Tip of My Iceberg

When you choose the insanity of inviting close to one hundred people to your home for a barbecue, preparations need to be made to be able to be appropriately hospitable.

There are those who might think us a tad bit unhinged by having so many folks over at the same time. We lead busy lives and would enjoy having people over more frequently, but time restraints and simple exhaustion made that a bit of a challenge.

So we decided to do it all at once. It’s a group of people I work with, a new class every year, and we’ve done it every year for over a decade. We have a meal and water slides for all the families, and it’s a highlight for everyone involved. Even me. Yes, it takes work; the part that’s most distasteful to me is cleaning. I love inviting people into my home. If I could pretend no one saw the mess, the clutter, the dirt, I’d never hesitate to have people over.

I remember when we were growing up, we had weekly responsibilities for cleaning the house. The three of us sisters would each get a bedroom to thoroughly clean, we’d take turns with the bathroom, and we had to dust and vacuum the downstairs. My sisters have been far more faithful to replicate values of neat and clean homes than I have. I do my best, but frankly, I’d rather spend time with people than more time in my home as a domestic goddess.

We all lead messy lives. It may not be in the cleanliness aspect of our homes, but it’s definitely in the fact that life doesn’t ever fall into neat lines and spaces. Most people prefer to keep somewhat of a sense of control of their lives, choosing to know what to expect rather than having situations get out of hand.

The religious leaders in Jesus’ day were notorious for being picky about outward cleanliness. They had laws, regulations, and traditions that focused on the minutia of what they wanted to interpret as clean. And they lorded it over the Jewish people if they didn’t follow all those rules.

Jesus called them out on it. “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy–full of greed and self-indulgence! You blind Pharisees! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean, too.” Matthew 23:25-26.

Cleaning ourselves up to look good to others is a never-ending process, one where results shift with each new day. Sometimes we look good enough; other times the mess within oozes out and the rough in us becomes obvious.

Jesus offers us the chance to be cleansed of all the wrongdoing in our lives. It’s not a promise to free us from the bad we do–we still have choices, and as broken people, we’ll make mistakes. But once Jesus cleans up our hearts, He makes us presentable before God, once and for all.

“”But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, cleanses us from all sin. If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.” 1 John 1:7-9

Jesus offers to eternally free us from the penalty of the all the bad things we do. When he cleanses our hearts, souls, and minds, it’s a one and done–we’re free in Him.

It’s easier to clean my house in preparation to host a gathering. But I have to keep doing it–just because I clean my house this week doesn’t mean it won’t need it again in a few days.

I love the guarantee of a clean life in Jesus. No strings attached, no re-dos.