Household Tips

We asked the ladies in Reach Community Church to provide us with some useful and ultimate household tips, and what we discovered surprised even us.

Household tip #1

Ultimate cleaning solutions: put vinegar into a spray bottle, sprinkle sodium bicarbonate on the surface you want to clean, spray vinegar on the surface with sodium bicarbonate till bubbles, leave for few minutes and clean as usual. This can be used to clean bathroom, sink, carpets etc. – Emily Ooi

How does this work? The chemical formula of sodium bicarbonate is NaHCO3. The scientific name of vinegar is acetic acid and its chemical formula is CH3COOH. When NaHCO3 is combined with CH3COOH, a chemical reaction occurs: NaHCO₃ + CH3COOH → CH3COONa (sodium acetate) + H2O (water) + CO2 (carbon dioxide)

The reaction occurs by this combination is what breaks up the stains, and the bubbles are from the CO2 produced. The reaction needs to occur on the surface of the stain for this to work. If you combine the sodium bicarbonate and vinegar in the spray bottle and spray onto the stain, it will no longer work as the reaction has already occurred in the bottle before reaching the stain.

Chemical reaction is balanced, i.e. no new element is added or taken away when a reaction occurs. Look at the equation above, the number of each element is the same on the left and right side of the equation. There is one Na on the left and one on the right of the equation; there are 5 H on the left and on the right of the equation, etc.

Chemical reaction does not refute the existence of God. On the contrary, the constancy of chemical compound and chemical reaction tells us that we live in an orderly world, which was created in an orderly way, rather than formed out of randomness. The Biblical God, who created the world, is described as a God of order.

1 Corinthians 14:33,40 For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints… Let all things be done decently and in order.

Household tip #2

To clean and freshen microwave oven: place one cut lemon in a microwavable bowl with one cup of water, microwave for 10 minutes on high; leave to rest for another 5 minutes; allow steam to soften residue; wipe clean with damp cloth. – Sharon Oen

Microwave oven is one of many appliances that the cleanliness of its inside is just as important, if not more important, than its outside. In the Bible, there are many references to the importance of inward cleanliness.

Matthew 23:26 Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.

How do we become clean inwardly? The Bible has given us an important formula:

2 Corinthians 7:1 Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God (emphasis added).

What are these promises that enable us to be clean inwardly? They are given to us in 2 Corinthians 6 and the Old Testament:

2 Corinthians 6:16,18 For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”… “I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the LORD Almighty.”

Ezekiel 36:25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols.

To be clean inwardly, we must have the works of the triune God in us – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

To obey God who is holy and calls us to be holy:

1 Peter 1:15-16 But as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”

To believe in Jesus Christ who sacrificed His body to make us holy:

Hebrews 10:10 (NLT) For God’s will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time.

To receive the Holy Spirit who sanctify us:

2 Thessalonians 2:13 (NLT) As for us, we can’t help but thank God for you, dear brothers and sisters loved by the Lord. We are always thankful that God chose you to be among the first to experience salvation – a salvation that came through the Spirit who makes you holy and through your belief in the truth.

When we open our eyes, we can see that the order of the world is in keeping with the principle of God the Creator; when we deny Him and His principle, the world will only spiral down to a destructive cycle.

Romans 1:19-20 Because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.