Donna Naborsyour Spiritual jewelry box.

 

Clean it Before it Gets Dirty

How often do you clean the glass in your shower or your bathroom mirror? There are many answers ranging from never, to when you can’t see through it, to when it needs it, or possibly daily. Well, why would you clean it daily if it’s not dirty? The answer is so it never gets dirty.

I have a glass cleaning cloth that I use on my bathroom mirrors daily. After a steamy shower, the glass is foggy. All I have it do is wipe this cloth across the mirror glass, and voila, everything is shiny and clean. The steam from the shower which fogged up the mirror makes any toothpaste or other splashes soften and wipe right off. If I do this daily, my bathroom mirrors are always clean.

It’s this way when cleaning anything. The more often we clean it, the easier it is, and the less chance it ever has of getting dirty. No invisible soap scum builds up that somehow overnight becomes a 1-inch-thick mess to clean.

As it is with our homes, it also is with our lives. We must clean our heart and soul and mind every day. Though problems can come like a visiting three-year-old grandchild who unexpectedly (I don’t know why it’s not expected) spits toothpaste across the mirror when brushing his teeth, the messes and issues in life are much easier to clean up when the foundation is kept clean.

So how do we keep our foundation clean?

Note Psalm 119:11 (NKJV) “Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” You may have seen or heard my mantra that says, “You can’t hide it if you aren’t in it.” The daily practice of reading God’s word builds up in our life and places a barrier to dirt and sin. The NASB says, “I have treasured Your word in my heart.” The ESV says, “I have stored up your word in my heart.” When we hide it, we’re storing it up or treasuring it. Something treasured is important to us.

We make choices every day. Based on what we are treasuring in our hearts, do we clean every day or wait for the sin build up?

We also need a close relationship with God through prayer. “Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning, for in You do I trust; Cause me to know the way in which I should walk, for I lift up my soul to You” (Psalm 143:8).

If we don’t communicate with our spouse, we lose the close relationship. It’s the same in our relationship with God. Once we are His, He is always our Father, but how is our relationship going?

As we have stepped into the New Year of 2024, let’s do some cleaning. Start by opening God’s word and talking to Him about it.

Are these things part of your goals for this year? I’d love to hear your thoughts.