Spring Cleaning

By Hally Franz –

It’s that time again. Who doesn’t enjoy spring cleaning? I look forward to that first 70-degree day when I’m moved to turn on Jimmy Buffet, open the windows to enjoy the warm air and sunshine, and spend a block of time to get down to some serious cleaning. I’ll dust, vacuum, change sheets, eliminate clutter and clean bathrooms. That’s it, right?

I saw a talk show on the topic of household germs and bacteria, and the well-known host said that her bed sheets were changed every other day. Clean sheets are splendid, but in the real-world they usually get changed weekly. In the real world, sometimes spring cleaning doesn’t happen like it is supposed to. It doesn’t always include washing windows, taking down and cleaning drapes, and organizing all the closets. It may just be music, fresh air and the regular routine.

Even if my deep cleaning doesn’t get done on schedule, I do savor the first-day feel of fresh sheets. They’re tucked in nice and tight before a week’s worth of sleep wrinkles and pulls at them. They have that slick, smooth feel before little bits of grit make their way in, and pillow cases smell nice until morning breath odors attach to them. Clean sheets are one of life’s simple pleasures.

It’s unrealistic for me to think that I will awake every day with the spiritual feelings of being newly baptized. There are days when I am neither excited nor inspired. In the real world, our days cause us to be pulled in lots of directions. We get dirty with the sin that inevitably makes its way into our lives, and we may face situations that really stink. That’s the real world.

However, it is possible for us to become refreshed and renewed each week when we meet on Sundays for a time of study, praise and fellowship. Sunday services always leave me with that “clean sheet feeling” in my soul. The study of scripture and the message from our minister help to smooth the wrinkles in my furrowed brow. I feel washed in the sounds of voices raised in song, and greetings and hugs from church family feel like fragrant, warm breezes.

My usual routine includes a weekly change of my bed sheets and Sunday mornings in worship. While the other chores may wait a season, these are done right on time.

PRAYER: Merciful God, thank You for the opportunity to be refreshed each Sabbath by Your Word, songs of praise and fellowship with other Christians.

“Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water” (Hebrews 10:22 NIV).

Today’s devotion is by Hally Franz. Hally is a former high school guidance counselor, turned homemaker. Hally sees each day as a new exercise, where routines change and weights vary. Her goal is to maintain all-around fitness for service, while training her children to be competitive, compassionate and Christ-like in the world in which we live.

Perspective

By Donna McCrary –

The crackling voice over the intercom said, “Look to your left and experience a rare privilege—the best view of the Grand Canyon.” I quickly grabbed my camera and snapped some pictures. The different shades of brown, rust, and black helped my eyes distinguish the depth of the ever expanding crack in the earth’s crust. The layers of brown tones in the landscape created beautiful contrast against the deep blue hue of Lake Mead. The view from the plane was breathtaking!

I sat in awe—but the beauty didn’t stop there. Traveling from Las Vegas, Nevada to Atlanta, Georgia, I found the landscape continually changing below. As the sun descended, the plane flew over pillows of clouds. The fuchsia shades seemed to sparkle and dance on the white cotton balls below. Then a dark sky settled in as we neared Atlanta. The twinkling city below glowed like a shimmering sea of lights. My husband leaned over and said, “Mind boggling!” After a thoughtful pause he whispered, “Makes you feel small in this giant world.” I chuckled because small is not exactly the best word to describe just how insignificant and tiny you feel at 35,000 feet.

As the wheels of the plane touched, I stopped to thank God for such a wonderful trip with my husband. This quick prayer moved me into a surreal moment of worship. This cross-country trip captured a glimpse of God’s handiwork, from the Grand Canyon to the manmade city lights of Atlanta. It is hard to put into words the picturesque views from my day; even harder to grasp the phenomenal concept that my God is in control of it all. He created the landscapes. He gave man the ability and the material to build the city of lights. He controlled the sun traveling across the sky. Not only is God in control of all this but He chose to love small, insignificant me! He knows every hair on my head. Just as He controls the sun and clouds He orchestrates the events in my life. He is in control of every aspect, every situation and every minor detail. From His viewpoint, everything in life is designed for the single purpose to draw us near to Him. Now that is perspective!

PRAYER: Father, today, I want to pause for a moment to truly worship You. May I never forget   how much You love me and how You long for me to live with You one day in heaven.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28 NIV).

Today’s devotion is by Donna McCrary, a co-founder of Walk of Purpose ministries. Read more of her inspirational devotions in DIVAS of the Divine: How to Live as a Designer Original in a Knock-Off World study or check out her blog at www.walkofpurpose.blogspot.com.

Deal With the Bunnies!

By Robin J. Steinweg –

Bunnies. Furry, cute, comical—and the terrors of my flower garden.

They set up housekeeping under our aluminum shed and did what bunnies do: eat, sleep and multiply. They decimated my strawberries, devoured my moss roses and poppies, shredded the hostas and nibbled my clematis to the ground. The marigolds I planted to deter them? Eaten.

Natural repellants and even the dog didn’t stop them. We got a safe trap and caught a baby. I watched from the window as Little Peter bloodied his pink nose trying to get to his mama stationed outside the cage. Repentant, I ran out, opened the trap and said, “I give up! Live. Eat.”

I started feeding them along with the birds.

For the next years I experimented with flowers they might not eat, and enclosed my favorites with ugly chicken wire. I complained and ranted from the kitchen: “Nefarious bunnies! How I wish you’d be gone!” I watched them play, scratch their ears and stretch out in the shade.

A few weeks ago I realized I hadn’t seen a bunny in awhile. I went to look, and found telltale hunks of fur strewn about. A hawk? A few days later I saw feathers. That seemed to confirm the hawk theory. But no bunnies appeared. The next week I spotted the cause: two young feral cats skulked on our swing-set, eyeing my feeders. I opened the door and they vanished—under the shed—where my cute furry nefarious bunnies used to snuggle. Now we have a family of not cute, tricksy, sneaky cats living off the fat of my birdfeeders (I don’t dare put seed out now), protected from the weather and soiling our former sandbox. If only we had dealt with the bunnies and filled in the area under the shed in the first place.

It occurs to me that sin can be like this. I have my pet “faults”; not too bad, possibly even pleasant. I may complain about them. But if the Holy Spirit convicts me and I tolerate or even nurture them—don’t allow Him to deal with them—those “innocent” sins are swallowed up and replaced by sneakier, faster, more predatory sins. Deal with the bunnies!

PRAYER: Lord, examine my heart for sins I’ve tolerated as cute, acceptable, or even comical. Help me to deal with them before worse ones move in. Thank You for revealing them, helping and forgiving me.

“Say a quiet yes to God and He’ll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field” (James 4:8 MSG).

Today’s devotional is by Robin J. Steinweg. Robin’s life might be described using the game Twister: the colored dots are all occupied, limbs intertwine (hopefully not to the point of tangling), and you never know which dot the arrow will point to next, but it sure is fun getting there!

Swimming Upstream

By James H. Pence –

As I consider my Christian walk, I often feel like a salmon swimming upstream.

Most of us have seen videos of this amazing phenomenon of nature. These fish not only swim against raging currents and rapids, but often have to jump up small waterfalls, all to fulfill their final task in life—spawning and creating a new generation. It is an all-out effort in pursuit of a virtually impossible goal, and it takes every ounce of strength these fish have. And when their task is complete, they die.

It is a nearly perfect picture of the Christian life.

The Christian life is all about pursuing a goal. You can describe the goal in different terms: heaven, glory, holiness, righteousness, etc. As Paul described it in Romans, God’s goal is for us to be conformed to the likeness of His Son (Romans 8:29). He puts it in more practical terms in his letter to the Ephesians: “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight” (Ephesians 1:4 NIV).

God’s goal—and our goal—is to become like Jesus Christ. The problem is, everything in our world runs counter to that goal.

To pursue Christlikeness while living in this world is like swimming upstream against roaring rapids, jumping over waterfalls, and fighting a constant, unending battle against a current that would inevitably take us in the opposite direction. What is worse, not only do we have to struggle against the current of the world; we also have to resist our natural inclination toward sin. At least salmon don’t have a sin nature to contend with.

Yes, this is a nearly perfect picture of the Christian life. Except that we have something the salmon don’t have. They must pursue and reach their goal, driven only by instinct and gritty determination. We have One who lives in us and empowers us daily, and He has promised to complete the work He began in us.

I often find myself discouraged in my daily battle against my own sin, against my own tendency to allow the stream to carry me away from God. But God has begun a good work in me through His Son, Jesus Christ, and He has promised to carry it on to completion.

AUTHOR QUOTE: I will finally reach the goal of Christlikeness, not because of my own will and gritty determination, but because of His faithfulness.

“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6 NIV).

Today’s devotion is by James H. Pence. James is an author, speaker, singer, and gospel chalk artist, but prefers to be known as a storyteller. To learn more about James and how he draws the stories of your heart, visit his website at: www.jamespence.com.

Can’t Keep A Good Man Down

By Jarrod Spencer –

One of the things I enjoy doing is playing. I enjoy playing around with my family. I enjoy playing sports. Because I’m human, I cannot just go and go and go; there are times when I need a rest. However, I enjoy playing so much that even after a bit of a rest, I want to be right back in the middle of things. A little “out-of-breath” is not going to stop me from continuing to participate.

Jesus also slowed to take a rest. He left His Deity and allowed His human side to rest. I use this word to describe a momentary time between humanity and ascension. Jesus needed to give up His weak flesh for our sake. Jesus died and was put in a tomb, taking a rest. This period of time allowed people, both good and bad, to wonder. They wondered if He would rebuild as He said He would. They wondered if people would try to steal His body. Others probably just wondered. However, their wondering didn’t change His plan. They all discovered that a little death was not going to stop Him from participating in eliminating sin.

The following are lyrics from the song “You Can’t Keep a Good Man Down” by Newsong.
“When they nailed Him to the cross
by His hands and His feet
and they put Him in the ground.
Three days later
everybody found out
that ya can’t,
No you can’t keep a good man down.”

The word “good” in the title is not quite strong enough to describe Jesus. A stronger word like awesome, magnificent, unbelievable, first-class, superior, overwhelming, breathtaking, amazing, or remarkable, may have been a little bit closer to a description of our Savior.

Jesus died for our lying, cheating, murders, denials, addictions, etc. Jesus didn’t just die on the cross and then put in a grave to stay forever. Jesus escaped the grave allowing us to escape the nastiness of sin’s sentence to the grave. Because He escaped, we do not have to remain in the grave. How can we respond to something of that magnitude?

“God is good, all the time, and all the time, God is good.”

PRAYER: Dear God, I am eternally thankful that I do not have to remain in the grave because You raised Jesus from the grave many years ago.

“‘Don’t be alarmed,’ he said. ‘You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him’” (Mark 16:6 NIV).

Today’s devotional is by Jarrod Spencer. He is a seeker of God’s surprises in everyday life, looking for ways to be used by God to minister to others. He has a passion for encouraging people through the written word and exercises that passion with blogging and sending out a weekly text of encouragement. You can read more of his writings at http://jarrodspencer.blogspot.com and his church’s website is http://www.colbychurch.com.

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