Tackling a Tangled Mess

The last few days we've been cleanin' ..... more of a PURGING. DEEP KINDA cleanin'. Took the van to the car wash. Was nearly GIDDY to see the suds wash away the filth. It felt GOOD to see it SHINE The refrigerator was next. I was apprehensive about what I'd find there. Tempted to get a tetanus shot before I tackled the shelves and threw out any food that might have been past it's time. I was pleasantly surprised to find a dessert I'd forgotten about And once again.....I sighed with pleasure The fridge was CLEAN. And it felt GOOD.......
But we too have also been cleaning HOUSE. Like......really cleaning HOUSE. Sitting down as a family and talking about areas we may have allowed filth to accumulate. Things we've overlooked. Things we've allowed over time that once were off-limits. Convictions we stood firm on that maybe we began to become lazy about. (we----meaning ME----as their MOM. Since I am the one responsible to teach them the WORD and hold FAST to their convictions and STAND on the Truth. No matter how "trivial" the matter as the world may see it.)
And me personally......my OWN heart.
Apprehensive at all I might find there......
But refusing to go another day without addressing any of it.
Purging things that didn't belong there.
Sin, unforgiveness, bitterness, apathy.
Praying for the Lord to restore my heart to the place when it was all so NEW.
To shine a light on anything I might have missed. To not leave any stone unturned. Anything left unaddressed. It is a *DAILY* process......but if left unaddressed.....becomes such a GREAT matter that takes quite some time to sort through it all. Almost seems overwhelming. How GREAT a tangled mess it all is. How intimidating it looks to even BEGIN to tackle it.
But to stand back and say, "Look at her SHINE."
Now THAT'S a good feeling....and worth the pain and grief of having to clean it all out. There's no greater feeling than knowing I am standing before my Father.....with NOTHING to hide. Willing to show Him the mess....no matter how tangled it is......and surrender it to Him.
His GRACE will cover it all. And He can redeem any mess. Restore it all until what's reflected is HIM I pray that all that I am ----- looks less and less like ME and more and more like HIM. That HIS likeness is what you see when you look at ME.