Keep The Flies Out
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Keep The Flies Out

An old memory came to mind the other day.

We were going away on a ministry trip and were rushing to leave the house for the airport. Generally, I make sure that our home is neat and clean, with all trash put outside in the sanitation trash can. That didn’t happen this time. In all of our hurrying for the airport, I forgot to take out the trash from the kitchen. I had to suck it up and not think about it for the few days we were away.

We got back home from our trip late in the evening, so we pretty much did nothing but shower and get to bed.

The next morning.

I woke up to my morning routine. Weigh the coffee beans, get the kettle going and work the Chemex (pour-over coffee maker). As the water is boiling, I notice something white on the kitchen floor. Still half asleep, I take a closer look and find that the white thing is a maggot moving about on my kitchen floor.  

Really? A Maggot??

Disgusted, I pick it up with a napkin and squish it (so satisfying!). I decided to look around to make sure that there were no more. Oh, there were dozens of them! I went into a state of panic and disgust because there were maggots in my kitchen!

I went on a cleaning frenzy, killing every single one that I saw. After thoroughly cleaning and sanitizing the kitchen floor, I realized that the trash I had forgotten to put out before the trip was still there. It turns out that the lid of our kitchen trash can was open a crack. A fly got into our house (probably through an open garage door and helped itself to our trash can, laying its larvae everywhere.  

If you are unaware, maggots don’t just show up out of nowhere; they show up for a reason. Flies become attracted to some rotting material or spoiled food in your home and use that as a breeding ground to lay eggs that hatch to become maggots.

After the cleaning frenzy, I rested, feeling like I had completed the mission of taking out all of the soulless vermin; I sat down to a great cup of coffee!

A few days later.

I’m sitting in the kitchen and see a fly buzzing around. Remembering what happened the last time a fly got in, I went on the hunt and took it out. A few moments later, I hear a buzzing sound over by one of the kitchen windows, so I go over and open up the blinds to see what was going on. What do I find? A dozen or so flies bussing about trying to escape. I guess I didn’t get all of those maggots! That small remnant hid for so long that they turned into flies and were trying to get out to escape my fury. They met their maker, and our home has been fly-free ever since.

Why did the Lord bring this memory up?

We, like our homes, need to keep ourselves free of the trash that can fill us. When we let junk pile up in our hearts and minds, the more likely it is to begin to rot. When that stuff rots, it attracts flies, aka demonic henchmen that love to lay their lies in the rotting filth taking residence in your heart. Once they do that, the only thing left is infestation/oppression/possession (whatever you’d like to call it). It only gets worse from there.

I failed to mention earlier that it was extra hot in my home due to us being on a trip and the thermostat automatically setting itself into away mode.

The lack of presence, both us not being present and the AC being off, thus leading to an acceleration in the rotting of our trash, led to what eventually happened.  

Here are a few things to take away:

  1. Be Present: Be self-aware and do not deny the truth. If there is junk in your heart, then own it and deal with it.  
  2. Seek Presence: Holy Spirit is a great convicting agent. He’ll let us know when we are keeping junk in and lead us in the way to get rid of it.
  3. Be vigilant: If maggots are crawling around the junk in your heart, clean it up, but be aware of the fact that they can hide. Make sure that you allow the light of Christ to permeate every dark, trashy area so that all vermin are removed.

You don’t need to live with trash in your heart; you can live free and clear.

HopeFires International
[email protected]
1 Comment
  • David Anderson
    Posted at 21:11h, 09 July

    What a great word for all of us on how to walk with God in the garden of our hearts!!