Not too long ago I wrote a blog about clutter. I’ve had to keep the topic in the forefront of my mind since we are in the process of reducing the number of our possessions before our move. Although I don’t think that I have a whole lot of knickknacks, I do have more – we all have more- than we really need, and so we are in the process of purging.
Think about how much “stuff” that you have accumulated. If the rust and dust were a testimony of your life – your habits, your stewardship, you priorities – what would they say? We get so used to our piles of stuff that they become invisible to us. Maybe it would be a good exercise to walk into each room of your house and consciously view it as if you were an outsider. What do you see?
Recently I came across this book: The Joy of Less, A Minimalist Living Guide: How to Declutter, Organize, and Simplify Your Life.
As with many things, simply reading a book, no matter how great the ideas are that the author has to offer, is not a magic formula for life-changing transformations. We’ve got to motivate ourselves from simply thinking something is a great concept, to actually doing something about it.
How much more does this apply to God’s instruction book, the Bible? God has offered us the opportunity to enjoy a life-changing transformation, but simply reading about it won’t make it happen. How often do we read God’s Word or hear it presented through a motivating sermon and we think that we really want to do better at such and such? We all have areas in our lives that need some improvement. We know we need to do better, but in many cases our best intentions are forgotten by the next day. Somehow we’ve got to make the transition from thinking about it to actually doing it. We’ve got to want it badly enough to do something about it.
Don’t wait until January 1 to resolve to do better. Spend some time in self-evaluation. Evaluate how you can declutter and simplify your possessions. Doing so will give you freedom to concentrate on more important things in life. But more significantly, spend some time contemplating your life – your character. Be willing to lay aside anything that is hindering you from running your Christian race.
I bought The Joy of Less several months ago, and while I've read many books on de-cluttering, this one was the best I've read. And I agree with you 100% that the whole point of getting rid of the "stuff" is that we can then focus on the things and people that are really important. Thanks for sharing these ideas!
Joy, this has helped me. I have let my devotional time slip the past few weeks. I need to get started back NOW so I will be ready for the new year. Seems like Satan puts so many things out in front of our actual Bible Study time. Thanks.