The Home of Sacred Cows

Our pastor, Kevin McGuire, preached an amazing message yesterday morning about the Sacred Cows we have in our local churches.

Sacred Cow (noun): a structure or format that we put our ultimate value or worth in; see also, idol. [Term is derived from the golden calf account in Exodus 32.]

A sacred cow is something we place our ultimate identity in instead of Christ. Pastor Kevin expounded on sacred cows in the church such as youth group, senior citizens class, AWANA club, or nursery. Some church members will worship these structures or formats instead of using them as tools to be more like Christ. All of these things are good things, but idols are formed when we place ultimate value on something that is not.

As a wife & mom, I started thinking about the sacred cows that I might be harboring in my heart with regard to my home. I take great pride in my home and in caring for my husband and children. However, what could easily become an idol in my life? What sacred cows are hiding out in my home? What sacred cows are hiding out in yours?

Here are a few cows to think about & consider:

1) Cleanliness
There is a saying "Cleanliness is next to godliness."While I appreciate a clean house (see previous post), is my idol of cleanliness interfering with my relationship to my children? Am I more concerned about the state of their rooms than the state of their hearts? Am I inhibiting their free play and passions because I am trying to make a good impression? They are my first houseguests - they are only here a while (a very long while, but a short time nonetheless). Am I making my home a place for them to enjoy?

2) Schooling Methods
Am I making an idol of the schooling method I choose for my children? Am I critical towards others for the decisions they make for their families? Do I believe all public-educated children are hoodlums or all homeschooled children are socially stunted? For a great blog on this subject check out http://writingandliving.net/2013/04/24/homeschool-versus-public-school-a-few-thoughts/#comment-14156

3) Organized sports/activities
Of course every parent wants their child to excel at something, whether it is art, cooking, music, or sports (to name a few). However, is your ambition for your child's passion helpful or harmful? What kind of message are you sending them about how important these activities or sports rank on your list of priorities? Are you more concerned about how many wins their team has or about how they handle the disappointment of losing? Are you taking your children out of church community to join a more important sports community? (PS - a note to dads: don't live vicariously through your child's sports. It's pathetic, really.)

4) Food
Ah, this is a big one. Are we making food a sacred cow in our homes? Food is good. Food is excellent. Jesus ate with his disciples several times throughout scripture. Jesus fed the five thousand (and more) at least twice. He ate with the sinners, the harlots and the tax collectors. Food is a ministry. Churches have food pantries, most have fellowship meals, and donuts in Sunday school. In the past two decades though, it seems like there have been sacred cows concerning food cropping up in our homes (so many food puns, lol). Organic this, vegan that. Don't give your kid fruit snacks or he will be obese the rest of his life. Don't you know what's in those things?! With food, there are often two extremes. One is worshipping the belly and giving it whatever it wants, whenever it wants, without any restraint whatsoever. The other extreme is becoming so strict with your diet that nobody wants to have your judgmental self over for dinner. Lets be honest. Are we to be responsible with our food? Yes, absolutely. Our body is given to us by God and we should be gracious stewards of it. On the other hand, are our food choices interfering with the ability to fellowship with our Christian brothers and sisters? Are we really going to break fellowship over whether we eat at whole foods market or McDonald's for dinner? What about our children? Will they see us lusting after food and stuffing our bellies with our idol, unable to practice self control in this area of our lives? Will they become resentful toward us for thinking they shouldn't eat any high fructose corn syrup whatsoever or they might die? Are we putting our children's health up high on a pedestal when they are fallen, frail, dying creatures who need Jesus more than anything? Food won't save our children. Feeding them the exact right diet won't prolong their lives an instant longer than God graciously allows them to live.

So lets eat, drink and be merry to the glory of God, for yesterday we were dead!

Cleaning Lists & Such

Disclaimer: This post may not apply to everyone, but I hope it proves helpful to those who are in the same position as me. 

I will admit it: I LOVE a clean house. I love cleaning my house. I love seeing things converted from disorderly & chaotic to clean & organized. That being said, I have been struggling with the feeling of needing to thoroughly clean my whole house every single day, and feeling unorganized and discouraged at the end of everyday when it isn't done because it is CLEARLY an unrealistic goal. 

I was trying to think of a way to effectively streamline cleaning my house with two very young chillens running around & needing me at random times throughout the day. Obviously anything that gets done is undone in a matter of five minutes (or even less, if we are being truly realistic). I have come up with a weekly list of making sure I thoroughly tackle each room at least once a week. 

The strategy: 

1) Write down things that need to be done on a daily basis & also a weekly basis. 
(Since we live in a small apartment, I don't have things that need to be done monthly, but I am sure I will when we move into a house.)

2) Write down the days of the week. 

3) REALISTICALLY (according to your family's schedule & needs) put down specific chores to be done each day of the week, so that your whole house is cleaned every week - just maybe not all at the same time! ;)

Now, I just did my list two days ago, so I haven't completed a whole week yet. It may be a complete failure. We shall see. But if this helps anyone in the slightest, I will feel accomplished (even if I don't feel accomplished in cleaning my house - ha). 

Here's my list as an example: 

Daily tasks: 

• Make Beds
• Tidy
• Dishes
• Vacuum high-traffic areas
• Fill Humidifiers

Weekly tasks: 

Monday: 

• Laundry Day
• Change sheets on all beds
• Clean bathrooms (toilet in/out, floor, counter, mirror)
• Clean kitchen/foyer floor
• Disinfect kitchen countertop/dining room table
• Deep clean/organize* kitchen & living room & living room closets

Tuesday: 

• Dust living room
• Dust bedrooms
• Sort mail/pay bills/file
• Gather all trash & carry to dumpster
• Deep clean/organize* bedroom & closet

Wednesday: 

• Baths/Pamper day (trimming nails, hair cuts, etc.)
• Deep clean/organize* boys' room & closet

Thursday: 

• Laundry Day
• Bathe Dallas
• Clean bathtub
• Clean bathroom surfaces
• Deep clean/organize* bathrooms & linen closet

Friday: 

• Cleaning catch-up day
• Grocery/Errands Day

Saturday: 

• Baths 
• Prepare for church

Sunday: 

• Rest :)

*Deep clean/organize means moving furniture to fully vacuum, making sure everything is organized in its place & also purging at least one thing from the room/closet

(Disclaimer #43: We bathe more than twice a week but the baths written are set in stone to prepare for church - more of a "deep clean" if you will!)