Don't stop there

"When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. Then he says, 'I will return to the house from which I came.' And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept , and put in order.Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter an dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it be with this wicked generation." Matthew 12: 43-45

The first problem in the story is the word "empty". I could be totally off on this, but it seems to me that even though the demon left, the man in the story was not sanctified. It's all fine and good that we escape our demons and set the "house" of our souls in order, but if you don't fill it...something else will. As God delivers us from whatever bondage we've fallen into we MUST set ourselves apart for the Lord and is purposes. I mean think about it "when he comes, he finds is empty, swept and put in order", a perfect place to come back to...unless it is no longer open to him and has been set apart and consecrated to a new owner.

When I was reading about sanctification there were two words that seemed to occur together often. These words were sanctification and clean...so I looked them up. Sanctification means to set apart for sacred use, to consecrate, to make holy and to purify. It seems possible that we can be "set in order" or "fixed", but not "clean" or "pure". As long as we are "empty" we won't stay fixed. There's no one to keep us from falling into disrepair.

Clean...this was my favorite. Clean means to be not infected, to be sharply defined or clear-cut, to be devoid of encumbrances, to be thorough and complete. I'm gonna break this down a little.
To me clean means...
To not be infected by the lusts and lies that are thrown my way
To be sharply defined as a daughter of the most high God and clear cut in what she believes
To be devoid of the encumbrances of the past and the weight of the struggles I am fighting now
To be complete and whole in God's grace

So, once our house is put in order...don't stop there, don't leave it empty. Fill it with the Lord and walk in hope.

"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. " 1 Peter 5:8
"For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter is worse for them than the beginning." 2 Peter 2:20