No More Debris!

“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.” ~~ William Morris

When we purchased our home and property in 2001 and then moved in on Aug. 1, 2002, the house was less than 1300 square feet and had only one closet. Furthermore, our family of (at the time) four moved in with my sister-in-law and her family of five. Yes, there were nine of us living in that small space! (Did I mention already that there was only one closet?) We shared life – meals, sleeping, and use of bathrooms (there were two) while they built their own home next door. We were “cozy” to say the very least!

In 2008, we completed an addition that gave us two extra closets and a bath and a half, not to mention a new kitchen, dining room, living room, and master bedroom.

As with any home renovation, there was dust… and LOTS of it! For a season, there was debris and chaos. I was homeschooling our two sons – reciting poems and reading aloud as hammers pounded and electric saws and sanders buzzed in the background. It was an interesting school year, no doubt!

And I learned a lot during that time. I learned that clutter irritated me. So did dust. And debris. And interruptions. And multiplication tables. And on and on and on. And irritability left unattended resulted in festering resentment which then led to… S.I.N.

Thus, not only was my home often in shambles. So was my heart. And my heart, as a Christian, is HIS home. Frankly, I didn’t want His home to be in shambles. I was convicted… more than once.  In truth, many times.

Thank goodness for grace. God is loving, merciful, slow to anger, and so very gracious. And me? I’m so thankful!

His sweet Spirit prompts me – sometimes gently and other times (depending on whether or not I’m paying attention), not so much. The Holy Spirit can, after all, be IN YOUR FACE! And sometimes that’s what it takes to get through!  But even that is, in a word, GRACE.

His prompting leads to conviction, which almost always leads to repentance. And He is always immediate to forgive. As John reminds us, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (I John 1:9).

Yes, my heart is His home, and His gracious forgiveness enables me to keep my heart clean and thus, His home in order.

I desire only to be useful for His kingdom and, in His image, beautiful as His vessel. It’s His house. There’s no room for debris!

“Don’t you know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own…” (I Corinthians 6:19)