“That’s it! Starting next week I’m going to keep my room clean for the whole week,” my daughter exclaimed just after we finished cleaning her room.
“Starting next week?” my husband asked. “Why not start now?”
She laughed at his silly notion, but for my daughter to keep her room clean for a week would be like running a marathon. Heck, even keeping her room clean for one day would be like running a 5k. Sure, to some it’s totally doable, but not for my sweet and loving eight-year-old. She is a crafter, an artist, a collector of the tiniest little trinkets because “someday I might use those when I’m creating something,” she says. She is so much more artistic than I was at her age, yet for someone who needs to constantly be doing something, she sure has a hard time keeping her room clean. Yet, every time it’s clean, she says how great it feels and that she’s never going to let it get “that” dirty again.
Do you have one of those kids too? Or maybe your whole family is that way. Or maybe it’s just you, and you become crippled at the thought of cleaning your home because it’s just too much work.
Trust me. I can feel that way too sometimes. One day my kids asked, “Why do we have to clean up? No one is coming over.” I laughed because, yes, they were right about no one coming over, but there is so much more behind just having a neat and tidy home.
Because we love to nurture and take care of those around us, we desire a comfortable, relaxing environment for our friends and families. And I believe our homes can reflect that.
When we choose to realize that our daily chores are not merely the mundane stuff on our to-do list, but that cleaning our spaces is one of the ways we can serve our families out of love, we change the atmosphere in our homes! Did you know you have the power to do that? You have the ability to spread joy and speak life throughout your home. The opposite is true as well. You have the power to grumble and complain about life’s duties while spreading discontentment around your home. I personally know that unwelcome feeling. It happened when I was visiting someone who was complaining about her home’s appearance.
When I choose to change my heart attitude from resenting cleaning to seeing the effect it has on my family, I jump for joy, just like my eight-year-old when the seemingly impossible task of cleaning her room is done. My reason for completing these mundane tasks changes, I am filled with joy, and love pours out on my family. And then something magical happens! It inspires them to pour out love too!
Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. Philippians 2:14-15
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