Live from the Top Down

Growing up in my mother’s house meant that cleaning had to become a part of my DNA. While most of my friends had Saturday spring cleaning, I had everyday spring cleaning and Saturday spring cleaning on steroids. My sister will tell you, that cleaning in my mother’s house was, and still is, no joke. It wasn’t until I had to teach someone how to clean that I realised just how much I took this ingrained life skill for granted. I remember biting my lip just so that I wouldn’t break the young lady’s spirit. “Lord help me!’ I thought, “Doesn’t she know that you have to start by cleaning all the counters before you sweep the floors?” I had to make myself a cup of tea just so my hands, and my mouth, would be too busy to yell, “Stop! In the name of all that is holy, just stop!” By the end of the day, I had secretly gone through every room to quickly, and discreetly, shine the mirrors and all the counters. Before you think of me as overbearing, let me explain what had happened to warrant this…

A lovely young lady had come to stay with us very briefly and to help her learn a few life skills, I delegated some of my home chores to her. Everyday cleaning was one of them. You know, the quick, middle of the week, just trying to get to the weekend, kinda cleaning. Nothing over the top and certainly not my mother’s spring cleaning on steroids. I should have known that I was in for it when I noticed how she held the broom and how I subconsciously started singing, “Jesus, take the wheel.” Then there was the thing with the kitchen counters. Doesn’t everyone know that you have to wipe down all the kitchen counters before you sweep the floors because some of that mess could fall onto your freshly cleaned floors? I thought I did a great job gently correcting that until we moved to the bedrooms and then she wiped all the tops and mirrors before sweeping. Hold up! The rules of the kitchen don’t apply to the other rooms. Doesn’t everyone know that if you do that, dust may settle back onto the furniture and mirrors after sweeping? When she did her thing and mopped the floors, I had to double back to hit my surfaces with that furniture spray and squeaky clean wipe-down. Because yes, there was a layer of fine dust on most of the furniture tops. Because yes, putting off dusting until the end leaves the room smelling ever so clean. And because yes, when it comes to cleaning, it’s all about working from the top down and then coming back around. So, let’s just say that by the end of the young lady’s stay with us, she was properly inducted into the Naima’s Cleaning Hall of Fame.

 “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us spreads and makes evident everywhere the sweet fragrance of the knowledge of Him.” ~ 2 Corinthians 2:14 (NLT)

This past week I’ve been feeling rushed and so behind the eight ball. Like the year started and before I could get ready, it was already leaving me in the dust. One morning, after sharing my frustrations with the Lord and journaling what I felt Him saying to me, the words ‘start from the top down,’ came up. At first, I was clueless as to what this meant and as I continued to pray, listen and write, it became clear. I will always feel left in the dirt if I feel the pressure to hit the ground running. If I want to get into a good stride, one that I can maintain throughout the year, I must start from the top down. For me, this means starting my year, and every day in it, with worship. When I worship God and see Him for who He is, my thoughts and actions are elevated as a byproduct. After my spirit is locked in, I then switch gears to my mind and my emotions. I address these by taking some time to empty my mind of all the ideas, tasks, events and lingering feelings that seem to be breathing down my neck. I take all this to the Lord and ask for wisdom on how to plan it all out in executable tasks. This not only makes it all make sense, but it also leaves some margin for me to catch my breath along the way. Taking the time to get some of this done this past week has helped me find my feet again. I feel less anxious and more in control of what I’m doing. It’s not perfect, and there is still so much to get done, but it’s my perfect start. Have you started your year from the top down? What does this look like for you? Whatever your strategy to get a hold of this year, I strongly believe that a few reminders to keep first things first will help you maintain a clean mental environment throughout the year.

See your victory

Just because life can sometimes be up and down, doesn’t mean we have to be up and down too. Last year I found myself going through this roller coaster each time something in my routine would change unexpectedly, and it drained the life out of me. This year I want to take my lessons learned and use them to walk in victory. Yes, unexpected things will happen, but that doesn’t change that I am victorious in Christ and with His strength I can do all things, no matter how challenging. I want to challenge you to look down at the track of your year, with all the tasks, what ifs and pressures littering that track, and see yourself victorious over it all. This isn’t you trying to visualise something into being, it is you reminding yourself of what is already true about you. It’s you living from the top down by choosing to believe the highest truth about yourself regardless of your reality on the ground. How you think and see yourself will affect how you show up in the world. So, when you feel tired, overwhelmed, distracted, or running behind, take a moment to remind yourself to put first things first. Worship God, see Him more clearly, and allow Him to remind you of who you are in His victory.

Understand where your enemy is

Sometimes we forget how cunning our enemy is. We often believe he is out to get us in the big bad ways, which he is, yet he also uses the small and subtle ways. What do I mean? I mean, your enemy isn’t just in the big things like poverty, people who decide to become thorns in your side, or unexpected illnesses and deaths. He is also in your doubt, your procrastination, your laziness and your lack of tact or discipline. Yes, even something as simple as the fact that you are always running your mouth and thinking after you speak, instead of before, is a sure way that the enemy is bringing you down. We lose the battle when we don’t recognise that the small things are big too. Nothing is small in a war. When your purpose, your legacy and your eternity are at stake, nothing is small. The sooner we can recognise this, the sooner we can set up guard rails that keep those little foxes out! Recognising this begins with us taking inventory of what is always tripping us up. Be honest with yourself, ask your spouse, your friends and the Lord in prayer. Once you have identified these things, set up systems and strategies to work at them. Do what you’ve got to do to get to where you need to go.

Allow God to zhuzh up your mistakes

As a wife and mother, one of the consistent tasks I have is making sure my family is well-fed and they don’t get bored with eating the same things over and over. This means that I have to get creative with my zhuzh game by using old recipes in new ways, trying new recipes and even reviving some good old leftovers. In some seasons I am more creative than others and I do my very best even when it’s a drag. My life has proven this to be true; God is so good at the zhuzh game. In all honesty, it’s His game and we’re all just making attempts at following His lead. So, yes, I go to Him for suggestions about how to give my meals some new flair, but his speciality is mistakes. Yes, God is an expert at zhuzhing up even the worst of our mistakes. Understanding this and building our lives on top of this truth will set us free from so much hesitation, regret and self-doubt. No matter how hard life has been, if you look back over the years you will see some wins. Even when it’s been bad, it’s not all bad because hey, you may have had some broken bones or had to crawl your way out of the ring, but you ultimately won the fight. God works all things together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. The last time I checked, we were counted in that group, so even when we make mistakes, we can dust ourselves off and keep going because we know the Lord will zhuzh it up and make it work for our good down the line. This truth is one of those top things we can’t start running and doing life without. It is necessary for our being and oh, what freedom we can enjoy in this.

Get quiet

Get quiet enough to hear your Coach hype you up. No matter what your year looks like, what you’re facing, what may come down the pike, what is in your past and how big the giants seem to be, we have to learn to get quiet enough to let God hype us up before we get into the ring. One of the things I have noticed in my life is that when I am not quiet enough to hear from God it’s because I am impatient, and in my impatience, I rush through things, making my world ever so noisy and chaotic. Learning to wait on God hasn’t been the easiest lesson for me to learn.  This year, I can feel myself leaning in more, not all the way, but certainly more. I’m sure in another thirty years I’ll have it down to a science. Being patient with ourselves, allows us to be patient even as we wait on God to speak or to act. Being patient means saying to ourselves, “It might take me a minute, but by God, I am going to win!” This attitude makes room for Him to speak. In a way, it places a demand on Him to speak and lead because He knows we are waiting for Him. He is such a faithful Leader and as such, He will never leave us hanging. So, let’s get quiet this year, allow our Coach to hype us up, remind us of our training, show us things to come, and tell us how proud of us He is. This is indeed living from the very top down.

When Jesus was breathing His last breath on the cross, He said, “It is finished!” What we must get done now, is dependent on whether or not we believe that it is finished and that He is victorious. It’s one thing to believe this in our heads, but the true test of whether we believe this in our hearts is seen in how we live. If we are always running after life, constantly one step behind, hearts and minds always racing, it could be that we believe the victory is on our shoulders to accomplish, and not already ours. I am often guilty of this and I have seen how this subtle shift can change everything. One minute I’m overwhelmed and worried, and then the next I’m secure and steady. Same person, same circumstances, different mindset. It’s all about what we do at the top first. My prayer is that as you forge ahead into this year, you will put first things first and that as you do, God’s perfect will comes to pass in your life as it is in heaven.