Sunday, October 17, 2010

Housecleaning

Proverbs 13:20 NIV
He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harms.

So a few days ago a friend of mine came over and critiqued my housekeeping. Let me preface this by saying I am a HORRIBLE housekeeper. I keep my kitchen and bathroom clean, but other than that, I have a bad habit of hanging on to things a lot longer than I should. As a result, I have powerpoints from freshman year for a class I'll never use...but I have them!

It kind of makes me think about housekeeping in other areas of my life. How often am I willing to hold onto grudges, instead of simply tossing them aside? Much like my old powerpoints, some things simply need to go.

I also have a picture frame that recently got broken. Inside it contains a document which is very near and dear to me, one that took years of hard work to accomplish. As I was going through things, I made the decision to ditch the frame, but to keep what was inside. It reminds me somewhat of some friendships. We spend years cultivating them, and then, over petty things they are broken, cast aside, and ultimately done. But what remains inside, the memories, the experiences, those we can carry with us, long after the shell is gone.

This may not make much sense to anyone but me, and I guess it really doesn't have to. I've learned over the last few weeks, and really this weekend, that much like Proverbs says, if we choose to walk with those who are wise we in turn grow wise. But when we walk with fools, harm is sure to come.

It's time for me to do some spiritual housecleaning, to let go of some things, to make amends with friends, and to move on from others. At the end of the day, the Lord created this house, and it is up to me to fill it with things that bring him joy.