Not doing a very good job at writing on my online journal...lots been going on. Good things. Hard things. Life. But God remains faithful. Humanity is what gets in the way. I heard a wise man say from the pulpit the other day, "I used to say, O that's just life getting in the way. But it's not life. God says I give you life and life abundantly. He wants to give us good life. Humanity is what gets in the way! US!" We get in the way with our selfishness, and stuff, and humanness and we make a mess of what God is trying to do through us. So profound. That wise man? My husband. :)
God has been speaking to us on the matter of simplifying, and getting our house in order. Those words. "Get your house in order." It's been a revelation to us. As I dig deep into it, I realize that Jesus wasn't asking us to live a life of poverty. People get so hung up on the "prosperity message". I know I do. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say my personal opinion, of late, is that God wants to give us good gifts. It says so in His Word. James 1:17 says that every good and perfect gift comes from Him. Jesus is okay with us having good things. It's when our good things get in the way of what He wants us to do that it becomes and issue. When we have so many earthly things, things that bog us down and keep us from being obedient to what He's asked us to do, is when we need to step back and reevaluate, why we are here.
He has commissioned us, called us to GO INTO all the world and make disciples of every nation. I looked up the word "Commissioned" and it means this: 1. the act of committing or giving in charge, 2. an authoritative order, charge, or direction. Jesus gave us an order, a charge, a direction and path that we need to be on. He put us in charge of this! When we have too much stuff in our house, this can sometimes keep us from getting OUT of the house to do what He has called us to go!
In my case I tend to be overwhelmed in the area of keeping my house clean. THAT is my JOB! As a stay at home mom, one of the main duties in my "job description" is keeping my house clean, and yet I struggle with this on a daily basis. I have come to the conclusion, with the Holy Spirit's gentle reminders, that I am not the problem. It is the amount of stuff that we have that is. Really, WHEN will I use all of those things that I have stored in the basement, that area subject to floods, which turn into mold and sometimes rust?!?!? The Bible is pretty clear on these things: “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal." Matthew 6:19. If I had less things to keep up with, the task would be more manageable. Easier to teach my children how to keep up with it. Teaching them the life lessons of sorting and organizing is only good if you're sorting and organizing the things that GOD wants you to keep. Sorting old, broken toys, or keeping BASKETS of missing socks, (O CRAP! Thanks God!) is NOT something I want to pass on to my children. (On the List of things to do Monday morning: Get rid of "sock basket" of all the missing socks.) (Note to self: They are GONE! and NOT coming back!)
Am I saying that having a lot of things is bad? No. It becomes bad when the things become more important then obeying God. When the things hold us back from doing what He wants us to do. I know people that are extremely well off, live simple lives, and obey God when He tells them to do something with their money. Their things aren't holding them back from what Jesus has asked them to do.
I have a lot to say about this matter. I hope I am being clear in what I am saying. Jesus wasn't asking us to live a life of poverty, although sometimes He does speak to some people to do that. He does want us to be obedient to Him in everything. So if you're house, and things in your house are keeping you from being fully available for Him to do good works in, then it's time to Simplify. Get your house in order. Please pray for me and I work through what looks like for my family.
