Cleaning House

Does cleaning your house ever seem intimidating?

Two weeks ago was like this for me-- I distinctly remember running the dishwasher on Wednesday but by Sunday not a single dish had been put away. For those of you who know how much I like to cook, you can imagine what that did for my counters. And you KNOW if I let my kitchen get like that, then you know there were 15 loads of laundry (not exaggerating), board games out, dead flowers in vases, floor hadn't swept since ridiculously long ago, dust you can write in, etc. I know-- really makes you want to come visit, right?

Does really diving into a life of prayer ever seem intimidating?
Intimidating may not be the right word. Perhaps overwhelming.

Here's the connection-- that weekend I didn't feel like making a move to clean anything because even emptying the dishwasher would lead me down a path that trapped me in my house for several hours in a fury of cleaning. Better to declare 24 hours of no kitchen duties and wait until later. Have you ever felt like that with prayer? That if you really wanted to take to the Lord everything on your mind you would need 10 hours? Better just to take a nap? I feel you.

I often feel the need to take things to the Lord like, one-sie, two-sie. You know-- yes Jesus I remember so-and-so! Thanks for reminding me-- they need your love right now or your favor or favor with men, your encouragement, healing etc. That is satisfying and full of trust and faith. Just like cleaning up the stack of paperwork that needs immediate attention leads to a sense of satisfaction and one loose end tied up. But I've been feeling the need for a deep clean.

It's been rare, but I've had the occasion when I get into a good rhythm with my house and the laundry basket never seems crazy overflowing because I've (or my amazing DH has) been keeping up with it, the dishes get put away right after I've done them, and the blanket stays folded on the back of the couch. Then when Saturday comes-- watch out!-- maybe the floor will get mopped! Maybe the closet will get cleaned out and salvaged for good will! Well I'll tell you what, I am craving a prayer life where the immediate needs are tucked away in the Lord's hands daily, the worries of the week have been put away regularly at the throne of Christ and when I do have the extra moment to spend-- really spend-- in prayer, we can work on praying through the real scrubs my life and my character need. I also want time where I can be still with the Lord and not feel like I'm catching up on a week's worth of need and thanks. I believe that this is the type of relationship God wants to have with us, too.

Any tips for keeping up with a growing list of prayer requests?