I've got you some steps on how you can record customer payments that will credit the customer invoice. 

Once you set up the clearing account, we can use this to record the transaction by creating a journal entry.

1. Create a Journal Entry.
2. Add the amount (AP) from which you are moving money.
3. Add the Clearing account.
4. Save the Journal Entry.

Then, pay the bills in your QuickBooks Desktop account. Once done, proceed to the next steps.

1. Create a second Journal Entry.
2. Add the Clearing Account.
3. Add the AR account to which you moving money.
4. Once done, pay the invoice using Receive payment to link the Journal Entries together.

Additionally, you can utilize these resources to help manage your invoices and customer transactions in QuickBooks: 

• Record the invoice payment
• Deposit your customer’s payment

Fill me in if you need clarification with the steps I outlined above. I would gladly assist you as soon as possible.