Has this ever happened to you? You empty all your pockets before throwing your clothes into the wash, and when you take them out to dry, there’s a mysterious stain on your favorite white t-shirt? So, you spend the next few minutes inspecting the bottom of the washer in hopes of finding the culprit that marked its territory and claimed your beloved shirt. You see a little lint, but that can’t be it, so you take the next few minutes to pull everything from the dryer and notice that your optic white jeans are now tie-dyed with a hint of blue. You search and you search, and you finally find it — a navy blue sock that found its way into the whites. Uuuugh! How did that happen? Who sorted these clothes and threw in a sock? The answer is YOU!
Decluttering our hearts is a lot like sorting laundry. Imagine entering each chamber of your heart and inviting God to escort you. We sometimes try to take this journey alone — assured in our own strength and wisdom. When we ride solo through unfamiliar territory, we get lost. Without God’s steady hand and knowledge of the route, we’ll miss a few areas of our heart where forgotten issues are hidden. With his help, however, we can easily find that blue sock and put it in its proper place — your past. God knows all your hiding places though, and he’ll turn on the gentle cycle to reveal and wash away what threatens to soil the new you. As I pray for you today, use this prayer or one of your own to invite God in to help you to pre-treat and sort before doing the wash together.
Father God, thank you for using the gentle cycle to clean me up. My temple is a mess right now, and only you can help me to tidy things up. I invite you into my heart and into every area of my life to empty me of me so that there will be plenty of room for you. Thank you for walking this road with me. I know you won’t leave me. You’re a friend indeed. Thank you, Jehovah Jireh, for providing all that I need.
Click here to continue to Day 17 – Lots of Water.
Amen!
Amen