I'm not one to make New Year's resolutions. As a realist - and one that has a few years under her belt - I'm honest about my weaknesses. One of which is consistency. Since New Year's resolutions take consistency to be effective, I avoid failure by not making them.
I choose rather, to aim for long-term change, attempted in very small steps over a period of time. That way I don't wallow in disappointment over my ineffectiveness at self-improvement and just quit (which I've been known to do with exercise and diet, to name a few).
There were a few years when I decided to try reading the Bible through in a year. Every March, as I slogged through Numbers, I would give up ... frustrated with myself yet again. Then one year I had a head-slapping moment. I asked myself, who says I have to finish this in one year? I'm such a rule-follower that it never occurred to me I could just kept reading. So I just kept going at my own speed. Someone needs to put together a plan for reading through the Bible in three years - that's much more do-able.
But this year, God keeps bringing the idea of New Year's Resolution to mind. Surprisingly it's not an outward change. It's not to run a marathon by the end of the year. It's not to lose 20 pounds by summer. It's not to read a classic novel. Maybe that's been my problem before. Every time I've tried to make a resolution, it's involved an outward result as the goal.
I think this year God is asking me to get to the root of many of my problems: a lack of self control, or self-discipline.
The more I think about it, this is the reason why many of my goals are never met. I choose to watch the morning news rather than read my Bible; I choose to vent in frustration rather than discipline my words; I choose to take a second helping rather than serving myself less food to begin with. It all comes down to a lack of self-control.
I did a Bible search for references to self control and here are a few:
Proverbs 25:28, "Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control."
1 Thessalonians 5:6, "So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled."
Galatians 5:22-24, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.
I believe God is calling me to address this area of my character this year, so that I can meet many other goals for my life.
One area that I want to change and will require self-control to maintain, is my home organization. While I'm basically an organized person, I had a major life-change two years ago which has impacted my ability to get and stay organized. Two years ago, God added two daughters to our family. My precious girls, Cathrine and Ruth, had an extremely deprived background in every area you can imagine, and require much more of my attention each day than we had anticipated. While this is a joy, it had a domino effect in every other area of my life - basically challenging me beyond my past experience.
As God has revealed my need for greater self-control, He is also showing me how getting organized will bring a great sense of peace and efficiency to our home and life.
So I'm starting on my home office. This month I'll be posting tips I've learned and already implement, and others I'll be learning and applying to my office. My first tip is a foundational truth about making changes. It comes from a book on child-raising - of all things. Dr. William Richardson, the author of "Loving Discipline" teaches on the three laws of learning. One of them is that learning takes two steps: 1) Stopping bad behavior, then 2) starting good behavior. The first step to organizing is to identify bad behaviors that got us disorganized in the first place.
Here are a few of my organizing bad habits:
1) Creating too many stacks of paper around my house. It's tidy, but disorganized. Why? Because I don't know where to put things "in the meantime" ... you know ... until I can get to them.
2) Starting too many different to-do lists. The problem - I have no system of capturing everything I need to do. I have so many projects going on at once that I don't know how to keep tasks organized somewhere so I don't forget about them.
3) Too many magazines saved in places around my house. I can't bear to part with them, and have no system for what to do after I've read them.
I know I have to deal with these bad habits before I can start good ones. Identifying the problems actually motivates me to tackle the problem. Throughout the month, I'll address my solutions to these three problems.
That's it for today. Please check in throughout the month for more office organizing tips. Whether your work space is a corner office downtown, a guest bedroom upstairs or your kitchen table, we can all benefit from a touch more organization.
In His Love,
Glynnis
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
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64 comments:
Have you been peeking into my office? All of your organizational problems you mentioned are all too true in this household as well! I'll keep checking back to see what your solutions are. One of my goals this year is to go through each of my rooms one by one and eliminate unnecessary things that I've always thought I "can't bear to part with". I'm ready to simplify. Thanks for the inspiration, Glynnis!
For number three (3), I do have one tiny tip to add to all your wonderful ideas here on your blog.
When it comes to beautiful magazines, after I've had them on my coffee table or nightstand for a year (or less), I go through each magazine and cut out the photos and recipes I love. Then I glue them into a hardcover blank book. I have one for recipes, one for decorating tips, and one for crafts.
I throw the magazines away after I'm done taking out all the things I want to keep.
Now, if only I can incorporate your great ideas for office management, I'll be getting somewhere!
hi! i just want to say i really love your article today about not only putting things in order but making it beautiful. i will send this to my friends so that they too will get inspired to make this true in their lives. thanks so much and may God bless you with more wisdom to share.
Just a thought on the magazines. My small group gets all of our old magazines together and I scan the pages we want to keep and put them on discs. After that we go to various hospitals in the area to leave the mags in the waiting room (Having spent 3 months at the hospital while my dad was in a coma I know how useless the 50 copies of Golf Digest can be!). This also provides an opportunity to visit with the families and pray with them. Sometimes the Lord uses us to witness at these times too :)
What a great idea! I think I will go home today and look around to find some area I can get better organized in. I look forward to coming back to read more of your ideas.
God Bless you!
Ahh...So true! As a wife, mother & student, I find myself working from home quite often during the week, and to compound the clutter, my husband is forced to work from home during the hours I need to be at the airport. We have quite a large office (in the basement) which rarely gets used. More and more often, we have been utilizing the dining room table for our workstation, in order to be nearer our two younger children.
Although I don't have cereal on top of the fridge, I have not spent much time making our house very beautiful. It is more "functional", I guess. Your blog made me think, though, my children are a bit like old people. "What will they gaze upon while they" are eating? :)
It makes sense that uncluttering & beautifying would add more peace in our living/work environment.
Thank you for this wisdom! I can't wait to read future posts!
I'm checking out your blog through the Daily Devotional today. I enjoyed reading the devotional. I am a huge organization person, it makes me feel good! I've learned over the years to find the balance. My house would look like a modle home if it were just me. With a husband, three little kids, and a dog my expectations had to come way down. I think it is important to find the balance. God certainlly works in us and through us!! I'm starting a blog very soon and I enjoyed reading yours. Thank you :)
Great post and definitely convicting. I can't seem to get motivated to get organized but I can certainly get out to the mall, etc. It is good to be reminded of my resolutions with the practical tips you offer! My cereal boxes aren't on my frig but I definitely have the magazine stacks!
Hi old friend! I am laughing the whole time I am reading your devotion! I just cleaned my office yesterday! Boxed up unread books--threw some old magazines away; cancelled a "free 3 month" magazine subscription that would have turned into a year's committment (in fine print)--threw away 4 bags of papers; and shredded old taxes! I can almost see my desk top again which is really refreshing! Not only am I organizing my home office and other rooms; I am endeavoring to do some spring cleaning at my church--I have been burdened to help clean up my church's building. Unkempt and uncared for areas of our places of worship speak just that; uncared for. I think God cares very much about his places of worship; even the clutter in the closets, offices and foyers. Loved this column Glynnis!
Organized! Is there such a thing? God has given me a beautiful new, spacious workspace to begin a new year! After having my drapery cutting table in a non- climate
controlled wharehouse and my sewing machine jammed in a corner for 2 years, God has opened the doors of a brand new shop, three times the size of my old one & supplied the clients for me to make draperies, pillows... for! God is so good ,even when I don't deserve it! Now if I could stay home long enough to get it picked up & cleaned up, but I enjoy my clean new surroundings so much , I'd rather be there!
Wow! I'm laughing as well, as I read this. Have you all been to my house, because that's what it feels like. I've been working on getting rid of clutter and junk for two years now. I cannot believe the amount of junk we accumulate over the years. It just gives me anxiety. I feel so much more at peace, when things are clean and look nice. Thank you all for the inspiration to continue this!
Good Morning! Yesterday I was cleaning out old boxes from a move two years ago into my apt. I thought if I hadn't needed those items by now I wasn't going to need them. I try to keep my "cereal boxes" of life dust-free and remember I want a life where my King is proud of me. Life is too hectic for me sometimes but if the clutter is gone and my surroundings are beautiful, then I am happy.
I just read todays devotional from Proverbs 31 Ministry and was immediately interested in your note about home organization because seconds before, I was looking at office armoires on another website. I have limited space so I thought an armoire would make my home office look beautiful though it may be a little chaotic inside. Like you, this year my resolution (and I don't ever make them) is to reorginize and declutter. I picked up a motto recently and that is to develop a habit of release. It's very simple: Though I love it (the magazine, the dress, whatever), but will not get to it; then, give it away (or throw it away)- bless someone else in the process. The things I have kept have meaning to me like a framed foto of a picture my husband took before we started to date (that's another story). This has helped me tremendously in home organization - the neat thing is that the motto is contagious, my husband cleared out our basement storage, donated things to the thrift store and now has space for a small home gym. I will be checking back on you to get additional ideas!! Thank you.
I know there is a desktop under here somewhere. At the moment it is what is holding up the piles. I look forward to your solutions. As a full time student, my organization failures continually challenge me. Thanks for a great devotional this morning!
Glynnis, I just read today's devotion on adding beauty to order and I loved it! I have always been of the less is more, if I haven't picked it up in a month you don't need it school of thought. Not so unfortunately, I am married to a pack rat and I work for another!
Though both of them have saved me from disposing of many important documents in my zeal to always keep things clean, day to day living and working can be frustrating with all their piles hindering MY order.
Any tips there?
Ahhhh the peace that comes with organization. I truly do believe that keeps things tidy is of God. Clutter brings about chaos and Satan can have a good time with us over that. Just another area for him to lie to us. Taking a little time to put things in a home, surely brings calm to our souls. Thank you for sharing your tips and keeping us mindful of being organized. P.S. If you haven't used it or worn it within the last six months (unless it is formal wear) . . . trash can or Salvation Army.
Back again....after reading some of the other comments. :)
Old magazines, butter tubs, buttons, odds and ends of all kinds? Elemetary school art departments love them! I make a trip twice a year to "unload" at our local school.
Lots of old fabric scraps that never become that beautiful herloom quilt you had planned on? Nursing homes with quilting bees love the donations.
Old household items? We have a New Tribes missionary school close by that always needs set up items for their newly wed students.
Just a little creativity and a bit of driving gets rid of a lot of old stuff and blesses others in the process! :)
Thanks so much for inspiring me! That is currently where I am struggling too. I try to keep a beautiful home, but feel like a failure when my piles and clutter mess thing up. You're right about paying attention to you choices. I'd love to start a blog too. Yours is beautiful--thanks so much.
Fredia,
Read the devotional this a.m. then was lead to read your Blog. I must say I agree with organization, beauty and cleanliness are all important to have in every aspect of our lives. I sit now looking around my office and can readily identify areas which can bnefit from a face lift. Change for uplifting not only my eyes but of those who may enter. I thank you for your openess and sharing.
God Bless!
This is a wonderful article! Not only am I disorganized, I have just been talking about the lack of dicipline and self-control in my life. The scripture that you added was exactly what I needed. Thanks!
thanks for the "nudge":) I am going to start organizing my desk drawers right now.
Like many others, I could totally relate. I was just praying about that very thing this morning. I'm frustrated because things are so buried, but I as a mom of a teenager, wife and student, I don't have much time. I would greatly appreciate practical suggestions as to how to get started and maintain with a very tight schedule.
Hmmm, isn't this interesting. I was just telling my husband this morning, "Our sanctuary isn't much of one right now. My goal is to clear and clean it after work today."
With the hussle and bussle of daily life, cooking, shuttling children to events, work, etc. I sometimes forget to slow down and take a look at my living environment until it is just a mess. Then feeling so overwhelmed and frustrated I give in to clean it.
Thank you for the reminder that organization can bring peace and be a better place to worship Him and that He is of order and beauty.
I have finally organized the magazines I can't part with. I used--you're not gonna believe this--cereal boxes! (empty ones, of course) It's really easy. Now, every time there is a big Cheerios or Corn Flakes box that's empty, I get out the scissors and get more magazines put away!
Just do a search for cereal box magazine holder, and there are several websites w/ the instructions.
I didn't paint or cover the boxes, since they're in a closet, but it is one of the handiest recycling projects I've ever done.
Thanks for passing this along to share with all of us devotional readers as well. I've been staring at a mound of clutter on top of my computer armoire for weeks... and I've probably spent more time dreading cleaning up than it would have taken just to do it already! I WILL tackle that today! :)
I appreciate the inspiration and motivation -- keeping organized is a huge challenge around here with 2 kids, a baby on the way, and 2 work-at-home parents, all living in an already crowded and small townhouse. Clutter not only makes our homes messy, but I know it clouds my peace when there is junk that doesn't need to be there, and home should be a peaceful sanctuary, right?
Anyway, thanks again for the motivation and for the great devotional.
Wow, you know it's God when you get that reinforcement about something you've been thinking about! Last night I was thinking about disposing of some things that I just don't think I'll need for a business I used to run. By the time I would be able to get involved again, the materials will have changed anyway.
I can certainly identify with being married to a packrat. He too is cleaning out little by little and using an online auction site to generate a bit of extra income. Anyway, we're weeding out.
Thank you for reinfocing godly principles.
Your article really hit home with me as I am in the process of trying to get out of boxes from a recent move. I got married last year (Nov 2007) and bought a house at the same time. The house is VERY small 1275 sq feet with very little storage. My husband and I are getting rid of so much stuff it's amazing! I truly believe God is working in me through this time and I am learning that stuff is just that "stuff". It comes, it goes. It wears out it's replaced. What is REALLY important are relationships. With our families, friends, and yes even strangers.
It's interesting if you really sit down and ask yourself 'why' you need this or that. Those old magazines do you really have time to read them or look through them again? If you do then are you taking time away from your kids, your spouse or being a servant to those in need of your talents?? Do you really refer back to them often? I've found that I don't.. so out they go!
I'm learning that I really only use a small portion of my stuff.. so I'm getting rid of those things that I don't tend to go back to, look over, or use again. I've also found that taking a picture of something (easy to store) and letting that item go is enough for me. I think a lot of our stuff maybe sentimental rather than useful, so a picture to remember something is all I need now.
This was a great article and I look forward to more blessings and encouragement.
God Bless all of you as you work on organizing and making your world's beautiful! ;-)
God can be very funny. It seems all week the P31 devotionals have been talking right to me. Recently I have been feeling God talking to me about my self-control. My house (my "office") is an un-organized mess. A bunch of things laying around because they are on my forever to-do list. And stuff I never use. It's been even worse since having my first child 5 months ago. I have been pondering how to change all this when I got this mornings devotional. I am so excited that God has brought you and this blog to my attention and that I can learn with you and maybe add some tips myself.
Oh--I never throw away my magazines. I pass them onto my sister, sister-in-law or to the local library. I also tear out the pages that have ideas I like but I do it right away while reading. That way it's one less thing laying around the house.
My husband and I found that buying shoebox size plastic containers (like Rubbermaid or Tupperware) holds all of our important tax documents for a year. We bought a container for each year and wrote on the ends the year with a magic marker and put them in the attic. That way we don't have to look at them until we need them and they are easy to find when we do need them.
Wow. God has been dealing with me about the self control/discipline things that you feel God is wanting you to deal witih also. I have been working at it for several years now, slowly making progress. Right now, I am trying to deal with what I am calling Trouble Zones, those areas that are ALWAYS collecting clutter, etc. I will be back to share this journey with you!
I love the idea of the plant on top of the frig!! I'm going to do that one. I find the best way to stay on top of magazines is to not subcribe. I only get one Christian magazine, although the husband makes up for my frugality and has many subscriptions. It is a good feeling to unload boxes and bags of good but not needed items to local Salvation Army or thrift shops.
Thank you for your article today, but tidiness is my sin!
The year before last I married for the second time to a widower and took on his twin teenage daughters.
At first I thought I'd never cope and spent a lot of time in tears and exhaustion because they just hadn't ever put anything away, on the basis they were going to use it again some day... but through praying I realised that God had given me these two daughters and they were to be a great joy for me.
These days we have baskets for our bits and pieces, my husband and I have bought new book cases and shelves, so there is some where to put their every day things and me?
Well God has given me a new gift, the gift of appreciating laughter and love and the ability to leave some of the clutter as a homely atmosphere.
Christine
I loved and share your desires to get organized and feel that it is a call from God for a change in character. I too made that a resolution for this year and would love to make this walk with you . I have a home office where I work 40+ hours a week + my home life of helping raise my 9 year old granddaughter with my son and my husband and have a special needs 25 yr old son. When the office was away it was easier to stay organized, now things seem to blend and overlap more which is good sometimes but allows for things to slip thru the cracks as well. Piles of magazines and clutter and things I will get to later seem to abound and then there is a crisis at work and I just don't get to it or my granddaughter NEEDS my attention when I NEED to work or clean or was going to tackle that project so the pile gets a little higher and THEN my husband wants to let me know he is feeling neglected because I am always busy with everything and everyone else. SO>>>I will follow your column faithfully looking for more hints and clues on how to take some shortcuts and try and get back to where I used to be short a short 5 years ago when I knew where everything was and there weren't piles everywhere....Keep those articles coming.
Confirmation! Confirmation! This is great. I just had a 50th birthday party on Saturday and a relative from Memphis came and stayed at my house. After she left, a friend commented "at least the yellow room is clean". Yeah right, I've already started putting stuff in it to clutter it up until the next relative comes to visit in May. This madness must stop.
It is my goal to unclutter and get fit this year. I believe there is a connection between the two in my life.
Organization is truly a gift from GOD and this is an area that I really struggle with. It is very difficult for me. Clutter follows me everywhere I go - home, car, purse, work, etc. Please, please, please give more suggestions to someone who does not have a clue as to where to begin.
I too have a problem with organization and CLUTTER. It's my biggest problem. Everytime I think I can overcome it, here it comes again. I even thought about seeking the help of a professional organizer but that would entail finances I don't have at the moment. I'm praying that God gives me direction to do what needs to be done and keep it that way. I feel so much better when things are in order. It really impacts my life positively.
I cannot believe that I am not the only one that has stared at "the clutter" and think something has to be done with it. We are raising our grandson (8 yo)and he's always cleaning here & there straightening up. This is one area I need work in, love the tips, keep them coming. Determined now, more than ever to overcome "the clutter". Thank you!
What a relief to know I am not the only child of God with too much stuff and clutter! I have actually been asking God for help in this matter and to help me glorify Him with my life, my home, my car, my desk, my ALL. You have all encouraged me to seek His ways in the details I can change.
Hi Glynnis- You know I love beauty. I just need help with the order part. Your ideas and suggestions keep me accountable. I without excuse when it comes to keeping my workspaces orderly! I liked your P31 Encouragement for Today devotion. I think I know Prill and I like all her ideas!
Aloha, I see that a nerve has been tickeled concerning organizational problems. Great suggestion to scan articles that nspire me. Sometimes, I even have to organize and clean up my "favorites" and "documents" on my computer, I'm such a saver! The Lord has been working on my attitude in the area of organization. "Keep it simple, simple, simple", He says. However, even after I get into an organization whirlwind (and feel quite satisfied when organization is accomplished), I often find myself in the same messy condition 2 months later! Alas! Good thing the Lord keeps working on me and I am inspired again today. I'll start with my refrigerator door - thanks for your comments and suggestions. Aloha from Maui
I work in a very small cubical. People constantly make comments that my cube looks inviting and cozy. I realized that if my work space is clean & organized, it helps me to concentrate and be more productive. So, I used contact paper to decorate and sat around some framed scripture and pictures. I went to the local christian book store an found a couple of posters that matched my decor. I have a plant and a some scented candles. I can't light them but the still give a nice small to the area. I also put a lamp on my desk. This softens the lighting. I also have matching cushions on my desk chair and a spare chair and a rug! I bought most of the items at a discount store so I spent very little. Most importantly I use the last 10 to 15 minutes of each day to put everything away in a file cabinet and make a "to do" list for the next day. I don't want to walk into a mess. Each morning, I pull out what I need and get started. It is a pleasant place to spend the majority of my day!
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I really needed this today! I get so tired of my clutter. You're devotional was very convicting. The thing is I know I want to be organized, I'm just not. So I am very eager and willing to learn. I have learned over the past couple of years how to give things away and throw things away. But I still have a problem with cleaning an area, and then two weeks later it's in the same old junky, cluttered condition. I have a bad habit of sitting things down where they don't belong. If it's a flat surface, for some reason I find a way to clutter it up. I will definitely checking in for any tips you can give me. Thanks you very much.
Thank You! I really enjoyed reading others insights also and getting different ideas that I had not even thought of. I enjoyed your devotion this morning ;0)
My niece said that keeping things we don't need because we might need them some day is not trusting God to meet our needs in the future. God will always supply what we need, when we need it. And it will be something new, or different. Not the same old thing I have put up with for years! This truth has helped me to throw away and donate with abandon, knowing it is God's will for some one else to use what I am hording.
Boy was I convicted. I don't have a hutch in either my home or work office, so things are either spread out or in what I claim to be organized piles. As I read, all I could say was "Lord knows why I opened this and read it today!" Enough is enough. It's time to make a change, to create a work space where God is glorified. I tried not to look left or right as I read because it's all right there, in my face, but still I say, Thank you Lord.
Thank you for sharing this with us. I look forward to experiencing PEACE as I work at home and on my job. Glory to God!
I loved your piece in the daily devotional today and thought I'd pop over to your blog. A Business Coach I provide VA support to talks about being more organised in the office and this is something she might like to see too. She is not yet a Christian, but well on the way and has begun coming to my church just a few months ago. I can't wait to be able to speak full on about my faith and what's in the bible to her but just do it in small doses at the moment.
Well I have to say that there is more than "a little spring cleaning" needs to be done in my home. We just moved in December, we have went down in the size of our home and we have so much stuff that we donot have room for everything. It really makes me sick to look at everything. I just want to look at a clean orginized home. It has been 2 months and we still have boxes in everyroom of our house. It is very overwhelming too me and I am ashamed of the situation. What makes it worse is I'm worried about what this is teaching my 2 year old son. I have just started a new job after being at home with my son for 2 years. And to look at how I have orginized my office and cleaned it out you would never think my home would be that way. I need some advise on how to clean up the clutter in our home
You message was truly a blessing for me today. Will continue to check in to see what other helpful tips God has given you to share. Thank you so much!
Thank you for the inspiration and
motivation to organize. I have been
downsizeing,giving away,donating,
all which helped. Now thanks to you i will get to work and clear out my computor desk, and get rid
of my stacks of accumulated papers.
Mary Lou in Illinois
Thank you so much for reminding me that our office as much as our home is a place of worship and thus making it clean, organized and pretty is important. And thank you to all the ladies for posting their comments, they are all very helpful. I look forward to reading more of them.
With much respect and Love
Abby
.....no such thing as an accident! I read the devotionals every day and decided to follow your blog. Reading your organizational problems felt like you were looking straight in to my office & home. I am looking forward to following your journey this month and give thanks that you don't mind taking me along.
Thank you for the inspiring message. I have been known to take the cereal boxes wrap them in pretty paper and make magazine holders for the magazines that are stacked up! Then they can sit nicely on a bookshelf with easy access. The problem - I never had time to go back to them. After a year, I took them to the nursing home. Cereal box and all!
I enjoyed your devotional so much!
I'm always drawn to anything that speaks of beauty in our surroundings!
I have difficulty with clutter in
my home and especially in my craft room. I desperately need to learn
to be disciplined and organized.
Thank you for the encouragement and
honesty about your determination to
make your workplace more lovely!
My first step is simply to get rid
of the things that I'll never use.
Then I can move on to having the
beautiful home that I've always wanted!
Glynnis,It sounds like God is working on the same area in a lot of us.(you've seen the top of my fridge).God has spoken to me about fixing what's broken with me first.A.M. news has crowded out quiet time with my Lord. T.V. gossip shows at night time with my kids,magazines,time to organize my bills/homeoffice.Conviction ,confession repentance have been good for this soul thanks! Eileen
I have such trouble with clutter - this is a great help to me - thanks. I seem to be world's worst piler-upper - I have them everywhere, and I know what's in them, & why. I just want a better, and neater system (and I'm sure my hubby would appreciate it too!) I am disabled and don't have much energy, hence the piles: to read later; to file later; to pay later; to give away; etc. Help. Thanks for any tips, inspiration, and ideas. Mary in WA
Hi I am a mother of two beautiful little girls in Sydney Australia. I read the Proverbs 31 Ministries devotionals on and off, I have read yours today about making our homes, ordered and beautiful. I am glad you are saying all this, I have grown up hearing my mother always say "God is a god of order, NOT a god of chaos!" Yes, even our homes are a witness to our faith before those who believe and those who are seeking. YSIC
I have just read your devotional and i am truly inspired to add beauty and order at my work place and home. I really identify with you on the issue of self control and discipline which i am trusting God to help me develop.Thanks alot
hi have just read your blog, i believe God is really speaking to me about issues of selfcontrol etc and i am a stay at home mother of 3 my workspace is my kitchen , cluttered most of the time bills here papers there etc till i de clutter but it keeps comuing back , but i thank you for your honesty and i know i have been blessed by reading
I enjoyed reading your comments about organization in the home and having experienced two moves: Vermont to Idaho, Idaho to western New York in five months was the best cathartic treatment for our home. We donated so much, accepted letting go of unused, unneeded "things" and aside from holding on to meaningful things, we enjoyed having the opportunity to buy a few new things. We found that if we just thought "could someone else use this?" we had an easier time letting go. Oh, did I mention that since mom died five months before the moves, I'd inherited alot of her possessions and those were really hard to give away but I know others were blessed. I am sharing your article with friends to help them as you have inspired me even more. Blessings, Sonia Clarke
God knew that I needed this! Just this past weekend I made a pledge to myself that when I got home from work, after doing my normal routine, would do something to clear the clutter. Already, we have rearranged 3 rooms and each night I sit down and empty a box of stored papers... Tonight I think that I will work on the cereal boxes... Thanks for keeping me motivated!
Hi,
My name is Prema and I am writing from India.I read Cross walk devotionals everyday.I was inmpressed by your comment about clutter.I like to keep things neat and orderly,but I find that most people while they admire the neatness tend to clutter.But your thought about how God wants us to be orderly is inspiring.Thanks a lot.
Thank God I'm not in this alone! I seem to have ADD in the office. Granted, I have an 81 year old father living with us, 6 kids (3 are in college tho), many sports and wonderful husband...just not enough time! I'll be looking to you for inspiration--thanks!
Greetings, Glynnis!
What a beautiful blog you have! This is the first time I have stopped by. I am a 2004 graduate of SheSpeaks, but it has been a long time since we have "chatted!"
After reading your devotion, I came over here to the blog. Boy, is God sending me a MESSAGE! I have been to 4 blogs recently which have all talked about the same thing- getting organized and making your home a sanctuary! One blogger shared how God revealed that this is an area of bondage for her as she went through breaking free. Another is having an ongoing contest, keeping points doing small steps each day to make your home a sanctuary. Anyway- I am getting the picture!!!!! It is so encouraging to see other women share similiar struggles AND it is wonderful to get helpful tips.
Thanks so much, Glynnis and I look forward to checking out your advice this month. I will definately add your blog to my list of links. Blessings!
Tracy Berta
I have lived in one home for 25 years and then we moved. You never know how much stuff you have until you move. So every once in a while when the stuff piles up. I pretend that it's time to move and so I start looking around at what stays and what goes. Then you can donate the items or have a garage sale .
Blessings
Linda
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