necessarily happen all at once.
It happens gradually, step by step.
Every time we trample on the snow, every time we drive over it
we add dirt,and help transform it into filth.
The same happens in our own lives.
We start our lives in Christ purer than the freshly fallen snow,
transformed by our baptism, new members of the Body of Christ.
That's why newly baptized, or newly illumined Christians
are always dressed in white after their baptism.
Over time our choices and mistakes darken the pure garment of our baptism.
We go from reflecting and sharing God's light to covering that light with our sin.
Instead of sharing God's love with the world, we add to the pain and brokenness of the world.
This transformation can happen really slowly in our lives, without us even realizing it.
Over time, the choices that we make add up.
The sins that we commit add up.
And though we start with the purity of snow, we end with dirt, with muck, with filth.
But just like David cried out to God, we can cry out to God too.
The Church gives us a reset button, confession.
Looking around at the purity of all this snow
makes me realize it's been a long time since my last confession.
So I'm going this weekend, what about you?
So let's be the bee, and stay pure as snow.
Be the bee and live Orthodoxy.
Remember to like and subscribe.
I'll see you all, next week.