Cleaning in the Corners
**Please give us your comment on the Nativity movie blog. You can check it out on this link: http://movies.thelife.com/
by Marilyn Ehle
“Search me, O God… See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139 ).
Holiday time means housecleaning time, but housecleaning was an every – Friday ritual in my childhood home. Not a mere swish of a dust cloth, but a room – to - room, thorough cleaning that included polishing furniture, cleaning woodwork, vacuuming carpets, scouring sinks and bathtubs and – on hands and knees – scrubbing every inch of exposed floor. My mother was an expert at detecting the smallest speck of untouched dirt in a corner. The response to my plaintive cry of “No one will ever see it??? was a firm, “But I will know it’s there.???
Most of us who follow Christ truly want to live lives that honor Him. When confronted with attitudes and actions we know to be wrong, we confess them to our loving Heavenly Father and appropriate His forgiveness and grace. But what about the “corners???? Those things we wouldn’t call grievous sins, but which would certainly offend Jesus if we were face to face with Him.
Am I willing to allow – even ask for – the revealing light of God to expose the corners of my life? When the corners are clean, God and I can walk in the richest friendship along the way everlasting.
~Thank you, Father, for shining your light of love into every corner of my life so that I can walk in unrestricted fellowship with you.
About the Author
This devotional was written by Marilyn Ehle. Read more about Marilyn: http://www.talk.thelife.com/authors/marilyn-ehle/
Going Deeper
1. Consider these questions: Have you taken the time recently to do some “housecleaning”? Have you been in situation when you don’t know why you lack the joy that you once had? What was the reason? Let’s take some time to pray and ask God to show us why we have wrong attitudes (if that is the case).
2. Comment on the devotional blog. Interact with others who are reading today’s devotional. Visit http://talk.thelife.com/ and double click on “Comment??? (just under the devotional title).
3. Chat: Join us for a 15-minute chat at 10:30 am Eastern, 7:30 am Pacific: http://www.christianwomentoday.com/chat
4. Related reading
Preparation for Personal Revival: http://www.christianwomentoday.com/prayer/revival.html
Copyright
This devotional is protected by copyright laws and may not be reprinted or posted to a site without permission from TruthMedia Internet Group. All readers are welcome to forward the devotional to a friend or link to it. If you would like to seek permission to reprint the devotional in full, please see our guidelines: http://talk.thelife.com/reprint-permission/
5 Responses to “Cleaning in the Corners”
Leave a Reply
Start a Conversation
Media
What Do You Fear?
What do you fear, and why? Is it holding you back from realizing your full potential?
>Watch
- Contact
- |
- Advertising
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Link to Us
- |
- Media Releases
- |
- What we believe
Although this poem is called SPRING CLEANING, it definitely fits for any time of the year. For me now, I don’t wait for things to pile up for a big, thorough cleaning; I am learning every day more to acknowledge the stuff in the ‘corners’. He is so faithful to forgive and cleanse me from all unrighteousness.
SPRING CLEANING
O God, my life is really an awful mess!
Is there any hope for someone like me?
I need you to come and transform this heart,
I heard you can do that, and that Your help is free!
My clothes are tattered and torn, filthy rags,
I’ve buried and hidden so much o’er the years
The closet is stuffed to the ceiling with things
Old baggage, old pain, and all kinds of fears.
O God, it is time to take out the trash
To once and for all clean this heart of mine!
That thick layer of pride should be dusted away
And my windows are clouded with jealousy grime.
Much idle talk’s been swept under the rug,
There are cobwebs of anger everywhere,
Greasy streaks of criticism mark up the walls
And selfishness clutters each room here and there.
I’ve tried real hard to clean it myself,
But I simply can’t! I’m tired, I’m weary, I’m worn.
“The blood of the Lamb will cleanse every stain,
Just give me your heart, child, and you’ll be reborn!???
Now that was an offer I did no t refuse!
I opened my heart’s door and let You come in,
And the rest, as they say, is now history.
Your promise held true, and You cleansed me from sin.
You keep doing the work and I just relax
And bask in Your love, Your peace and Your grace!
That was the best decision I’ve ever made!
And, Father, I’m getting to like what you’ve done in this place.
Karin Ristau
yeah..what a timely denotional… The spirit love us so much that He live us even we are so weak andhave sin so often… HE clean us and make our day to be new and fresh again.it happen every single minutes as long as we would ask for His blood for cleaning and healing…. May His revealing light shin every corner of our life everyday..thats my prayer…THank you Jesus for hearing our prayer.. WE need You and YOur our everything……..
I just signed up for this email devotional yesterday and today’s is the first one I received . . and it could not be more timely. My sins are not so much hiding in the corners, but are right there, in the open, and I struggle with them every single day. I pray to God each day to give me strength to NOT willingly, knowlingly, sin against Him – yet I do. I am weak, but look to Him to make me strong. As a new Christian, I am discovering that the path is not an easy or a short one, but it’s one I definitely want to take. Merry Christmas!
i too often think of ‘cleansing’..especially when i know i’ve done or said something to offend someone,or was not Christ-like….i ask Him daily to guard my mouth,my heart,my soul,even guide my hands and my feet…so all i do or say will Honor Him.Blessings to all,
dee
Funny, I was just thinking about this yesterday as I was confessing my sins during my quiet time…I couldn’t think of any sins. I asked the Lord to reveal my “unknown sins” to me. Those sins he knows about that I have suppressed. Thank you for reminding me of this scripture…I will pray it daily. God bless you all and have a wonderful day in the Lord!