Thursday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time [404] Exodus 40:16-21, 34-38 Psalm 84:3, 4, 5-6a+8a, 11 Matthew 13:47-53

Weekly Guide for Daily Prayer

We use all sorts of house-building and cleaning metaphors in our everyday lives. The first reading where Moses builds the temple for the commandments to exact specifications made me think about these metaphors. We talk about putting our houses in order, though we don’t necessarily mean dusting or vacuuming. Or we talk about cleaning house and that’s not with a mop or a broom. We talk about having a good foundation. The metaphors also are apt for thinking about our relationship with God and about how we live our lives.

Though I freely admit I am inclined to clutter, I am working lately at trying to keep my desk and my kitchen table clutter-free. It’s easy to let things pile up. I think I don’t have time, yet when I make that effort and whisk away the clutter, I feel much better. It’s so delightful to come home to a house that’s clean. Sometimes we have to throw things away or give things away, as the fishermen who pull in the nets and choose the good and the bad.

Sometimes I let the clutter pile up in my spiritual house. I go through most of the motions, but rather than taking the time to really reflect and center myself, I say a few quick prayers. Rather than finding God in all things, I let the clutter of my life keep me from really seeing God in others. I have to remember how good it feels to stop the clutter and noise of everyday life and make myself quiet and with God. If I take the time to do that, I feel refreshed and ready for whatever comes next.  

I want to shake the dust out of my spiritual house and throw away the clutter.  That will be a good foundation.