Who Wants a Clean House?

It’s time for an interior (Spiritual) makeover!

Several years ago there was a show on television that I absolutely loved to binge watch: Clean House with Niecy Nash.

I love Niecy Nash with her sassy comebacks and tell-it-like-it-is candor (in love, of course).  Her main line of “Foolishness!!!” always followed after seeing the mess (foolishness) that was hidden behind the many closed doors that her and her design team dared to enter. I love the way that she not only addressed the mess that was in their home, which was just an outward sign of a deeper inward issue but she also addressed the cause and helped them come to a terms with finding a resolution.  During the yard sale where they had to sell off all of the non-essentials that had been holding them in bondage, they would inevitably try to sneak things back into the house that they thought they just couldn’t part with, but Niecy wasn’t having it, and would bring it right back outside. In the end, not only did they have a clean house after getting rid of all of the stuff that filled the walls of their home, but they were able to talk through some of their issues and get rid of the internal stuff that filled the walls of their internal home (their hearts and emotions).

As I hum the tune of the show in my head “Who wants a clean house?”, I’m reminded of the work that we need to do to in our lives when we become bogged down and overtaken by all of the “stuff” we’ve been holding onto throughout our lives; old, dead relationships; bad memories; fear, self-doubt, etc.  All of the things we need to get rid of so that we can be refreshed and renewed and move on to the next chapter of life with a new perspective. Romans 12:1-2 [NLT] reads:

Romans 12:1-2 [NLT] "And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice-the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him. Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect." 

We have to understand that we must renew our minds. God wants to bring us into a new level and renew our minds so that we don’t continue to walk around thinking, talking and living like the world does.

How Do We Renew Our Minds?  

The Old Way Has To Go!

Ephesians 4:17-24 [MSG] "17-19 And so I insist—and God backs me up on this—that there be no going along with the crowd, the empty-headed, mindless crowd. They’ve refused for so long to deal with God that they’ve lost touch not only with God but with reality itself. They can’t think straight anymore. Feeling no pain, they let themselves go in sexual obsession, addicted to every sort of perversion.

20-24 But that’s no life for you. You learned Christ! My assumption is that you have paid careful attention to him, been well instructed in the truth precisely as we have it in Jesus. Since, then, we do not have the excuse of ignorance, everything—and I do mean everything—connected with that old way of life has to go. It’s rotten through and through. Get rid of it! And then take on an entirely new way of life—a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces his character in you."

There are 7 Key Scriptures that provide instructions on how to renew our minds daily.

1. We must read and meditate on the Word of God.

Joshua 1:7-8 [NIV] "Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful."

2. If you profess to know Christ, live like it.

II Corinthians 5:17 [NIV] "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."

3. Let Christ be your example, not just in the presence of others.

God is the one who gives you the desire and ability to work for His good pleasure.

Philippians 2:3-5 [NIV] "3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus."

Philippians 2:12-13 [NIV] "12 Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose."

4. Begin to see yourself the way that God sees you and speak God’s Word over your life. 

Philippians 4:13 [NIV]"I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength."

5. Rejoice while you’re going through the transformation. 

Philippians 4:4-5 [NIV] "4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near."

6. Relax and Pray. Set aside a time to pray every day to pray and rest in Him and not be anxious.

Philippians 4:6-8 [MSG] "6-7 Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

8-9 Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.

7. Finally, understand that everything you go through in life is either a lesson or a blessing.  

If it’s a lesson it is also a blessing because that means you are growing in our understanding of who God is and His purpose for our lives.  If it’s a blessing it’s ultimately a lesson because when He blesses you, you show God and you see for yourself how you respond to the blessing.  Are you haughty, prideful, arrogant or are you thankful, praising and giving?

Just like Niecy Nash goes in and turns a hot mess into a treasured possession and a place of peace and rest, God does the same thing when He comes in to Clean House, so you can bring glory to His name.

So…Who wants a clean house?