The Broom

April 10, 2008

By Sylvia Turner

On national television, the newly elected president’s wife prayed that each day the Lord would take His spiritual broom and sweep through all of the government offices and sweep out those who were corrupt. I thought that was a wonderful prayer, so I started praying that same prayer. “Lord, sweep though the government offices today, remove all who are corrupt.”

After praying that prayer a number of days, I realized if I was going to pray this prayer for the government I needed to also pray the same prayer for the church as well, the church of all denominations and groups in this country. “Lord, sweep through Your church today here in the Congo and remove all that are corrupt, all that is not of You.”

After praying that prayer a number of days, I then realized that if I was going to pray for the Lord to sweep through the government and the church, then I also had to pray that He would sweep through my heart each and every day; that He would remove all that was corrupt, all that was not of Him, all sin that was safely hidden away where even I couldn’t see without the light of His Holy Spirit.

Better His broom to sweep out our sin, then His broom of destruction because we have held on to and sometimes even cherished our sin (Isaiah 14:23).

"Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting" (Psalm 139:23,24, NIV).

— Wayne and Sylvia Turner serve as Assemblies of God missionaries in Kinshasa, Congo.