Tidying Up

Have you discovered the joy of decluttering and organizing your home and belongings? If you happen to frequent Netflix maybe you have stumbled across Marie Kondo and the series called "Tidying Up".  Marie is a Japanese organizing consultant and assist families in bringing peace to their homes by getting rid of the clutter and organizing in such a way that everything has a place.

It seems that so many have gotten on the bandwagon that donation centers have seen an increase in donations. As we pack and prepare for a move, I too, have been doing my part to increase donations at the Habitat Restore, TEEN Challenge, and Goodwill. After 25 years of marriage and an empty nest, I decided it was time to let go of so many things that we have hauled around move after move. The trick to letting something go is to ask yourself if it "brings you joy."

How often do we ask ourselves the question of whether something brings us joy or not? Probably not near enough. Marie Kondo says that we should even feel some sort of energy from the things we keep, if not let them go. For so much of my life I have kept things out of sentimentality.  Having things with sentimental value isn’t a bad thing, but does the object replace the memory or stir your heart for the connection you may feel? And what about those things we hang on to because we think we might need them? Guilty…thinking I might need some valueless object someday for who knows what.

So as I have systematically gone about organizing and packing, I have discovered huge joy in only claiming what I need and what really does have meaning for me. And the truth is, I still have plenty of stuff!

Sometimes I think that our need to surround ourselves with stuff somehow seems to hinder our relationship with ourselves and the God who loves us. To truly see ourselves as God sees us, we have to let go of things; our habits, our hang ups, our hurts. Because what God wants is for the joy that we discover and know…comes from God…a joy like no other, an everlasting joy.  So may we all lighten our loads, declutter our hearts, and let the joy of the Lord live within us…for all to see!