Spiritual Spring Cleaning

By: Jenifer Metzger

Tomorrow marks the first day of spring and I am here for it. Fall is my favorite season, but spring is a very close second. I love watching the earth come alive again. I love seeing the trees begin to bud, the grass turn green, butterflies floating by, and all the colors of beautiful flowers growing. It is glorious!

As springtime approaches, many of us do a spring cleaning of our home. We get the windows washed, the deck cleaned up, and all that deep cleaning to prepare ourselves for warmer weather. Last week my husband and I cleaned all the closets and began cleaning the garage. It feels so good to get things cleaned up for spring and summer.

But what about our spiritual life? Does that need some spring cleaning? Here are a five ways you can do a spiritual spring cleaning this year.

Evaluate what you consume.

What TV shows and movies do you watch? What music and podcasts do you listen to? What books and magazines do you read? What social media accounts are you following? Think long and hard about it and most importantly, pray about it. Ask God to show you anything you consume that you need to eliminate. Maybe you watch a TV that has cursing and innuendos and God wants you to walk away from it. Maybe you are overly obsessed with social media and God wants you to dial it back. Evaluate everything you consume, everything you let into your heart and mind, and clean up what doesn't need to be there.

Evaluate your relationships.

Do you have a toxic relationship? Maybe this person is constantly making fun of you, hurting you, or even border-line abusive. Do you have a relationship with someone who tries to draw you away from God? Who invites you to outings when they know you have church or continually berates you for reading the Bible. Look at your relationships and pray asking God to help you know who to walk away from. Also pray that God would show you good relationships that you need to cultivate.

Evaluate your priorities and time.

Where are you spending the majority of your time? Do you prioritize Bible reading, prayer time, serving in your church and community, and church attendance? Do you spend more time scrolling through TikTok than you do in the Word? Do you spend more time watching TV shows than in prayer? Take a look at how you spend your time and what is most important to you and ask God to show you what needs to be laid down and what needs to be picked up.

Evaluate your church service.

Do you attend regularly or every so often? Do you attend mid-week services or activities or are you just there on Sunday? Do you serve in ministry at your church or do you just attend? We are not meant to show up on Sunday and just consume. We need to serve. Pray and ask God to show you where to serve in your church. Ask God to help you know how to get involved.

Evaluate your quiet time.

Do you make spending time with God a daily priority? Do you really read the Word or just skim through it? Do you focus at prayer time or bounce around with little attention on what you are doing? Pray and ask God to show you how to grow spiritually. Ask Him to give you a deep passion for His Word and conversation with Him through prayer. If you don't have a regular quiet time, ask God to help you develop one.

As we enter springtime, let's do a spiritual spring cleaning and make this a great season.

Discussion:
1. Which of these five areas will be the easiest for you? Which will be the hardest?
2. What are other ways you can do a spiritual spring cleaning?