Set your house in order. . . 2 Kings 20:1, Isaiah 38:1

It’s that time of year again when we are spring cleaning properties for summer guests in Montana.  This old body of mine is crying out, “Stop, no more!” as I stoop to wipe one more baseboard or reach to wipe one more door frame.  But at the end of a long day (and week), there is the satisfaction of a job well done.  

 

Sometimes I wonder if God knows how I feel about housekeeping. Does He know I’d rather be writing or working in the garden?  Does He feel all my aches and pains?  Does He understand what housekeeping is all about? 

Yes!  He knows my heart.  Yes! He feels my tears and pains! Yes! He understands housekeeping! Didn’t He wash the whole world in Noah’s flood? Didn’t He send His only begotten Son Jesus to wash us clean by His blood?  Doesn’t He call us all to set our houses in order?

As I read God’s word each morning, I make a list of God’s housekeeping skills: 

Bathrooms are found in the wilderness, in the cool chamber, or in a cave:

Also you shall have a place outside the camp, where you may go out; and you shall have an implement among your equipment, and when you sit down outside, you shall dig with it and turn and cover your refuse.  Deuteronomy 23:12–13 (NKJV)

When he had gone out, Eglon’s servants came to look, and to their surprise, the doors of the upper room were locked. So they said, “He is probably attending to his needs in the cool chamber.”  Judges 3:24 (NKJV)

 So he came to the sheepfolds by the road, where there was a cave; and Saul went in to attend to his needs. (David and his men were staying in the recesses of the cave.). 1 Samuel 24:3 (NKJV)

Sweep away evil:

“I will also make it a possession for the porcupine,
And marshes of muddy water;
I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,” says the Lord of hosts.  Isaiah 14:23 (NKJV)

Cook up holiness in the kitchen:

Both with the showbread and the fine flour for the grain offering, with the unleavened cakes and what is baked in the pan, with what is mixed and with all kinds of measures and sizes.  1 Chronicles 23:29 (NKJV)

Yes, every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holiness to the Lord of hosts. Everyone who sacrifices shall come and take them and cook in them… Zechariah 14:21 (NKJV)

And the Lord said, “Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has.  Luke 12:42-44 (NKJV)

Wash Dishes in judgment:

… I will wipe Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down. 2 Kings 21:13 (NKJV)

Isn’t it special how God includes these housekeeping verses in His Word?  It shows how He cares about the mundane tasks of our day to day lives. He makes His word relatable to all His readers, including something for everyone, from housekeepers to fishermen to hunters to athletes to construction workers to investors. Yes, He has words for everyone. And the Lord sends other blessings as I head to another day of cleaning—a cheering text message from a friend and a butterfly outside the door…Yes, God, the Master Housekeeper, is so good all the time.

Today’s TEA CUPP: Dear Friend, perhaps you’ve been called to do extra spring cleaning this time of year, like me. Or, perhaps you are moving and must clean both the temporary home you are in and the new home you hope to move into. Or, maybe you have the regular chores of a busy mom and the challenges of organizing a busy household. Whatever your tasks, remember that the God of heaven and earth knows you and sees you and loves you.  Keep serving Him with all your heart, dear one! 

 

Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Luke 12:43 (NKJV)

For though I am absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ.  Colossians 2:5 (NKJV)

Let all things be done decently and in order. 1 Corinthians 14:40 (NKJV)

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.