It's Time to Declutter!
31/05/2020 18:58
When there’s the slightest hint of my catching a cold, (especially now, during this COVID-19 season), I reach for my trusted remedies—vitamin C, lemon lozenges and a Sri Lankan herbal concoction that keeps any germs at bay. The other day, a tickle in my throat had me running to my pantry to secure effective armour for my battle.
Unfortunately, the four boxes of herbal remedy sachets had disappeared from their usual habitat. It took me a few minutes to work out where they were. My beloved, in an attempt to reach an item which sat behind them, had moved the packets to the shelf above. Relieved to find them, I placed the contents of one sachet in a mug, stirred in boiling water and sipped my steaming drink, knowing that all viruses in vicinity would be zapped immediately.
My hunt for the herbals remedies made me keenly aware of a new challenge—it was obvious to me now that my larder was now too full and it was time to do something about it! I had planned to be careful about my spending this year. And I was. Mostly. But …! Yes, there was a teensy ‘but’. I haven’t spent money on clothes, trinkets or luxuries, but I HAVE spent more money than desired on one essential commodity. Groceries!
When the COVID-19 pandemic found us shoppers unable to able to purchase certain necessary items, it meant that after they were available again, I’d bought too many of them … for safe measure. Tissue boxes. Vitamin C. Strepsils. Long-life milk. Disinfectant wipes. Hand sanitiser. My larder now has lots of them, filling up its nooks and corners! No wonder my beloved had been unable to find what he needed and had been forced to move things around.
The pandemic has been a call to declutter not just my home but also my life. In this technological age, a thousand and one things clamour for our attention all day long. It’s too easy to get distracted, and we fill our lives and our calendars with frenzied activity. The items on our To-Do lists are long, but ... are they all essential? We make umpteen connections—having one thousand Facebook friends is easy to do but growing deep friendships is another matter and needs care and perseverance to be cultivated. In this 21st century world, being ultra busy seems to be something to be proud of. But ... is that what our God calls us to?
It’s time to throw aside bad habits, wrong attitudes and negative ways. Meanness, anger, worry, anxiety, envy and the like has to go. Apathy, selfishness and greed needs to be cast aside. Instead, lets ask the Holy Spirit to pour large quantities of love into our thirsty souls so we can overflow with that same love and bless others.
What’s in your life that God hasn’t called you to? And is there something that needs to be shed? Maybe it’s time you and I stocked up on faith, hope and love and dispersed of what we do not need. What do YOU think? What are your loves? Your hates? Your wants? Your dreams? Are they in keeping with the Father’s plans for you?
Let’s help each other on this journey. Let’s declutter our lives so we shine with childlike faith and trust. How much lighter we will become! Let’s go to Him. Let’s do only what He asks of us. Let’s walk freely and lightly in fields of grace, learning to love as Jesus loved. Much of what the world offers us are like glittering trinkets that will disappear in a trice one day. Only what’s done by saying ‘Yes’ to Christ will last. So come on, dear friends! Do join me.
It’s time for us to declutter!
“Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature.”
Col 3:5
“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.
But the greatest of these is love.”
1 Cor 13:13
