What God is Teaching me…Through Laundry

I love being a wife, mother and homeschooler – I really do. I can’t imagine doing anything else with my life. But, I am not the greatest housekeeper. Oh I try, but it seems that most of the time I am far behind on the days work and feel like a chicken with my head cut-off. I don’t mind doing the dishes (most of the time), because I love seeing a clean and empty sink! It just makes me feel good.

But if I’m being honest with you (and the rest of the blogging world), I despise laundry. Everything about it – the gathering, sorting, loading it into the washer, moving it to the dryer, folding and putting it away – it’s just exhausting. And never ending!!

But, as I was folding the mound of laundry on our couch (the landing place for all clean laundry) the other day, God really used that time to speak to me. Over the past few months I’ve really been struggling with several things and teaching our oldest the importance of choosing God first in his life is at the top of the list. As I told the Hubster, this is something we CAN. NOT. afford to get wrong!! So, I’ve been praying alot about how to teach this to him (and all our children as they grow).

And that’s when He used the laundry to teach me. It’s starts with ME!!!

5 Things the Lord has Taught me through Laundry

1. Just because it looks clean, doesn’t mean it is. If you wear clothing all day, even if it’s just inside the house, it’s now dirty. There are little tiny particles of dirt and dust unseen to the naked eye, all over it. Our lives are the same way. Even though we may not have lost our temper or deliberately disobeyed our parents (i.e. committed a “big sin”) that day, we are not perfect. We are flawed human beings and there are always areas of our lives that contain sin. So whether we know of something specific we did that day or not, we need to ask forgiveness. And if we start to think we’re fine…pray for God to open our eyes to see what area(s) of our life He wants to clean.
2. It must be done everyday. At least in our house, there is always a load of laundry waiting to be done. While I might have empty laundry baskets at some point during the week, there will be clothes in them again by the end of the day. It’s much the same in our spiritual life. We need to be filled with Jesus Christ every second of every day. But since we are all sinners, we must also be washed daily in God’s grace and mercy. It’s not enough to “get our fill” on Sundays and/or Wednesdays. We must ask for it daily.
3. Sometimes I have to use extra cleaning agents. With tough, hard-to-get-out stains I use a stain-fighting agent to help rid the clothes of the stain. Sometimes I even have to scrub and work on the clothing to ensure it all comes out. And other times I have to do run it through the wash two or three times to completely remove the stain. God does that with us. He might start out by soaking us in His word and allowing the Holy Spirit to prick our hearts and show us the sin we need to deal with in our lives. And if that doesn’t work, He will start to scrub away the layers of sin that have clouded our view. He might even have to run us through the wash a few times until we can finally let go of that sin and the grip that it has on us. Much like those stubborn stains that take multiple washes to remove, God will continue to work on us until we surrender to Him.
4. Drying. Sometimes we find ourselves in the midst of a spiritual desert – with no water in sight. Sin can trap us in a lonely, desolate place where it’s often hard to see the way out. That’s when you just have to trust and take it one step at a time. Put one foot in front of the other. Immerse yourself in His word daily. Pray continually that the Holy Spirit would lead you out of this desert. Oh you might come upon some prickly cactus and thorns along the way, but you must keep going. He will never give up on you. And with the Holy Spirit living inside of you, He will lead you to the water – true LIVING WATER.
5. Folding and putting away. After the laundry is washed and dried, it’s time to fold it all and put it away. The purpose of this task is so that our clothes will be in their proper place and ready to wear another day. Our lives should be a reflection of our time spent with Him. If we were to put away clothes that were wet, they would mold and mildew. If we were to shove our clothes into a drawer rather than fold them neatly, they would be full of wrinkles the next time we went to wear them. If we ignore God’s Word for even a day, our lives get wrinkly. If we ignore God’s word for longer, our lives get moldy and full of mildew. Once a week laundry doesn’t cut it in our house. It’s a daily task, just like feeding our soul with God’s word. A great way to do this is to begin and end your day with God’s word and/or spending time in prayer.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”

God does not want anyone to perish. He sent his ONE AND ONLY Son, not to “condemn the world,” but to save it. He wants us to follow Him – DAILY. He wants us to allow the Holy Spirit to change us and mold us into the person He knows we can be. He wants us to commune with Him and lavish in His great love. He wants…US! Not just the parts that we think are “clean” enough for Him – ALL. OF. US.

Are you willing to give Him everything? What is God teaching you?

Blessings,

If God is teaching you through everyday circumstances and you would like to share it here on What God is Teaching Me Wednesdays, please email me at mommi (at) inallyoudo (dot) net.