Not sure where Autumn went! There is no doubt that the colours this year were breathtaking and we did have a few sunny days, but the weather changed rather quickly from late summer days to early wintry mornings. And as though to add insult to injury, Sunday was the first day this season we had to clean snow off our car before leaving for church! So it seemed appropriate to complain to a stranger in the waiting room of my chiropractor’s office about the “cold, damp, windy day.”
Trying to see the benefits of a sudden change in the weather, I decided to spend some constructive time decluttering, you know, getting rid of the stuff that collects quite innocently over time. As a result, I have been relentlessly purging and shredding things that have been put in a box or in a drawer or in a filing cabinet out of sight and, ultimately, out of mind. Admittedly, it is an onerous task; however, the weather has made it easy to stay in on a “cold, damp, windy day.” And besides, I am weary of the clutter that has been accumulating in my home, stuff that has been slowly creeping into my life.
Three years ago our daughter, Jenn Martin wrote an article entitled, Decluttering with Purpose, (Huntley Magazine, N.01 January/February 2016). She makes the statement that, “Clutter is overwhelming and it’s hard to know where to begin.” And she was dead on! Where does one begin?
A few weeks ago I was teaching a memoir workshop and the same question was asked,“Where does one begin?” But this question was asked concerning the starting point in writing one’s memoir. I asked my class to consider how one learns to walk or climb stairs, and the answer was simple: one step at a time. Likewise, when it came to removing the unwanted stuff (some might call it junk!) in my home, I applied the same principle. If I were to tackle the project head-on—as if my life depended on its completion in one day—I would be open to a bigger problem: frustration and discouragement, not to mention the upheaval I would be forced to live with! One step at a time was the order of the day. So over a period of weeks, I “let go” of three boxes of books, several bags went to the thrift store that I trust will bless others, and I am even parting with my Beanie Babies collection!
Not to digress from the need to release one’s hold on material things, I want to point out that there’s a deeper thought behind the clutter in our lives that cannot—should not— be missed, something much more personal.
As my daughter acknowledged in her article, “Clutter is overwhelming and it’s hard to know where to begin,” she goes on to ask: “But what if decluttering our lives was less about getting organized and clearing the junk from our homes, and more about getting rid of the internal clutter that distracts us from living simply?” Excellent question! But what is the thought behind it? Jenn continues, “Decluttering is the necessary step before organizing that allows us to live with clarity, preparedness and purpose. It’s not a standard of perfection or the pursuit of the picture-perfect-home inspired by the latest magazine cover or trend.” Well said! There is more to living a clutter-free life than a picture-perfect-home! It’s knowing how to discern between the value of holding on or letting go and it isn’t always about ‘stuff.’
Speaking at a women’s retreat recently, I touched on what happens when we are too busy. In my preparation, I found myself asking some deep questions that could very well fit into this blog: “What’s the one thing that would make you too busy for God, too busy for intimate fellowship with Him. too busy to pray? Is it family? Work? Striving for more money, more things? Is it a hobby? What about Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TV? The text we just have to send or answer? The Media in general?”
Those were the questions I asked then. The question I found myself asking now as I write this blog is: Am I so busy that I’ve lost focus on what is important? Is my life cluttered with so much stuff that I am wasting my time, my energies, my commitment, my purpose in being God’s child?
Many years ago I found this poem in our newspaper written by an unknown author. I’ve kept it in my Bible since then as a reminder of what it means to be too busy.
I Had No Time
The day slipped by and time was spent
And all the good things that I meant
To do were left undone because
I had no time to stop and pause.
But rushed about, went here and there.
Did this and that, was everywhere.
I had no time to kneel and pray
For that lost soul across the way.
I had no time to meditate
On worthwhile things. No time to wait
Upon the Lord, and hear Him say,
“Well done, my child,” at close of day.
And so I wonder, after all,
When life is o’er and I hear the call
To meet my Saviour in the sky,
Where saints live on and never die,
If I can find one soul I’ve won
To Christ by some small deed I’ve done.
Or will I hang my head and whine,
“Forgive me, Lord, I had no time.”
When we are too busy to set aside intentional time with God, we need to ask ourselves, Is my life needing to be decluttered in order “to live with clarity, preparedness and purpose”? That question revolved around in my head as I continued the task of shredding and discarding, and as though to reinforce the process of discovering how to “to live with clarity, preparedness and purpose,” I found some gems that were worth keeping and more so, worth sharing.
• When we pray, God hears more than we say. He answers more than we ask. He gives more than we imagine, but in His own time, in His own way.
• The same devil who hates me, hates everyone else. If he can’t take my salvation, he will try to render me helpless and useless.
• Every desire, every aspiration, every longing of our nature is nothing less than a yearning for God. We were born for His love and we cannot live without it. God is the happiness we have been searching for all our lives.
• Put more weight on what God says than on what you think! The more you read God’s word, the more you will learn to be ready to get “into’ whatever God wants of you.
I’ll end with a closing comment from Jenn’s article: “Decluttering is a lifestyle, an ongoing pursuit to declutter our lives in order to do what matters.”
“Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”
Colossians 3:2
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