Spring Cleaning the Soul | Making Room for God's Presence

It’s amazing what can build up in a house over time—papers, boxes, things we no longer use or even remember storing. Spring is often when we finally open the windows, air things out, and get honest about what needs to happen. The same can be said for our souls. Life happens, seasons get busy, and before we know it, our inner lives can become cluttered with spiritual debris—unforgiveness, distraction, compromise, or misplaced priorities.

As we enter Holy Week, what better time to ask: Is there room in my heart for Jesus to dwell more deeply?

In 1 Kings 15, we meet King Asa, a leader who “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord.” He removed idols, cut ties with family influences that led to spiritual compromise, and restored sacred items meant for worship. Asa’s reign was marked by reform—a kind of national spring cleaning that allowed God’s blessing to return.

Fast forward to Matthew 21, where Jesus enters Jerusalem to shouts of “Hosanna!” The next day, He walks into the temple courts and clears out the corruption—overturning tables and declaring, “My house will be called a house of prayer.” (Matthew 21:13)

Both stories remind us: God’s presence thrives in places that are cleared of idols and full of worship.

Idols in our lives may not look like statues, but they are subtle loyalties—comfort, performance, materialism, self-reliance, or even bitterness we’ve chosen not to release. Like the Queen of Sheba in 1 Kings 10, people notice when someone’s life is marked by wisdom and the presence of God—but that only happens when space has been made for Him to fill.

Jesus didn’t come to simply rearrange our lives. He came to cleanse, restore, and reign. The tables He overturned in the temple were a disruption—but they were also an invitation. An invitation to return to what the temple was meant to be: a place of encounter.

What would it look like to do some spring cleaning in your soul this week?

• What thoughts, habits, or patterns no longer reflect who God has called you to be?
• Are there “tables” in your life that Jesus may want to overturn—not to shame you, but to make room for His peace?
• Are you protecting anything in your life that is robbing your intimacy with God?

Sometimes, the most challenging part of spiritual growth is letting go of what we’ve gotten used to. But healing and wholeness begin with honest surrender.

Don’t just remember what Jesus did this Holy Week—respond to it. Just as He cleared out the temple to prepare it for prayer, let Him do the same in you.

Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what needs to go and invite Him to fill you again with His presence, peace, and power. Our homes, hearts, and church are meant to be places where God dwells—not just visits.

Let’s be people who clear space, keep it holy, and welcome the King with every part of our lives.