Finding Meaning in Passover Cleaning

Passover this year was a real doozy. NOTHING was going to plan.

We were trying to clean the house of leaven with limited time and we just kept getting interrupted! People needed this and that and visitors kept popping in… meanwhile the contents of my pantry were laid out in the kitchen. I hadn’t cleaned all the places that needed to be cleaned and I was running out of time!

And, then there was my heart. Ahh ! I was so frustrated with all this cleaning which seemed so pointless in the light of its real meaning. When were we going to see some real fruit to this? What is the point of all this cleaning? All this effort when we know the real meaning is not about cleaning the house!

Still, I cleaned. And as I cleaned, I prayed. “Lord, please cleanse me of all the sin in me.”

“Cleanse out the sin I cannot see. Cleanse me of the sin I don’t want to bother dealing with. Cleanse me of the sin others can see, the things that hurt and offend them that I just don’t see. Cleanse me of the sin I have become so accustomed to as part of my personality. Cleanse me of the sin that’s in places I don’t want to make the effort to deal with because it seems too hard. Cleanse me of the sin I don’t care about.”

For every place I had to clean, there was a new prayer. Under the couches? Cleanse me of the sin that no one sees but you, Lord. Behind the fridge? Cleanse me of the sin that is hard for me to deal with, that I need help to deal with. With every difficult, frustrating, bothersome cleaning task there was a prayer.

While I was out one day, running around doing extra things that I just didn’t have time for, my dear neighbour arrived at our house and saw my husband cleaning out the pantry. This lady has had so many hardships. A difficult, troubled life. We have prayed for her for years and tried to help her in any way we could. She inquired about why my husband was cleaning. I arrived just as my husband and children were explaining what Passover was about. This led to a big discussion about Yeshua being sacrificed for our sin… which lead to us sharing the gospel with her… which lead to her saying she wanted God in her life and to do what He said… which lead to me praying with her …. And her requesting Bible books for her kids…. And discussions about YHVH and Biblical things.

THIS is the whole point of Passover. SALVATION!

Yeshua died for our sins! He was the perfect lamb who was sacrificed so that our sin would be atoned for. He died for the sins of the whole world and He wants others to know it! He wants people to come into His fold.

I had been so frustrated with the cleaning aspect of Passover, but that itself was the reason that we were able to share the gospel with someone who we had been reaching out to for many years! YHVH is SO GOOD!

What a lesson He taught me about obedience. What a lesson it was in doing what He says, even if I don’t see the point in it or cannot see the spiritual benefit of it.

And guess what? He heard my prayers – about my sin. The following week he showed me so many things that I had not seen before. It wasn't pleasant to see these faults but it’s such a blessing that YHVH would love me so much to answer me and help me be more like Him. I was shocked; my sin was awful to me, but praise Him for His wonderful forgiveness through His sacrifice!

Praise Him! His plans and purposes are perfect. What we think is a complete mess He can turn into His perfect plan for His praise and glory.

And maybe... next year... I can clean with a heart of thanksgiving, that He died to clean me of all my sin, and the sin of all the world.

Praise Yah forever! In our messes, God's plans prevail.

Love and blessings to you and your family.