Declutter: It really is necessary

Do you struggle with the mundane?  It is often easier for us to deal with the big overarching projects that come into our lives than dealing with the mundane, day to day activities of life.  Yet those actions that we postpone or delay often lead us into difficult corners, that can sour our disposition and turn into huge time-suckers.

Today we need to talk about a few things in the realm of organization.  This idea of organization has been on my mind for quite a while now.  In my workplace I have been on a slow purge around my desk and on my computer, meticulously reviewing those items that I have stored to determine if they are still needed.  On the home front we have been preparing for the ultimate exercise in futility, the garage sale.

With organization and purging at the top of my mind I spent some time this past Friday listening to a presentation on that very topic from an organization expert, Lisa Montanaro.  She had several interesting thoughts here are 3 of the things that I found to be the most thought provoking:

3 Thoughts on Organization

1.  "Clutter = Delayed Decisions"  when we delay or leave things undone those items become physical or mental clutter.
2. Just like the way we are all best able to learn in different ways, we also organize in different forms.  Whatever we do must be something that works for us.
3. Metadecisions - Setup rules for yourself that force you to take action.  She gave the example of your her email box and the rule she has set that she if she has to scroll to see her emails she has too many and must address.

By clarifying and purging we not only free space in our homes, offices, and vehicles but we raise our efficiency and often open up pockets of time that we did not realize we had.  This is huge because most of us seem to struggle with time despite the fact that we all have the same amount, 86,400 seconds per day.  The more often we delay these decisions or actions the more likely we are to end up with a choppy, out of flow life that leaves us confused, frustrated, and tired.

So, you might ask, how does this impact my faith?  That last thought alone of confusion, frustration, and tiredness impacts our faith in very real ways.  When we are facing any, or more likely, all of those we will delay faith-building activities, choosing to rest rather than heading to worship, or vegetate on the couch watching TV rather than engaging in meaningful discussions with our family or spending time in the Bible.

From God's perspective here are a couple of th0ughts to consider:

Psalm 33:11

"The counsel of the Lord

stands forever,

the plans of His heart

to all generations."

God is a planner.  We speak of the plans He has for us, and the plan of salvation, but forget that we are created in His image.

Genesis 1:26

Then God said,

"Let us make man in our image,

according to our likeness;

let them have dominion

over the fish of the sea,

over the birds of the air,

and over the cattle,

over all the earth

and

over every creeping thing

that creeps on the earth."

So, if God is a planner and we are made in His image, then perhaps we too should be planners.  That thing about having dominion goes to the information and items that come into our life just as the fish, birds, cattle and creeping things in the passage above.  

This week let us all be challenged to de-clutter our lives and find the treasures that may be lurking in the midst, or more importantly the time and energy to better serve God and family.  If you do, then you stand a better chance to Make today GREAT!