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And you thought “Lent” was over….<3

Lately our dryer has been taking a lot longer to process a load and I feared we were looking at a repair or replacement as it seemed I was restarting it two and three times. 

I decided to check the vent out back on Tuesday and lo and behold…I found the problem, Houston. 

It was absolutely packed with lint. 

Thus began the tedious task of removal.

The vent has a grate with little squares that are just big enough to poke the end of a pair of scissors or my pinky finger into, however cleverly designed so as to not allow either of these items room to bend. 

So I sat on the gravel landscaping, behind a lilac bush and picked out tiny bits of lint for what seemed like eternity. 

As I got some of the impacted grossness freed, it became a little easier to pull larger pieces as I manipulated the scissors more effectively.

I discovered I could use my pinky and the tip of my pointer finger in a kind of Edward Scissorhand’s fashion. 

The more I loosened, the more the blistering hot air from the dryer baked across my scraped fingers. Because of course…I was running the dryer through the whole ordeal.

I will say that the constant rubbing of plastic edging across the end of my finger along with the blast of heat was only enhancing the aching that had begun in my back…not to mention sitting on…hello…decorative gravel. 

All in all, I was quite relieved to see that my efforts were producing results and I saw a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel, when suddenly I heard a rather violent whooshing sound and bam! 

A whole new load of lint was suddenly straining against the grate. 

Yes…apparently all this freedom of air passage had loosened chunks buried deep back in the hose and there was a fresh new clog to deal with.

I may have cried a little. 

But by golly, I am a stubborn woman so I kept digging it out…piece by fluffy piece. 

Mercifully, the last load was lighter and easier and finally…we were lint free and back in the business of drying clothes in an efficient manner again.

And I thought; as I lifted my creaking body up from the gravel and limped back into the house…as I applied melaleuca to the scratched up, toasted cuticle around my fingers…as I debated scheduling an emergency trip to the chiropractor but nixed it because I just didn’t want to explain how I threw my hip and back out cleaning a dryer vent…

this is much like my life.

As I go along, suddenly I find that I am not functioning at the capacity I know I should be. 

I wonder how to fix it, and discover there is a build up of some kind…

* spiritual neglect

* negative overflow of the heart

* a roadblock of bitterness and resentment because I haven’t addressed some unforgiveness 

* coveting what others have

* ingratitude for what I do have

* gluttony over food or memories or attention-seeking or possessions

* comparison and over-thinking what other’s might be thinking

* procrastination and distraction to avoid doing the mundane parts of my responsibilities

All kinds of gunk that builds up in me. 

And so I start getting serious with seeking God and hearing what He has to say. 

I allow Him to work in me and we start pulling out some heart clutter. 

Progress is made…the Spirit is flowing more freely in my life…and whooooooshhhhhhhh!!!! A big old hunk of more of lint comes flying out of nowhere.

It looks like God and I are back to square one. I consider throwing in the towel because it appears all the work we did…was for naught. 

But just like my little cleanup project on Tuesday…it may be painful and tedious, but there is an end in sight. 

Keep plucking away by cooperating with God as He helps you cleanse your heart from the yuk-stuff of just living on planet earth. 

Our souls are saved but they are not maintenance free. We have been regenerated…reborn…but we need check ups and repairs along the way. 

Yes, God does the work in us…but we are not released from the labor.

From His word to us through the apostle Paul as written in Philippians 2:12-13

“Dearest friends, when I was there with you, you were always so careful to follow my instructions. And now that I am away you must be even more careful to do the good things that result from being saved, obeying God with deep reverence, shrinking back from all that might displease him. For God is at work within you, helping you want to obey him, and then helping you do what he wants.”

Yes, we must sit cross-legged before the vent of our life and be willing to labor…but it is God who works with us and through us to both WANT TO…and TO DO…that which is needed to live like people who are saved.

Bless you…and you thought “Lent” was over…LOL…have a good day <3

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