Keeping it clean

I don't remember when I first became aware of dirt or of my ability to get dirt on me.

I do remember Saturday night baths in the kitchen at the Albion, Iowa, farmhouse, simply because they were so unique in my experience. Aunt Helen would pull out a huge galvanized tub and heat water on the cookstove, using corn cobs as fuel. Everyone went into the tub, one at a time, to emerge squeaky clean, including Uncle Floyd, who got first dibs. (Or is that first dips?)

It didn't occur to me then of course, but I wonder now if that shared bath water didn't somehow contribute to the phrase, "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water."

Housecleaning was something else again. I had chores like any other kid, but those mostly consisted of washing the dishes, folding laundry or ironing, all of which I manage reasonably well to this day. The finer points of housekeeping were a mystery that unraveled slowly over time. For instance, it wasn't until we forfeited our damage deposit on an apartment in Wyoming that I discovered that after defrosting a freezer, you should empty the icy water from the tray at the base of said refrigerator. Who knew? I suppose here would be a good place to note that the only class I ever failed was home economics. It was the sewing class, but I was far from the top of that class regardless of the coursework.

I had a personal epiphany about dirt -- who sees it when and why it matters -- as a young mother of three. My new friend Sonny was coming over for a one-on-one Bible study and she was due at nap time, so we could study uninterrupted. She had barely crossed the threshold when every speck of dirt in my modest home jumped up and screamed for attention. OK, that may be overstating it somewhat, but you get my meaning. I finally realized the nature of dirt. You don't notice its absence, but there is no escaping its presence, especially when a fresh set of eyes are looking at it.

I was reminded of this epiphany this weekend as Danny and I began to prepare for out-of-town company due later this week. Drop-ins are always welcome at our house, but drop-ins get potluck, both in the kitchen and as to the condition of the house. Expected company is a little different. We do our best to make sure they know they're welcome by preparing for their arrival. Fresh bed linens, several layers of dust reduced to a single layer -- you get the idea. It's all in keeping with the old saying, "If I had known you were coming, I'd have baked a cake."

The company is my recently married niece and her new husband. It's been a good many years since Traci has been at my house, in fact, I think she may have been all of 12 the last time she visited. Twelve-year-olds are incapable of seeing dirt, unless it is in a pile high enough to qualify for a game of "King of the Mountain." Now that she is keeping a house of her own, she won't miss a spot. Not that she'll be looking. Once again, the spots will clamor for her attention. It simply seems to be in a woman's nature to notice.

It's not that the house is mired in filth. It's not. We do a fair to middlin' job of keeping things picked up, the dishes are always done and laundry is an ongoing project throughout the week. I've even been known to descale the bathtub when company isn't coming. It's just not a priority. After all, it's our dirt, we're used to it.

Keeping a house spic and span is a lot like keeping a short sin account before the Lord. You see, dishes get dirty every day. So do hearts. And floors need to be swept regularly and an occasional mop job makes them look even better. Sometimes, it takes a fresh set of eyes to reveal the floor's deteriorating condition, so we know when a good down-on-your-knees scrub is in order. So it is with our sin-sick souls.

I've shared before that we humans seem to have a perpetual blind spot when it comes to seeing our own wretched condition. Oh, we can spot someone else's sin at 50 paces, just like we can spot the one shelf the dust rag missed the last time our neighbor dusted. But the dust on my shelf? Well, that's just a protective coating. And the sin in my life? Well, it's my sin, I'm used to it...

Housekeeping experts advise that the best way to keep your house "company clean" is to keep after it with regular scrubbings and scheduled maintenance.

The Lord offers much the same advice when dealing with the sin in our lives. In the first chapter of Isaiah he says, "... wash and make your hands clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, and learn to do right!"

To keep our hearts "company clean" so that people can clearly see Jesus lived out in our lives (as opposed to seeing him through the dirt and grime of our daily sin) we have but to return to the One who cleansed and cleanses still.

"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin." I John 1:7 (NIV)