Whitening Process

Psalm 51:7, “Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me and I will be whiter than snow.”

My mom is a dental hygienist and is naturally very concerned with the dental health of our family. One little benefit of her profession is getting special deals on certain dental care treatments. Last spring my mom alerted me to a special her office was running for the family members of staff. We could get a bleaching kit at cost. Was I interested? You betcha! I knew very little about teeth bleaching, only that years of coffee and tea drinking had left my teeth in need of some serious whitening. So, I signed up and went in to be fitted for the special tray they make for the bleach.

When the day came for me to pick up my tray, I must admit I was surprised as they explained the complicated and long process of teeth whitening. I thought this would be “quick and easy” but it didn’t sound so quick and easy. I had to squirt just the right amount of bleach into the tray each time. I had to find three hours of time to wear the trays. I had to use special toothpaste to keep my teeth from being too sensitive. When they started talking about exposed nerves and pain I was beginning to doubt that this whole teeth bleaching thing was all it was cracked up to be. As I looked at the special tray they had made for me and realized that my mom had arranged all this, I knew I was locked in. Like it or not, I had to at least try to do what they were asking.

And so, I came home, put the supplies away and there they sat, for about a year. Every so often I would think about getting them out, but I always had an excuse as to why it wasn’t the right time. Finally, a week ago, I took the plunge and started bleaching my teeth. As I was thinking about the process, God impressed upon me that this whole whitening thing has several spiritual parallels. And so, for today’s entry, I’d like to share those with you.

Whitening Parallel #1: Whitening is painful. The chemicals they use in the bleaching process can cause pain. The nerves under the gumline that are exposed to these chemicals can really hurt, making things you used to do without thinking—like eating, for example—impossible. I thought about how this applies to God’s process of making us white as snow, as the verse says. We want that process to be quick and easy. We don’t want Him to make things we used to do become painful. And yet, by exposing those nerves—the stuff we keep hidden under the surface—we are forced to change things about ourselves. We don’t want the pain, and yet sometimes pain is the only thing that will cause the change God wants to bring about in us.

I Peter 4:12-13, “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.”

Whitening Parallel #2: Whitening takes a long time. I was asking my mom why they don’t just make a product that works in one application. Why does this process have to be so drawn out? “Because,” she answered, “The chemicals are so harsh you couldn’t take it all in one application, so they break it up a little at a time.” I thought about how gentle and loving our Heavenly Father is, allowing us to go through a process of refinement, instead of being exposed to more than we can take all at once. He leads us along the path of righteousness a little at a time. He never gives us more than we can take, balancing just the right amount of pain mixed with just the right amount of perfectly timed relief. It might take longer than we want, but we can find peace in knowing that the end result will be worth waiting for.

Psalm 23:3, “He guides me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”

Whitening Parallel #3: Whitening isn’t convenient. I never did find an ideal time to submit myself to this process. I finally had to decide to just do it. Finding three hours of time to wear an inconvenient tray full of chemicals in my mouth just wasn’t going to happen. So, instead of finding the time, I had to make the time. I know it is for my good, and I know that I will be so glad I did once I am on the other side of it. The refiner’s fire is like this. It is never convenient and it certainly won’t fit into your neat little ordered life. And if you wait to submit to it with your whole heart until you are “ready,” well, you will just never do it at all. God wants us to come before Him and say, “I will make the time to undergo what You have for me, because I want to be all I can for You, Lord.” When He hears this from us, He is ready to move within our lives. It might not be safe, or easy, or tidy, or even close to what you had hoped for. But you can trust it will be for the best.

Zechariah 13:9, This third I will bring into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, ‘They are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’”

I haven’t come out on the other side of this bleaching process. All in all, it will take about a month. Am I enjoying this? No. Do I wish I didn’t have to go through this? Yes. But do I want white teeth? Yes. And so, I am submitting to the process, trusting the results to the pros who have done this many times before. How much this parallels my spiritual life, where I have to trust God to get to a place I never could have imagined, with results far beyond my dreams.