The mess we have hidden

There are some mess in our lives that are easy to deal with. Look around. There are things screaming at us, wanting our attention. Maybe it is something simple like a piece of paper on the floor that we could easily pick up or something that requires much more time like folding our clothes, or something more tedious like cleaning our house. Those things can be dealt with in a straightforward manner. We can pick that piece of paper up. We can fold our clothes. And we can clean our house any time. But there is one kind of mess that is harder to deal with — the mess we have hidden.

The mess we have hidden is hard to see because, at times, we no longer categorize it as a mess. We might have convinced ourselves a long time ago that whatever that mess is, it is good. This mess is not one specific thing, but it is different for each one of us. Some of you might already have an idea of what that mess is in your life, but for those who haven't yet, let me give an example. The simplest one I can give is entertainment. Entertainment in and of itself is not bad, but it becomes unhealthy for us when it no longer serves its purpose. From the moment we wake up to the moment we sleep, we keep thinking about the things that can entertain us. That’s when it becomes messy. It started good. It served the purpose of keeping us sane for a moment. Moments when we are overwhelmed at work. But there comes a time when it no longer does that, but it does more harm than good. We just can't admit to it.

That is just one example. There are different aspects of our lives that are messy but we don't see it that way. We keep on ignoring it until the point when we no longer can’t. It shouldn't be that way. We must be willing to put every aspect of our lives under scrutiny and leave nothing unchecked. Allow God, just as David did, to check our hearts.

Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties;

And see if there is any wicked way in me,And lead me in the way everlasting.

Psalm 139:23-24