Cleaning windows…the daunting task that has been hanging over my head all fall. Why? Because they are filthy—my husband casually reminds me of that, bless his heart—and winter is knocking at my door. Those of you who experience warm climates all year long may not understand this, but those of us without that luxury have to prepare for hibernation. In other words, we get ready for a long, cold winter stuck inside. We do yard work galore; put bikes, hoses, boats, and outdoor furniture away; take off screens; weatherproof the house; and yes, many, clean windows.

I’ll be honest. I don’t deep clean my windows nearly as often as I should. Probably…twice a year. Go ahead and judge. It’s okay, I can take it. I’m a momma of four boys, for goodness sake. Who has time to clean windows? I will admit, however, that I think about cleaning them every time I look out a rain-spattered, dirt-filled, hand-printed piece of glass hanging in way too many places in my house. Does that count for something? Honestly, all that does is remind me of this task I don’t have time to do. And quite frankly, I don’t want to do. And, whose idea was it to put so many windows in this house?

Regardless, I knew today had to be the day to clean the windows because it was above 50 degrees, I could make the time for it and my future options were limited. So, I set out for the task with a three-year-old helper by my side. I won’t go into major detail about how dirty my windows were, but as we were scrubbing the door to the deck, my son kept proclaiming with disgust, “Eew, this is so unbelievable.” We were not only dealing with dirt, but grime, and bugs and cobwebs. It was not an easy mess to clean, yet he was determined to make it happen.

As we continued to scrub and started to see the results of our cleaning, I began to feel this incredible sense of satisfaction and happiness at being able to see through my windows. Weird? Maybe. But, let me tell you…it propelled me to keep going until nearly every window in my house was clean. Whew! I wasn’t sure my son was feeling the same sense of satisfaction because he continued to proclaim, “This is unbelievable.” Yet this time, his perspective had sweetly changed. He was now exclaiming, “This is unbelievable,” because he could now see through the windows and was thrilled at how clean they were. Oh, the small joys.

I was amazed at how he could use the same word—unbelievable—to describe opposite experiences. Then it got me thinking about how that word can describe very opposite realities in our own lives. It’s always been a little unbelievable—perplexing—to me that we as human beings can sin over and over again, often committing the same sin. Can’t we learn our lessons already? We’re like a window that just gets dirtier and dirtier with each passing day as the sin and guilt piles up and clouds our vision for the future. Unfortunately, sin is just a reality of life. But so is grace.

The good news, the unbelievable—extraordinary—news is that we are made clean over and over again and the filth and grime is washed away. Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross wiped us clean from the sins of this world, and He continues to wipe us clean even when we don’t deserve it. As I pondered these thoughts, wondering if perhaps God was speaking to my heart, I was sadly reminded of how often I have forgotten to go to Him with my dirty, grime-filled, sinful heart and repent for the sins I’ve committed. Life gets busy, and sometimes we simply forget to go to God and ask for forgiveness. Or, we’re too prideful to go to Him. Or, we have such a big mess that we don’t fully trust in His grace and mercy. Or, our sins are small and we don’t recognize them. What happens then? Well, sadly, the grime and dirt of our sin builds up and overwhelms us. It steals our joy, our hearts begin to harden, and we drift away from God’s sanctuary.

Trust, first, in this truth—His grace covers us…always.

This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. Romans 3:22-24

But repentance is what God calls us to do.

“I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” Luke 5:32

“God commands all people everywhere to repent.” Acts 17:30b

Repentance breaks the chains of slavery and bondage. It frees us. It opens the door to have an intimate relationship with Jesus. It opens our eyes and hearts to see clearly His direction and guidance for our daily living and our divine purpose on this earth. When we repent, God not only promises to eliminate our sin, but to bring us spiritual refreshment.

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you—even Jesus.” Acts 3:19 & 20

Even more, when we repent, we are also promised the gift and power of the Holy Spirit.

Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Acts 2:28

And the fruits of the Spirit are joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Galatians 5:22) I yearn to feel and display these in my life. What’s holding you back from accepting the fruits of the Spirit? Is sin standing in your way?

The thing about cleaning windows that has always bugged me is that they don’t stay clean very long, so I’ve often wondered, “What’s the point?” The point is, no matter how dirty our windows are or how much time has gone by since we cleaned them last…joy and satisfaction to seeing clearly to the beauty outside awaits us. I can’t guarantee I will clean my windows more than twice a year, but I will commit to repentance. If you haven’t lately, I encourage you to repent and allow space for joy and peace to unearth and blossom in your heart and soul.

Breathe peace, my friends!

Natalie