Iseminger Family Ministries, May 2006

As Clean as Soap and Water Will Get Them

The story goes like this, A traveling preacher eats his Sunday meal with an old widow lady who is a longtime member of the church where he is preaching.  The preacher notices during the meal that all of the dishes seem dirty and crusty.  He asks the lady in the most delicate tone he can muster, “Ma’am are these dishes clean?” To which she replies, “Of course, they’re as clean as soap and water will get them” So the preacher has no choice but to continue with the meal and chokes it all down in spite of his ill feelings about the dishes.  Note: anyone who has traveled very much has taken his share of meals in less than desirable conditions and worried at some point weather or not the meal du jour is going to agree with them or argue for the rest of the day.  We remind ourselves all the time “where He leads me I will follow, what He feeds me I will swallow.” But anyway, back to the story.

At the end of the meal as the preacher is drinking a cup of coffee he watches the little old saint of God spread out all of the dishes utensils and pots and pans.  After she has them all arranged she opens the back door, whistles and calls  “Soap, Water, Here boys…”  as her two dogs named soap and water come in and lick the dishes clean.  As he watches, her remarks ring in his head “there as clean as soap and water will get them….”

I am reminded that truth is indeed stranger than fiction.  I can also assure you that I am not smart enough to make this stuff up.  Back in the late 90’s we were on our one and only trip to a certain state and we found ourselves in one church Sunday morning and another Sunday evening.  After the morning service we were dining with a family, I don’t remember things being dirty, nor to I remember the meal being memorable one way or the other.  What I do remember is this, after the meal my wife offered to help with the dishes, to which the lady of the house said, “It’s ok, I got it” She then set all the pots and pans on the floor opened the back door to let the cats in to have at the pots and pans.  I can assure you that no mater how good it tasted going down, it didn’t set well the rest of the afternoon. 

It was kind of hard but as we were filing out I was able to bring myself to say “Pastor, please thank your wife for the meal.”