Cleaning Home and Heart

The floor was mopped last night.  It was sparkling clean.  And this morning I swept this much up off it, after only breakfast.  *sigh*

Cleaning up gets me down.  I feel really good about our home (and about myself actually) when it’s clean and tidy, and I don’t mind hard work.  It’s just that it needs doing over, and over, and over again.  It’s relentless.  I mop the floor, the kids spill weetbix all over it.  I tidy up the toys, they empty them out again.  I finally see the bottom of the laundry basket in one bedroom and the basket in the next room is already overflowing.  Just. Never. Ends.  I try to be joyful about household tasks, but I struggle with this at the best of times.

This morning as I swept up the mess under the table I drew a parallel between my house and my life.  I try to keep my heart clean.  I feel better about life when I’m right with God.  So I confess in prayer my judgemental spirit, or my envy over someone else’s home, but then in the next breath I find myself gossiping about a friend!!  Oi oi oi.  My heart needs cleaning over, and over, and over again – rather like my house.  I guess that’s one of the reasons I go to church every week (though it’s not the only reason).  I’m not saying that I do what I like during the week, confess on Sunday and then start all over again!  Jesus didn’t do what He did for me to take that attitude.  But I do need to keep coming back to God, keep admitting where I’ve stuffed up, and keep asking Him to help me live my “best life”…