If you have ever been in a cave, you’d know that it is not the most enjoyable place to be – the darkness, the insects, the dust, the trash, the dirt. Entering caves is an adventure in itself and not an experience that just about anyone would jump to.
My heart is sometimes the same, filled with the remnants of what was once alive, memories that are rotting in the corners, and undealt with trash lying around. Bits and bobs clutter our innermost being, and we may be too disgusted or ashamed to face them. We pretend that they don’t bother us as much as they should. After all, if we do not look into our heart every once in a while, all the trash would go unnoticed. It is not easy to deal with the issues that are stored within us and work through traumas that we would rather forget to avoid feeling the same pain again.
However, if we cannot love ourselves enough to work on our own problems to live a full and free life, how can we be expected to love others unconditionally? Getting rid of our hurts and grudges allows our heart to have more space for the love that we want to give to others. This Christmas let us not allow the litter to clog our hearts. If our heart is full of regrets, failures, negativity and criticism, it cannot overflow with the love God calls us to show to one another.
If you’re too ashamed to let God in because you think that you are not worthy or you think you need to have a perfect heart to let Him in, I invite you to think again. Jesus is so used to the reality of human brokenness that He was born in a cave, showing us that He can be present and bring hope even in the dirtiest, most abandoned and lifeless of places. We do not need to be afraid to invite Him into the areas of our life that we feel are useless, hopeless or without reason. With a simple prayer, Jesus can do great things in us and with our life, so I encourage you to take that step and allow Him to transform you. He will not come where He is not invited so it is up to us to pray that He is present in our life. It is this step that God needs to be able to make space for the love our heart desires so much.
So what are you waiting for?
The corners of your heart aren’t going to clean themselves.
Heavenly Father, thank you for wanting to be present in my life, for caring about me personally and for desiring to have a relationship with me. Give me the grace to be able to take that step closer to You, inviting You to come into my life to overflow my heart with Your abundant love. Teach me to work through the issues in me so that I will be more open to the blessings that You grant us so willingly. Replace the negativity and bitterness in me this Christmas with Your joy, peace and love, today and throughout the years to come.
“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
Proverbs 4:23
Written by Sarah Zammit Munro