Thursday, March 26

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put anew and right spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your holy spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain in me a willing spirit. Psalm 51:1-12


Several years ago a friend of a friend of mine came to the Sunday school class I was teaching and shared her Jewish faith and traditions surrounding Passover and the Jewish Seder. The children were full of questions and Rachel was full of answers. And her answers were in the form of stories. One story has stuck with me. Rachel called it the Spring Super Clean!

Every year Jews spend the weeks before Passover thoroughly cleaning their houses to remove every morsel of chametz [breads containing leavening] from every part of the home. My friend, Rachel looks forward to it every year. Her sister, her mother, and now her daughters join her in this task. They always start in the kitchen, as she put it, the heart of the home. Every drawer, every cabinet is emptied, swept, scrubbed, relined. Every dish, every glass, every utensil, every piece of silverware was cleaned. Every can, every box, every bag is wiped down. Once the drawer or cabinet is completely cleaned, she tapes it closed to remind her that it’s been clean, but more importantly to keep it chametz free. Once her cabinets and drawers are clean its on to appliances and then floors, windows and sills and the counters not forgetting the cracks and crevices. Each room is cleaned with the same intensity.

Now I’m not the best housekeeper and I don’t particularly like to clean. It’s not on my top ten list of things to do. But every spring when the birds begin to sing and the flowers begin to appear the mood hits and I am inspired to clean, clean, clean. I do some of my best thinking when I clean. During the season of cleaning, I tend to be more introspective, examining relationships… Relationships with my family, my friends, my colleagues, my God. I do a spiritual inventory of sorts. I ask questions like… Have I invited God into every part of my life? Do I recognize God’s voice through the chaos of my daily life? Is my prayer life what it should be? Do I recognize God in everyone I meet? It is always a humbling exercise.


Thank you God that in your grace you offer us all we need to start again. Create in me a clean heart, O God and put a new and right spirit within me. Amen.

Jane Carden, Youth Ministry Coordinator