by
Barrett Vanlandingham
August
2, 2016
Within
hours after Lisa and I finished cleaning tree limbs out of our yard the other
day, she approached me in my easy chair and said, “I think it’s time to clean
out our closet. I’ve already filled two
giant trash bags of just my stuff! So, whatever
you haven’t worn in three years, put it in a bag.”
The next sentence she used that only
included the word “Now!” gave me the distinct impression my options were
limited. Besides, I knew she was right. I had noticed our closet had become a
bit difficult to maneuver around in, you know, things stuffed in places where
they didn’t really belong, things stacked on the floor and so forth.
I knew I probably had a “few” things
that needed to go, but I never imagined we would wind up filling SEVEN large
leaf bags and two more regular kitchen size trash bags. Most of it was
mine. You know, sweaters from 15 years
ago, t-shirts, dress shirts, tennis shoes, dress shoes, jackets, shorts, you
name it! Some of the items were out of
style or worn out, the rest were things I just knew I would be able to fit back
into someday, but haven’t yet.
We as Christians need to take time
to clean out our spiritual closets. The apostle Paul told the church in Ephesus
to “make the most of every opportunity,
because the days are evil (Ephesians 5:15-16).”
If we want to mature in the faith,
we should take inventory of what’s taking up space in our lives. Jesus told the
parable of a man who did some spiritual house cleaning, but his strategy didn’t
work. Jesus explains why:
“When an impure spirit comes out of a person,
it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I
will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house
unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven
other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the
final condition of that person is worse than the first. That is how it will be
with this wicked generation (Matt 12:43-45).”
Spiritually, we cannot stop with
simply cleaning out bad or useless things from our lives. We must replace them
with good things that will help us in our spiritual walk so that we do not fall
back into bad habits. It is also
important to understand that just because you have a free hour in your day,
that doesn’t mean you must fill it with the first good deed or project that
presents itself. It’s okay to say no. Sometimes,
it’s better to serve God by filling that space with some time just for you, to
pray, to think, to read, to just breathe, de-compress, and be thankful for
God’s blessings. Too many good things crammed into your schedule will empty
your cup, and deplete your abilities to bless the lives of others. When
Christians are too busy, we become B.U.S.Y.
That’s short for “Being Under Satan’s Yoke.”
This week, pray for God’s help to
de-clutter your life, and still give you opportunities to bless the lives of others. Have a great day!