Up close and personal.

So I clean for this elderely couple up the road from us. And when I mean clean - I mean CLEAN! When I was interviewed for the job I was told that I'd be doing some vacuuming, mopping, cleaning the shower and basins and a bit of ironing. I thought "Sweet! I can do that", and the pay is great for 3 hours of work.

So I turn up for my first day and the cute little lady shows me round and fills me on the way she likes the mopping done. I'm standing there thinking, "yay I don't mind mopping floors, it will be done quickly" when all of a sudden her words interupt my thinking and she says, "hands and knees with a sponge, is that okay?"

I say "yep sure that's fine", but meanwhile I'm REALLY thinking "you have GOT TO be kidding me!" Her next words brought a little comfort, "I've got knee-pads for you to use". Oh yay. So here we go. Not just one floor to 'mop' (which for me mop now stands for Mean On Purpose!), but there are four floors for me to do.

After a month and a bit of cleaning for this couple I've got the hang of sponging down a couple of dirty floors, and I've even learnt how to iron properly. I forgot to tell them that I don't iron. I just put Tim's work shirts in the hot water cupboard and WALA. Warm and only slightly creased - sweet!

So I was on my hands and knees today as it was cleaning day. And I started thinking about sin. Well actually I first started thinking about being Cindarella cleaning for her wicked stepmother, and then I got more spiritual and thought about Joseph being a slave to Potiphar, cleaning his floors.

But back to the thought about sin....For the last couple of weeks I've felt the hand of God heavy on me. Can you relate to this? When sometimes you almost dread being in His presence cos you know He is dealing with you? You can't quite put your finger on what He is doing but You know He is doing something there? Yes I see that hand thank you!

Now the house I clean is already a clean house. I mean it's like brushing your teeth for the third time in a row. So I actually have come to enjoy cleaning it every Tuesday. I was thinking about our lives, and how sometimes we think our 'house' (our heart) is clean, and sometimes we believe that if we were any more righteous than we are we might get caught up into glory with Enoch! But I've come to realise that even the cleanest of houses still have dirt. And it's not until you're down on your hands and knees that you see the grime and there it is - right infront of your nose.

But my point is that you have to get down on your hands and knees. Up close and personal. When we humble ourselves before God, we are then able to see our sin for what it really is, because we allow Him in our vulnerability to do so.

Rod's comments last Sunday really took hold of me. When we ask for the fire of God, He is going to purge us. Sometimes it hurts to see the state of our hearts and I sometimes come away thinking "ew, is that really in me?" I'll never sponge a floor down again without thinking about this!

But the best bit is when God comes and washes over the dirt and (like the mopped floors) leaves a clean, shiny surface that He can see Himself in.

Thank you God for knee-pads...



(Did I mention the fact that I got to clean with a toothbrush today? Yep, I'm sure there's some revelation in that one...)