Spring Cleaning and Prayer

How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand—when I awake, I am still with you. Psalm 139:17-18 NIV

Spring has arrived! Last Friday marked the end of winter, and we welcomed spring with open arms for those in the Northern Hemisphere. My friends in Africa and Asia who are moving into winter, bear with me. We know there is nothing like the feeling when plants start to bloom, grass turns green, days get a little longer, and birds sing sweeter. However, before Utopia settles in, you also see tornado warnings flashing across the screen, things turning yellow (only those on the US East Coast can relate), the sound of lawn mowers, and people coughing and hacking due to increased allergy levels.

Yet spring brings newness, change, and fresh beginnings. Heavy coats are stored away for another year, people sit outside, windows are opened, and the annual tradition of spring cleaning begins. “See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, and the cooing of doves is heard in our land. The fig tree forms its early fruit; the blossoming vines spread their fragrance.” (Song of Songs 2:11-13a NIV)

The concept of spring cleaning is rooted in religious and cultural traditions as well as very practical needs. It is a tradition dating back centuries, with different cultures and peoples using the changing seasons to deep-clean the house, clear out clutter, and open it up after the cold winter months. “The concept of deep cleaning and decluttering during the spring season can be traced back to ancient civilizations such as the Persians, Egyptians, and Romans. In these cultures, the arrival of spring symbolized a fresh start and was seen as an opportunity to cleanse both the physical and spiritual aspects of life.” (Unisan Direct newsletter)

Spring cleaning does come with a cost. Your body gets tired from the up-and-down motion, but it is rewarding in the end. It also makes you realize that your cleaning equipment needs a good spring cleaning. I couldn’t figure out why our vacuum cleaner kept quitting on me. I assumed we needed a new one, but fortunately, I didn’t click the buy now button on Amazon. The canister was empty, no apparent problems on the outside, but when I opened up the machine, the inside was clogged with paper and leaves. It took some time to clean out the inside, but once I did, the machine worked great. Sorry, Amazon, you lost the sale!

We understand that our prayer lives can become clogged at times, and it may not feel as effective as it once did. For some reason, our conversations with God might seem to disappear. Still, keeping our prayer life open to God should be a top priority. George Muller, a man known for his prayer life, once said, “The first great and primary business to which I ought to attend every day was to have my soul happy in the Lord.”

Prayer is often viewed merely as a habit or discipline to develop, and yes, while both can play a part, they are minor aspects. Prayer is more like our heartbeat, giving us life with every beat. “So we pray because we were made for prayer, and God draws us out by breathing Himself in.” (P.T. Forsyth)

Andrew Murray writes that, “In praying, we are often occupied with ourselves, with our own needs, and our own efforts in the presentation of them. In waiting upon God, the first thought is of the God upon whom we wait. God longs to reveal Himself, to fill us with Himself. Waiting on God gives Him time in His own way and divine power to come to us.”

It is easy to become preoccupied with trying to figure out why our prayer life seems empty. We assume this, or that is the reason God doesn’t respond to us. We work to resolve the problem instead of sitting quietly with God to hear from Him. We need to wait with the One who has all the time in the world. Psalm 139 is a beautiful prayer to meditate upon as you wait. “You have searched me, LORD, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, LORD, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.” (vs 1-6 NIV)

Spring cleaning is about deep cleaning, which means slowing down enough to really pay attention to what we are doing. The same will be of our prayer life; there will be times of fast praying, but if we want to really sustain our prayer life, it takes time to sit with God and be still. Jesus was never in a hurry, and that was especially true of his prayer life. Portland Pastor Christian Dawson said it well, “The people who followed Jesus first were all taken aback by Jesus’ prayer life. They were fascinated by it. Jesus woke up early to pray. When He was exhausted, He’d get alone to pray. When he was successful, He’d get away to pray. When he was in trial, He stayed up all night to pray. It’s as if the first work and the last work that Jesus was up to was always prayer. Our Rabbi lived something that’s so easy to forget: Prayer, more than anything else, fuels our love for God, His people, and His mission in the world.” (from Lead with Prayer, Ryan Skoog)

Heavenly Father, You made me for prayer, and I am most fully alive when I am in Your presence. Thank you for Your Spirit, which first moves me to pray, and which prays through me. I yield myself fully to you, Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me.

God is great!

Thank you for taking the time to read Prayer Safari, and I hope it will be a blessing and encouragement to you today.