-So clean house! Make a clean sweep of malice and pretense, envy and hurtful talk.
–1 Peter 2:1
-“…Then it (impure spirit) says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean, and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition is worse than the first.”
–Matthew 12:44-45
-Nature abhors a vacuum.
–Aristotle
-Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new!
–2 Corinthians 5:17
I found “Little House in Sioux Falls” the first day I ventured out with the realtor. Love at first sight…or, in my case, “You had me at the front porch.” A month later, an hour after the closing, I stepped over the threshold, loaded down with all the implements and potions required to scrub away weeks of neglect.
But first…I set everything down, and made a “preliminary sweep,” room by room…
“Okay…uh…hello…’House.’ I’d like to introduce myself. I’m Shelby, the new owner, and I am a follower of Jesus Christ. If there’s anything from the enemy, any ‘squatters of darkness’ holed up in here, I’m telling you right now to get out. You. are. not. welcome. here! I speak the name of Jesus over this entire place. I proclaim that I and this house belong to Him. This is God’s house, so MOVE ON, because we are moving in!”
Then I opened some windows to drive the point home.
Once everything (including the fridge…ghastly) was sparkling anew, in came the furniture, the boxes…
and one inestimably precious housewarming Gift.
His Love…
Lighting up every space and corner.
My head and heart had undergone a similar procedure when I came to Christ. There was still a lot of “residue” from the old life that needed to be cleared out. All praises to my Lord, He offers the best Cleaning and Restoration Service money can’t buy! All I had to do was ask Him, and there He was…at my door. I greeted Him by Name, apologized/repented for the mess, and then got out of the way!
He entered in…
Broom in one of His scarred hands…
And a suitcase in the other.
My Friend…
My Roommate…
My Savior, Jesus Christ.