As a child, that was the battle cry of Saturday afternoon. In a house of six kids and two working parents, Saturday was the only time the real cleaning could happen and my mom had a plan. Like a well-trained general she handed out assignments and then sent us to our tasks with the reminder that cutting corners (or not vacuuming them) wouldn't fly. Do your best, she was telling us. "Do it perfectly" is what I heard. After all, if Jesus was coming over he'd be offended by the lack of organization in my bedroom. Right?
Clearly, I didn't get what Jesus is really all about. I carried this misunderstanding with me into adulthood, often choosing to ignore the mess rather than cleaning it because the idea of cleaning like Jesus was coming over intimidated me. Jesus is perfect, so imperfection would bother him. At least, that's what I thought. This misunderstanding wasn't just applied to cleaning, either. Anything and everything in my life was under scrutiny. I was treating God like a distant and disapproving parent. In my mind he was sitting up in the throne room of heaven, clicking his tongue in disappointment over my lack of self discipline. The image sent me into a spiral of striving for perfection, failing, running away from God in shame over my failure, then striving for perfection again as a way to earn my way back into his good graces.
Sounds awful, doesn't it? Everything in my life became a train wreck of self pity and guilt, pulling farther and farther away from God because I didn't want him to see me in an imperfect state. "Jesus loves me," I thought, "but he doesn't like me and he wouldn't approve of me." What a sad and alone place to be in!
The truth is that God loves us just the way we are right this moment. He wants us to become better because he loves us and that love for us gives him a desire to see us at our best. But that love for us also gives him a desire to be with us as we are right now.
If Jesus was coming over, he wouldn't really care if there were dishes in the sink, or if I'd forgotten to vacuum the floor. My basket of unfolded laundry in the bedroom wouldn't bother him. If Jesus was coming over today, he'd be coming over to hang out with me. He wouldn't be here to judge whether I'm a good wife or whether I'm good at cleaning. He'd sit on the couch with me, maybe even drink some tea, and we'd just talk like old friends do. Because that's how Jesus is. Of all the names the Bible gives to God, the ones that Jesus claimed for himself most often are friend, brother, and companion. This is how his disciples knew him, and it's how he wants us to know him, too.
Today, take some time to connect with Jesus as a friend. This doesn't have to be ritualistic. You don't have to confess your sins first. Just be who you are, and think of Jesus as your best friend. I think you'll find it's a very relaxing experience.
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