Lessons from a Vacuum Cleaner

I like having my house clean. The smell of fresh sheets, the dust-free furniture, the shiny bathroom, the mopped floors, the spotless kitchen...its such a feeling of accomplishment! One of my favorites is to see the lines in the carpet parallel from vacuuming (if you are slightly OCD like I am, you know how hard this is to accomplish). For the past few weeks our vacuum cleaner had been making a funny noise. I checked it for a loose connection and cleaned out the dust container. It didn't fix the noise, but since it still turned on, I continued to vacuum attempting to line up the marks in the carpet and make it look as neat as possible. I soon got used to the noise and didn't think anything else about it. Two days ago, it was time to empty the dust container again. As I did this, I found the filter and saw that it was black and filthy. I scraped at the dust and found yet another layer of filth underneath. I managed to get it clean and let it dry. I reassembled the vacuum and vacuumed the house again. What a difference it made! The noise was gone and the carpet was clean!

You may not think much about this event, other than "Priscilla, how gross! How do you not clean out the filter?" but it caused me to reflect.

Psalm 147.10
"He delighteth not in the strength of the horse, he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man."

I want to draw your attention to the phrase "he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man." This phrase speaks of how God is not impressed with our strength, abilities or attempts to live a life pleasing to Him.

My vacuum experience reflected my life. I had tried to work properly, perform effectively and keep all the lines straight in my life, but my filter was dirty. I outwardly "worked" and looked good, but the results of my attempts did not meet the quota. God was not impressed with this. My filter needed cleaning. The answer is verse 11: "The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy." Until I began to truly fear the Lord again, my attempts to please Him were futile.

Psalm 112:1
"Praise ye the LORD, Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments."

We cannot fear God if we do not delight in His Word. This is the key. The way we love our Bible determines how we love the Lord. Only through the Word of God can our filter be rid of gunk, only through His Word can we delight in his commandments and fear Him. And only then can we fulfill our true purpose and please the Lord outwardly as well as inwardly. We need to stop trying to please God our way and start learning to do it His way. Let us refuse to run on a dirty filter and let us refuse to do less than what God will enable us to do.