Well, another winter has closed it's door, and we are well into another Springtime in Houston. For those of you who might be reading this from up north, we begin Spring a little sooner around here. Usually late February sees the last of the cold snaps and we begin to feel the first taste of what will soon be oppressive heat, humidity and another long Summer. And as we usher in warmer temperatures, there is one activity that we all seem to participate in to some degree: Spring cleaning!
Whether it's the the house or the yard, there is something about this time of year that causes that little cleaning "switch" to be flipped on, and we suddenly find new strength and motivation to tackle those jobs that have been put off since late September. It's almost ritualistic. All you have to do is walk outside on a Saturday morning and you'll see lawnmowers coming back to life, hedges being trimmed to reveal the houses that lay hidden behind them, and bags of mulch lining the flower beds, ready to be poured as the smell of manure fills the air! It's intoxicating! And before you know it, you have a rake in your hand, joining the troops of weekend warriors!
This year in particular, I've been pondering why we fall into this frenzy of Spring cleaning so quickly. What changes inside us that causes us to have renewed energy and motivation to begin this annual process? Is it just because the temperature is becoming more comfortable? Is it the smell of the flowers, grass and trees beginning to give birth to new life? Is it just a natural instinct that is implanted in our psyche that naturally aides us in keeping things organized and clean in our lives? Is it a little of everything? Well, one thing is for sure, we all begin to change, and this time of year it seems more apparent than others.
As we move closer to Holy Week and well into the forth week of Lent, I found myself reading the story of Jesus clearing the Temple in John, chapter 2. And it was no coincidence that I began to see the parallels to Spring cleaning. Just before Passover, Jesus makes His way into Jerusalem with His disciples. As He enters the Temple, He finds that the Jewish leaders, and people of the city have basically turned this holy place into a profit-making flea market. Animals were being sold for the required sacrifices for more than 25 times the normal cost, and money was being exchanged from Roman coins to temple currency at exorbitant rates. Needless to say, Jesus us furious by what He finds, and He decides to clean house!
Jesus grabs some rope, makes a quick homemade whip, and starts driving out the animals as well as the vendors. He turns the tables over and rebukes the money changers for ripping off the people of Jerusalem. Scripture says that Jesus had a deep passion for the Temple, after all, this building represented the very presence of God to the Jewish people. To Him, it was as if the leaders were trampling upon His Father with filthy shoes and spitting in His face.
Jesus knew what had to be done. Quite realistically, this had been going on for some time and Jesus finally reached the point of his ministry where He could no longer allow things to remain as they were. God's people had become complacent and apathetic toward the things of God, and much like we do in winter, they allowed firth to gather, inside and out.
I wonder if we are we any different. As with own homes, do we allow ourselves to be lulled into a complacent routine of spirituality? Do we ignore the dirt that has accumulated or just simply sweep it under the couch? Do we refuse to pay attention to the overgrown hedges and forget about the weeds that are beginning to choke the life out of newly forming grass? As winter drags on, I think we all do this to some extent. And as New Year resolutions begin to remain unresolved, we find that our spiritual lives have been left unkempt.
Over the next month or two, our kids will see us doing some Spring cleaning. They might even help lend a hand, and as with my own 2 boys, they will probably make more work for Mom and Dad as they "help"! But I see a two-fold teaching opportunity here. We can take the time to teach them about the importance "spiritual" Spring cleaning as well as a learning a good work ethic. But we can also ties this into showing them the importance of "maintaining" our spiritual live as well as gardens and homes. Let's use this as a time to tell the story of Jesus cleaning house, and how we should share His passion of keeping our Temples clean.
And have fun while your at it! Wear sunscreen!
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