MaKayla, Mal & I were in the grocery store the other evening & happened to see a very close friend that has been instrumental in my life ever since I was a little girl. I don't get the chance to see & visit with her very often, but when I do, it's especially sweet. She informed me that she happens to be one of those people who checks the blog daily for updates... Again, thankful for the accountability that I need to do a post...
Kyle has been working on some home improvement projects for longer than he cares to admit & has decided that it is time to get them finished. To be honest, I've somewhat felt like my head is in a blender. I'm one of those people who likes to get one thing completed before I start another on & lately that just isn't happening... Between yard work, home improvement projects, graduation preparations, school, life & every day tasks, I feel like I'm just hopping from one thing to another with lists here & there & everywhere. The "leftovers" from yesterday's list were reluctantly transferred over to start today's list. The Lord reminds me that I should be THANKFUL that I can create a list & be productive in COMPLETING it! :) I'm alive. I'm healthy.I'm able. Many are so less fortunate & what I many times grumble about, they would delight in being able to do.
As I contemplate life, I see so many "things" that "clutter" my space... My heart... My mind... My emotions... Our home... Things that take up area that truly shouldn't. In praying about the reality of what this looks like, the Lord has compelled me to declutter, remove, get rid of, sell, burn, throw, disperse, give away, surrender...
I find myself instantly being trouble or concerned over things that I can do nothing about & many times really have nothing to do with me. I'm learning to recognize those things before they embed themselves within my heart, my mind & my emotions. I'm learning to turn them over to the Lord & not take ownership of them. Interceding but not being consumed by them.
Looking around our home, I see things sitting that have no purpose or value... They simply collect dust & fill space. So... Even though we have simplified tremendously since we moved here (7 years ago this summer), another round of simplification has taken place... If it doesn't have purpose or meaning, it is going, going, gone. :) To goodwill, to friends who can use it or to the burn barrel. Both girls at separate times have commented, "It looks like we're moving..." The freedom of less... Sometimes I really wonder if the Lord is preparing us for something... Something where we have to be content with little...
The girls have been so helpful in getting some much needed things done & it's been such fun working together. In doing these tasks as a team, I pray that it is teaching them that "things" without personal value really have no purpose. I pray that it is teaching them how to be good homemakers to their families some day.
Over the past week or so we have:
*cleared, cleaned & organized the breezeway closet
*decluttered the kitchen (counter space, on top of the refrigerator, baker's rack, cleaned cabinets)
*cleared, cleaned & organized the school closet (one less student next year :(...)
*cleared, cleaned & organized Mallary's closet
*emptied & removed one bookshelf
Bit-by-bit we're getting there! Most would think we are doing what we're doing in preparation for MaKayla's graduation next month but not so. It's just where I'm at in life. An intense season of refining & stripping. Ushering out the old in order for the Lord to make things new! I'm so ready to be free from clutter all the way around as is Kyle, MaKayla & Mal.
Kyle did keep busy this past weekend completing some projects...
Hanging outdoor speakers while warring against a nest of bumble bees...
Finishing some landscaping he's been wanting to do...
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MaKayla & I started in on Mal's room remodel...
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Mal took her first dip in the pool even though it had only been filled the day before...
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I've just been taking it all in, enjoying being with those I love the most... ♥
More than anything, I think God is showing me that in ridding my life of those things which clutter, He is freeing me to love & live more abundantly... ♥
Bit-by-bit, with His guidance, patience, grace & love, I am getting there... ♥
I do thank each of you who care about our family & take the time to read our blog... ♥
I am humbled... ♥
I am blessed by your love... ♥