Advent : preparing our hearts, preparing our homes {Week Two}

We're continuing on our Advent journey of preparing our hearts as we prepare our homes.

This season can be so focused on making sure everything gets done, and when our to do lists take precedence over everything else, our souls suffer and we burn out quickly. I want to spend this Advent building up my relationships with other people, being intentional about preparing my home for the holidays, treasuring the gift of Jesus come to us, and preparing my heart to receive him once again this Christmas.

So here's the plan for week two!

Monday, December 9

Heart: Isaiah 66:2

This verse begins with the reminder that God has made all things. I often forget that everything, absolutely everything in my life is a gift from God. Sometimes I think that my own effort "made" these things into being. Spend time today giving thanks as you clean, and to confess any areas of ungratefulness or entitlement.

Home: Shoe Spot/Entryway

Ah, the entryway. We live in the country, and things get pretty muddy around here. There is always dirt (and gravel, mud, leaves, grass, etc) getting tracked into the house. Take some time today to clean up the place where all the dirty shoes go in your home. For me, this is our entryway. If you have trays or rugs for shoes, wash them, too.

Tuesday, December 10

Heart: Matthew 11:29

I don't know about you, but I spend too much time trying to do everything by myself. Asking Jesus for help with my little tasks and my little struggles often seems... well, whiny. Jesus wants us to learn from him and to be yoked together with him. To find rest. Whatever it is that you've been struggling with lately, take some time to pray about it today, even if it seems small or silly, even if you think you should be able to handle it by yourself.

Home: Baseboards

I never clean my baseboards. Ever. So they're usually covered with cobwebs and dust. Let's get them shined up today!

Wednesday, December 11

Heart: Ephesians 4:1-3

Think about your relationships with other people. Where could you use more gentleness? More patience? Where do you struggle to bear with another person in love? What relationships could use more unity? Reading these verses bring several people to mind for me. Take some time as you work on your house today to pray for the people God brings to your mind, and ask Him to show you opportunities to nurture or heal those relationships.

Home: Kitchen Floor

I am a messy cook. I'm always dropping something. So my kitchen floor could use a deeper cleaning than it typically gets. Scrub your kitchen floor, clean any floor mats or rugs... just give it a good once over and get those nooks and crannies that sometimes get missed.

Thursday, December 12

Heart: Matthew 23:11-12

I'll be honest, I'm a terrible servant to others. I will serve... but usually only if it's something I wanted to do, anyway. Is there any place in your life that pride gets in the way of God's calling? Is there anything that God has been asking you to do that you haven't done because you are too prideful-- like asking for forgiveness of someone, or admitting you were wrong, or doing that thing that is way outside your comfort zone? Take some time to think and pray about this while you work today.

Home: Toilet

I clean my toilet every day. A quick wipe down and swish and I call it done. But today, even if you're a regular toilet-cleaner, take some time to get it really clean. Use an old toothbrush. Scrub that thing down. Get all along where the base meets the floor. Super clean.

Friday, December 13

Heart: Mark 9:35

This conversation between Jesus and his disciples appears several times in the Bible. They were kind of competitive, those twelve. Honestly, I often find myself "competing" with other Christians. Sometimes that competition takes the form of comparison. Think about a situation recently in which you compared yourself to someone else. Ask God for perspective on that situation- perspective and a humble heart.

Home: Someone Else's Job

Today, the extra chore is to do something that is normally on someone else's plate. In my house, my husband has a couple chores that he typically takes care of. One of these is tossing out the kitchen scraps- and he does it because I really don't like doing it. Today, I'm going to do that job.

Make this task your own. Maybe a child of yours needs a little extra grace this season and has a chore that you want to take over for today. Maybe this doesn't even apply in your home, but you can take over a task at work for someone, instead. Whatever it is, find humility and charity in doing something extra for someone else today.

Saturday, December 14

Heart: Philippians 2:5-8

 Christmas is the celebration of Jesus abandoning the power and riches and glory of heaven to come to us. He, fully God, came to us as a helpless newborn, taking his first human breaths of air in a barn that probably smelled like manure. It's only because of the act of Christ's humility, his service even to death, that we have any hope of salvation at all. Today, take some time to think about the incredible gift that Jesus gave us by coming, by living with us, and by dying to save us, as undeserving as we are.

Home: Free Day

Is there a particularly dirty or un-glamorous job that just has to get done around your home? Now would be a great time to put on humility and do it. Or, of course, if you need this day to catch up on something else, or missed a day earlier in the week, you can do that today, too. Or if today is a day that you need to spend some time with family or in prayer, do that! You know what is most needed today.

There's Week Two! Stay tuned for week three!

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