A recent estimate by the United States Department of Energy says that a nuclear cleanup of contaminated former weapons sites will cost $230 billion and will take 75 years. Even at that, the report assumes that not all of the contamination will be removed, and the public must be barred from the poisoned land. Radioactive waste doesn't go away.

In a world of lingering toxins, I am becoming more aware that sin is the most tenacious and lethal contaminant of all. It poisons body and soul, and if left unchecked it leaves a tragic trail of suffering and devastation.

Sin's enormous destructive power makes God's means of removal even more remarkable. Psalm 103 states, "As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us" (v.12). The apostle Peter described how expensive that greatest of all decontamination efforts was when he wrote, "You were not redeemed with corruptible things like silver or gold, . . . but with the precious blood of Christ" (1 Pet. 1:18-19).

It can be expensive to clean up the landscape. But it took the world's costliest cleanup to forgive our sin and give life to our soul. Take a few moments right now to praise and thank God for His priceless gift of salvation.  — David C. McCasland