Why Cleaning Your Plate Isn't Enough

Pursue righteous, faith, love and peace, 

along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

2 Timothy 2:22

Clean your plate. It was my mother's 11th Commandment. Obedience to this order came with big rewards...and I'm not just referring to an expanded waistline.

Cleaning your plate meant you got to eat desert.


Cleaning your plate meant favored child status.


A clean plate was a happy plate and I delighted to make my parents pleased. Today when my plate gets full, my first reaction is to clean it. A clean plate is a happy plate. 


We chase joy as we whack activities from our schedule.


We dart after peace as we organize our desk or scrub our floors.


We hunt contentment as we slash responsibilities from our life.


As we clean our plates, we take the first step toward freedom from over commitment. In the elusive quest to get more out of life, cleaning our plates is not enough. An orderly life gives us a framework to honor God but it does not draw us closer to His heart. 


We need to step out of our busy schedules and into the presence of God.


When we pursue Him, joy chases us.


When we pursue Him, peace darts into our hearts.


When we pursue Him, contentment hunts us.


There is a bigger reward than cleaning your plate.


If you stepped out of your busy schedule and into His presence, what do you think you'd experience?

Transforming Prayer - Lord Direct Me

My husband and I are contemplating building or buying a new home. It’s not the lengthy process of packing and unpacking that boxes my heart in distress. It’s not the mound of decisions and details that pushes my emotions to the edge. It’s two words – show condition.

Show condition.

Has my house ever come close to this standard? I’ll give you a hint. My first name isn’t Susie and the bunny doesn’t just hop by our home on Easter. The six of us have occasional rabbit visitors of the dust variety.

The amazing thing is I’m okay with it.

I’m a natural goal setter and achiever. A paper with every item crossed off is beauty. Honestly, I’d rather get an “A” than a “10”.

For years I lived in a constant state of panic – too many tasks and too little time to complete them. I fretted over keeping my hampers empty and my pantry full. I stressed about holidays and ordinary days. My emotions and outlook rode the wave of my daily “to do” list. The more I accomplished, the better I felt.

With so much achievement my life had absolutely margin. There was no room for God to work in my home because I was too busy doing it all for Him. I decided to make a radical change.

I began to pray a simple daily prayer – Lord Direct Me.

I gave Him the pen to my notepad.

I offered Him my time to manage.

As I breathed this sentence throughout my day, He breathed peace into my home.

As I prayed Lord Direct Me, my home became less type A and more type Him.

Does your home need an extreme makeover? What would change if you breathed this prayer into the space of your home and heart?

Resurrecting Your Home Life

I married the love of my life on 6/5/04 at 3 in the afternoon. We entered the church as 2 and left as 1. My geeky math major heart beat wildly at the prospect. If I was completely honest though, I'd tell you we entered the church as 4 and left as 1. I brought two young daughters into the marriage with me. We all stood at the altar. We all exchanged vows. That day wasn't just the beginning of a marriage; it was the genesis of a family.

Day one we carted kids to school, churned out homework and activities. We married into the crazy stage of multiple kids most couples take years to encounter. Crazy is our honeymoon phase. We wanted to honor our marriage first as our most important human relationship. We desired to have Christ at the center of our family with time for family worship in the home around the dinner table. Our home life needed a resurrection. Every day can be a new beginning with these strategies:

First Things First
In our home the master suite is on the first floor. With our children tucked upstairs, we have a living representation of our family priorities. We have to fight for couple time. We leave our little kids with their older sisters and go on a weekly date because we believe our need to connect as a couple supersedes their need to socialize with friends.

We scratch for time together. We go on walks after dinner, "nap" on Sunday afternoons, kiss in the kitchen and hold hands at church. We make our minutes count and we count our minutes. With the combination of intentional time together and intentional use of the time we get, we keep our marriage strong.

Who's on Second?
We have four daughters who range in age from preschool to high school. One is receiving letters from colleges while another learns her letters. Our teens are highly involved in our church. A minimum of three nights a week they attend youth activities. They each participate in one activity at school. They have friends, school assignments and interests.

We could easily be a family who dines nightly at three different fast food joints and scarfs our food on the run in three separate cars. We choose something else. We schedule nights for family dinner. Even if our "banquet" is as simple as waffles and eggs or chicken pot pie, we gather together around our kitchen table. We can't connect if we're not together.

I say no to nights out with the girls. Scott says no to purely social evening outings with the guys. We limit our kids to one activity apiece. We say no so we can say to each other.

Wherever You Are, Be All There
This is my favorite quote my martyr missionary Jim Elliot. It reminds me to fully engage with my family whether we're cooking dinner over homework or riding bikes around the block. It encourages me to finish my housework early so I have time for house play. It beckons my heart to God each morning so I have enough of Him to be enough for my family.

Balance is a fight. Priorities are a struggle. It is a war worth waging. Just as Christ fought and won the victory for us on Easter, let's be willing to fight and win a daily victory in our homes. Let's live the resurrection so that Easter isn't an event, it's a lifestyle.