Obsessed with less

        We are programmed. We want more...More...MORE! This is the carefully wrapped package our society has sold us ever since we could walk. Expanding, improving, and updating constantly rules our mind. We are slaves to consumption.

        This standard in our society disgusts me. Sure all of this "stuff" would be wonderful if it offered peace, satisfaction, and a truly enriched mind but it only feeds the desire of wanting MORE. This really saddens me. Why have we let such meaningless things lord over our lives?

         I want to be obsessed with less. This idea is completely contradictory to everything our world has taught us. However, I have found it to be much more rewarding then anything the world has tried to sell me.

Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

Matthew 19:21

          Admit it, as Christians we overlook this verse. Why? Because we LOVE our stuff. It only makes sense that Jesus would ask us to give up this other love in our life before we follow him. Living with less is what Christ intended for us. Scratch that...He desired us to live with nothing...so he could be our EVERYTHING. 

          When you take away everything from your life; your home, car, clothes, money, friends, etc. what is left? Are you content? Is it impossible for you to enjoy life this way? I believe this is what Jesus wants; complete contentment with Him...nothing else. 

          I am becoming what some would call a minimalist. It's an active desire to live with less. Recently my husband and I moved to Dallas, TX. As a new minimalist my goal was to move with only 1 tub per room. That meant 1 box of kitchen stuff, 1 box for the bathroom, 1 for the bedroom (including clothes), 1 box for Evelyn's room, and 1 box for the living room. We fudged a little bit (mainly on baby stuff) but were able to fit everything in our car and the in- laws trunk. That was our first big commitment on living a minimalist life style. It was a little scary deciding what could go and what we had to let go of. However, I am really trying to remember what we didn't take and I can't. We survived and still are. God is faithful not our stuff. 

          I was about to say that "A minimalist lifestyle is not for everyone" but in reality it is. Minimizing our stuff is a practical approach to ridding ourselves of the world and relying on Jesus. Lately I have been looking at the things I don't want to consider getting rid of. These are the things that are most likely to lord over my life. There are things that I place in very high value...my "smart" phone for one or my computer. If you ever find yourself saying, "I just can't get rid of that" chances are that is probably the ONE thing you should do without. 

         Before moving the ONE thing we just couldn't get rid of was the TV. Why is it that no one in our culture seems to be able to survive without this thing? We used to make excuses like, "we only use it for informative purposes like watching Food Network and Discovery Channel". Which is all fine and dandy but Christ asks us to give up our possessions (the stuff we can't live without). And guess what? We do live without it just fine. Its absence is almost unnoticeable. I have more to say about the TV but will leave that for another blog. 

         I urge you to get excited about less. Give up some possessions you love and let Jesus take over...it's amazing. 

Bath time with Jesus

Maybe you are just like me and you have NEVER been able to successfully commit to a "quiet time"  and you feel guilty for it. After all  every good Christian wakes up at 5:00 am to pray and read the Bible. Sunday sermons would always convince me that I was actually going to get up and do it and stick to it. Monday morning came around and I would hit that snooze button like nobody's business. Many times  I wouldn't think of my failed commitment until the next Sunday and the cycle would start all over again. Or I would think of it and I would just feel guilty that I kept failing.

Over the last year I have met with Jesus in one of the most unlikely places...my bathtub. Is it really so crazy? The bathtub was the one place of quiet I could rely on for relaxation, rejuvenation, and a solitude for thoughts. The only problem was that meeting with myself really wasn't that exciting. I really didn’t have a relaxed mind, rejuvenated soul and my thoughts were certainly not very interesting. So I naturally began asking Jesus to meet me there. I naturally longed to listen to simple music that worshiped God in my time there. Most of all I was excited to meet Him.

Lately I have been thinking of ways to further use my uniqueness and creativity to make an exciting bath time with Jesus. I have also been trying to memorize more scripture. Today I took a dry erase marker and wrote Psalm 139:23-24 right onto the tile. This will also help remind me to scrub my shower :) I can't wait to take a bath tonight.

God has created us each uniquely. Why should our intimate time with him be anything but unique? I encourage any "quiet" time failures to be creative. Don't think your time with God has to be dry and boring. Let me know if you come up with any cool ideas.

Expensive Organizing

Just dropped in at the Container Store (I have and interview there tomorrow ) and couldn't help but be a little disgusted by how much everything costs. Is organization only for the rich? No my friend it is not. There are many things you can do to organize without even spending a DIME!

Free ways to organize…

Purge- This is probably the most important aspect of organization and it can go a long way for small and large wallets.  The fewer things you own the less you will…

1. Spend time dealing with that stuff
2. Have to find space  for that stuff
3. Spend money on maintaining and containing that stuff

Reuse- Instead of buying containers GO GREEN. Find things around your home that you can repurpose to store your belongings.

I recently took old diaper boxes to make recycling tubs. You can do the same. Try sprucing them up with old gift wrap or even newspaper (which is appropriate décor for a "recycle" theme.

Rearrange- Rearrange your items in an attractive manner.  Simply color coding your closet can give it a fresh look.

Work with what you have- By simply using the fixed storage in your space.

Copy Cat- Go to a place like the Container Store and check out their inventory. See if there are any products that you can recreate at home.

If you have to spend…

Goodwill- storage solutions like canvas bins and wicker baskets are expensive new. Many times you can find baskets or bins for a few dollars or less.

The Dollar Store- Many dollar stores off unique products like drawer dividers and canvas bins. Most of the canvas bins in my place are from Dollar Tree.

Yard Sale- who knows what you can find.

Spend big- only if the need is big. Don't buy unless you have a specific purpose for that item. Never buy just because you like an item or it may become another piece of clutter. 

Junk Drawer

The junk drawer...almost every household has one. It's  a cancer that absorbs miscellaneous items. We want to find a place for each of our things  but those "things" often seem uncategorizeable. So we shove our things in that drawer. They remain out of sight and out of mind. Then we need something; a rubber band, battery, lighter, paper clip, that Pizza Hut coupon, or unpaid bill. We begin the sifting and swishing of stuff in search of that lady's  e-mail address we know we stashed in there...somewhere. 

I am a guilty: I am a junk drawer creator. While I try to label myself as a very organized individual, I can not seem to stop the stashing and shoving. It is just too easy, I am too lazy, and there seems to be no sensible place.  Even though I occasionally fall into this trap I  have been training myself to become a junk drawer eliminator. The process, overtime, becomes less overwhelming and less time consuming. It simply requires a little tweaking and purging every couple of months. With out a junk drawer you should be able to; have a home for every item in your house (even the odd ones), find any item in the minimum amount of time possible, and rest easy knowing you won't have to fret over any misplaced item ever again. Okay so maybe that won't always happen but it is something to strive for. 

Down and dirty...steps to turn the junk drawer into the Highly Effective and Usable Drawer Where Valued Tools are Kept.

1. Clear the drawer of all contents.
2. Clean the drawer. (Who knows when the next time it will be empty).
3. Purge. Bring over the trash can, recycle bin, and donation bin for this step.
•  If you haven't used it in a year...purge it.
• If it is trash...purge it.
• If you have no idea what it is...take the time to find out and relocate OR purge it.
• If it is broken and beyond repair...purge it.
• If it is old and you have a better one…purge it.
• If you have multiples (that you don’t need)...purge.

4. Sort. Items to stay in the drawer and items to be relocated. Don't forget the relocation part. If the items you meant to relocate end up in the drawer again, we really did not accomplish anything. 
5. Sort again the items that will remain in the drawer...like items with like items.
6. Plan out how everything will go in the drawer. Store items where they are the most likely to be used. Have a place for each item so that you can guarantee its return. 
7. Make your drawer happy. Use your style to enhance your drawer. This will help you want to keep it clean.
8. Take a picture of your drawer at its best. Keep it in sight so you know how beautiful it can look.

Simply Simple

Strive to live simply and enjoy abundantly.