Toothpaste Times

Yesterday I was reminded of an everyday magnificence. Toothpaste.  It's incredible really.  And while it often gets pushed to the bottom of the shopping list directly below deodorant and directly above toilet bowl cleaner, I believe there is much we can learn from such a seemingly insignificant item.  (Insignificant except for the fact, of course, that it's role in keeping gingivitis and periodontal disease and even halitosis at bay is irreplaceable).

So let's talk toothpaste for a minute.  It comes in a tube.  Or some form of a semi-pliable box shaped container.  Or a pump.  It tastes like mint.  Or cinnamon.  Or fruit.  Or some combination of the above.  It is pasty.  Or gel-like.  Or something.....but what is the most significant attribute of toothpaste?  What is inside the tube or semi-pliable box or pump is exactly what the label says-toothpaste.  As I'm thinking about this, I'm wondering what it would be like if the toothpaste tycoons of the world united in a collaborative effort to baffle the world's toothpaste-consuming population.  What if...instead of placing a minty, germ-annihilating paste inside their tubes, the toothpaste tycoons decided to utilize one of the world's most prevalent substances- thick, brown, wet, gooey mud.  You know, just like you used to make mud pies with when you were a kid.  What if....during your sleepy-eyed morning routine you pulled out your tube of toothpaste, flipped open the cap, gave it a good squeeze and....WHAT?????

Hmm.  I wonder what that would be like?  What if the most significant attribute of toothpaste- its consistency to be exactly what the label says it is- could no longer be trusted?  Huh.  Just wondering.  Ok ok...there is more to my toothpaste deliberations than the mud-laden conspiracy of the toothpaste tycoons.  The speculation that currently heckles my mind is this: Am I toothpaste?

While I wouldn't mind smelling like spearmint or possessing the ability to single-handedly eradicate the likelihood of gum disease, I'd like to dig a little deeper.  My question is this: Do my insides match my outsides?  Do my characteristics match my label?  While unfortunately my label may change from time to time (which is another discussion altogether), the label I hope to wear would read as such:

Megan Taylor
Pursuing purpose and love...living as if Jesus is the point.  Wife.  Sister.  Friend.  Disciple.  Lover of truth....


But when my cap is flipped open and I'm given a good squeeze...is this what comes out?  Do I smell like mint?  Or a landfill?  Am I a smooth paste?  Or a gritty mixture?  Am I pursuing purpose and love with everything...counting all as rubbish for the sake of Christ- truly making Him the point?  Hmm.  Maybe sometimes.  Maybe not.  And most of the time, my insides probably look a lot like mint-chocolate chip ice cream...a little toothpaste mixed with a little mud.  But as I sit here tonight with my tube of Colgate Total Whitening by my side I wonder...how can I make toothpaste my reality?