I've spent a lot of the last two days sorting, organizing, and throwing away. It always feels good to get rid of stuff! At least, it does to me. I know that's not the case for some people. What about you? Are you a purger or a hoarder? While I get great enjoyment out of clearing the clutter, I actually know some people who can't stand to get rid of things. Anything.
This idea got me to thinking last night. Actually, it was in the wee hours of the morning as I lay in bed trying to fall back to sleep. I was thinking about how important this act of "clearing the clutter" is in our lives. And I'm not just talking about the little things we have accumulating in our house. I'm thinking BIG scale here. Philosophically. What things do we have in our lives that God is asking us to throw out?
I kind of laugh at myself when I get into the de-cluttering mode. Yesterday, it was good that nothing important got in my path - like the dog, or one of the kids...or Dave. They might have found themselves on the road to the recycling center!
When it's time to de-clutter, have you ever noticed how easy it is to throw away other people's stuff? You know, like, go into the kids' rooms and find all the little stuff that is laying around and just...get rid of it! Or, even, look at some of Dave's stuff that looks unimportant to me and just toss it into the garbage. I've had to learn over the years to be careful when sorting through Dave's stuff though. More than a couple of times I've thrown something of his away that he hadn't touched in months, and then two days after it's gone he comes asking me if I've seen it. Oops! (Now, I just gave him a couple shelves in the office closet where his "stuff" is sitting in a box waiting for him to go through and determine what's really worth saving.)
So, now, imagine this whole de-cluttering scenario from the perspective of God.
God is the organized parent wanting to make things better (cleaner, more organized, less distracting)...and we're the little kid that thinks every single item laying around on our dresser is very important stuff. Too important to possibly ever DREAM of getting rid of. But God has other things in mind. God knows what we don't yet know about the clutter in our lives - it keeps us busy keeping track of it! It fogs our ability to be productive. It wastes valuable time that could be spent on other things.
Can you see it? Can you picture a few things that you're calling important and God is holding out the heaven-sized garbage can, just waiting for you to toss it in?
Here's what I know for sure: regularly sorting through the stuff in our lives, organizing it, and getting rid of what we don't need anymore is a MUST do thing in life. Both material stuff, and spiritual stuff.
Holding onto things that aren't needed just:
What things are you holding onto that God wants you to throw out?
I certainly don't want to hang onto anything that is displeasing to Him. I don't want to knowingly interfere with His working in my life.
As I continue the de-cluttering mode this week, I'm going to spend some purposeful time in prayer about what other things God is asking me to throw out. You know, other than that Shaklee catalog from 2004 and the Byron Bank work schedule from last summer.
Happy de-cluttering friends!
This idea got me to thinking last night. Actually, it was in the wee hours of the morning as I lay in bed trying to fall back to sleep. I was thinking about how important this act of "clearing the clutter" is in our lives. And I'm not just talking about the little things we have accumulating in our house. I'm thinking BIG scale here. Philosophically. What things do we have in our lives that God is asking us to throw out?
I kind of laugh at myself when I get into the de-cluttering mode. Yesterday, it was good that nothing important got in my path - like the dog, or one of the kids...or Dave. They might have found themselves on the road to the recycling center!
When it's time to de-clutter, have you ever noticed how easy it is to throw away other people's stuff? You know, like, go into the kids' rooms and find all the little stuff that is laying around and just...get rid of it! Or, even, look at some of Dave's stuff that looks unimportant to me and just toss it into the garbage. I've had to learn over the years to be careful when sorting through Dave's stuff though. More than a couple of times I've thrown something of his away that he hadn't touched in months, and then two days after it's gone he comes asking me if I've seen it. Oops! (Now, I just gave him a couple shelves in the office closet where his "stuff" is sitting in a box waiting for him to go through and determine what's really worth saving.)
So, now, imagine this whole de-cluttering scenario from the perspective of God.
God is the organized parent wanting to make things better (cleaner, more organized, less distracting)...and we're the little kid that thinks every single item laying around on our dresser is very important stuff. Too important to possibly ever DREAM of getting rid of. But God has other things in mind. God knows what we don't yet know about the clutter in our lives - it keeps us busy keeping track of it! It fogs our ability to be productive. It wastes valuable time that could be spent on other things.
Can you see it? Can you picture a few things that you're calling important and God is holding out the heaven-sized garbage can, just waiting for you to toss it in?
Here's what I know for sure: regularly sorting through the stuff in our lives, organizing it, and getting rid of what we don't need anymore is a MUST do thing in life. Both material stuff, and spiritual stuff.
Holding onto things that aren't needed just:
- bogs us down
- makes us less effective
- keeps us from seeing what's REALLY important
- allows unwanted things to sneak into our space (because things are too chaotic to notice them!)
What things are you holding onto that God wants you to throw out?
- bad language?
- poor choices of TV shows?
- addictive behaviors (food, drugs, alcohol, sex)?
- lack of discipline?
- love of material things?
I certainly don't want to hang onto anything that is displeasing to Him. I don't want to knowingly interfere with His working in my life.
As I continue the de-cluttering mode this week, I'm going to spend some purposeful time in prayer about what other things God is asking me to throw out. You know, other than that Shaklee catalog from 2004 and the Byron Bank work schedule from last summer.
Happy de-cluttering friends!
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