Spring Cleaning and Creative Miracles

How do you wash your windows? Do you wash your windows? My sister is a window-washing pro. She’s got the squeegee, the streak-free cleaner, and the process down cold, beginning on the inside and then working on the outside.

I was standing in church last weekend and realized – I needed to be cleaned. I needed to be washed. I needed someone to take a squeegee to my life.

I looked good on the outside – hair, makeup, outfit – but inside, I knew something was amiss. Something was clinging to my soul and dirtying my heart.

“First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.” Matthew 23:26 NIV

If you read the book of Matthew, there’s a tense moment when Jesus called out the hypocrisy of the Pharisees, the religious leaders of the day. They looked so good on the outside, but inside, they were filthy and full of greed and self-indulgence. They made a show of their religion, but Jesus wasn’t fooled. He saw what was inside their hearts.

And, standing in church this past Sunday, Jesus was seeing inside my heart. I had let a bad attitude slip in – and I knew it. It was coloring my responses, flavoring my speech, alienating me from those I cared most about.

I knew it was not right. I was not right. Deep down inside, I did not want to be the person I was slowly becoming.

If I were 13, my mother would have told me I needed an attitude adjustment, but that sounds hard, like something I have to work up myself. I didn’t want to be this way.

What I needed was a creative miracle.

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10 KJV

Create in me a clean heart, God! Make my spirit new! That’s what I needed! Something way beyond an attitude adjustment; I needed a creative miracle. My heart “squeegeed.” My spirit was made new.

And so I prayed. Standing in the midst of God’s people in worship, I lifted my hands and offered my heart to God.

I confessed my sin. I asked forgiveness for the people I had hurt with my callousness. I acknowledged the bad attitude I had allowed into my life and asked Him to come. Make me new. Work Your creative power in my life.

I cried that day. Tears of cleansing, tears of godly sorrow, and tears of joy as my heavenly Savior did something new in me. It was a holy “spring cleaning” that I so desperately needed.

What about you? Is it time for spring cleaning?

The wonderful reality is that God’s creative work is not reserved for a one-time event at your salvation moment. To walk in this world and not be of it can be a challenge. Your feet get dirty; your heart can get dusty. Attitudes can creep in when you’re tired or weary or just plain too busy to notice.

The good news is that our Creator God can grant you a clean heart. He can create in you a new spirit. All you have to do is ask.