Soul Matters
I don't say it enough, but God is good all the time and ALL the time, God is GOOD.
He's been working on me a lot lately. I have felt really under the fire in recent weeks/months. Nothing extraordinary, but just a lot of life stuff piling on to the point where I was getting a little more neurotic than normal. What I'm starting to figure out is that He is working with me on my obedience.
If you don't have a relationship with Christ, that may sound terrible. The word "obedience" often has some major negative connotations to most humans. But having a relationship with Christ means that you desire to live under the will of God and follow the path He has set for you. Obedience.
God knows better than I do what I need in my life and what I don't need. He knows which paths will lead me to "destruction" and which ones will lead me to peace. I, in my infinite human know-it-allness, struggle a LOT with listening to and following God's will for my life. In ALL things, from the least to the greatest. I hear His still small voice but then I either brush it off as "can't possible be Him" or think I know better which inevitably leads to some sort of heartbreak, frustration, or setback in my life. One of my most consistent prayers is to hear Him when He speaks to me. To follow His will for my life. That's why I think He's been really throwing things at me. Mostly they are small things that drive me nuts but I'm learning that when I turn those things over to Him, there is a peace that I can't describe that passes over me. When I finally "let go and let God" I ultimately feel better. And you know what? When I listen to Him and follow the path He's laid before me, it all ends up working out fantastically. Sometimes there are bumps on the way to "fantastically" but there are always lessons in those blessings.
For a long time now I've had this gnawing urge to dispose of a lot of STUFF. I started working on it in March while I was on vacation and got rid of/donated a TON of stuff. As in, my car was loaded down backseat and trunk. But there is still SO MUCH that I've hung on to that I know I need to let go of. Part of my reluctance is not having the energy to do go through everything I own and sort it into keep, donate, trash. A bigger part of it, though, is simply not wanting to part with some things. Things that were gifted to me but I rarely, if ever, use. Or things that are beautiful but stay stowed away in a closet.
But I know it's in His will for me to do it;to really evaluate the stuff I own and release a big portion of it before IT starts to own ME.
This past Saturday I spent the day really cleaning and evaluating my bedroom. It had gotten just really gross with what I can only describe as "litter." Bits of paper and all sorts of odds and ends that needed a better home than on top every surface in my bedroom. Plus, it was dusty as all heck, needed vacuuming, and just thoroughly cleaned. Once I was done, and every surface was clean, organized, and simplified, I felt amazing. I still feel amazing every time I walk in there now. It's just so much calmer to be able to see the surfaces.
It has given me the nudge I needed in order to do the same thing to each room of my house. Clean, purge, rearrange and simplify. I want my whole house to feel calm instead of cluttered. And I know in my heart that purging all the clutter and stuff will put me at peace with God. I don't know His purpose for wanting me to do this, I only know that He does.
So that is my challenge to myself for the rest of the year. Go room by room and organize, toss, or donate as much as I can so that when January 2019 rolls around, I'll feel refreshed and closer to the will of God than I've been in a long time.
He's been working on me a lot lately. I have felt really under the fire in recent weeks/months. Nothing extraordinary, but just a lot of life stuff piling on to the point where I was getting a little more neurotic than normal. What I'm starting to figure out is that He is working with me on my obedience.
If you don't have a relationship with Christ, that may sound terrible. The word "obedience" often has some major negative connotations to most humans. But having a relationship with Christ means that you desire to live under the will of God and follow the path He has set for you. Obedience.
God knows better than I do what I need in my life and what I don't need. He knows which paths will lead me to "destruction" and which ones will lead me to peace. I, in my infinite human know-it-allness, struggle a LOT with listening to and following God's will for my life. In ALL things, from the least to the greatest. I hear His still small voice but then I either brush it off as "can't possible be Him" or think I know better which inevitably leads to some sort of heartbreak, frustration, or setback in my life. One of my most consistent prayers is to hear Him when He speaks to me. To follow His will for my life. That's why I think He's been really throwing things at me. Mostly they are small things that drive me nuts but I'm learning that when I turn those things over to Him, there is a peace that I can't describe that passes over me. When I finally "let go and let God" I ultimately feel better. And you know what? When I listen to Him and follow the path He's laid before me, it all ends up working out fantastically. Sometimes there are bumps on the way to "fantastically" but there are always lessons in those blessings.
For a long time now I've had this gnawing urge to dispose of a lot of STUFF. I started working on it in March while I was on vacation and got rid of/donated a TON of stuff. As in, my car was loaded down backseat and trunk. But there is still SO MUCH that I've hung on to that I know I need to let go of. Part of my reluctance is not having the energy to do go through everything I own and sort it into keep, donate, trash. A bigger part of it, though, is simply not wanting to part with some things. Things that were gifted to me but I rarely, if ever, use. Or things that are beautiful but stay stowed away in a closet.
But I know it's in His will for me to do it;to really evaluate the stuff I own and release a big portion of it before IT starts to own ME.
This past Saturday I spent the day really cleaning and evaluating my bedroom. It had gotten just really gross with what I can only describe as "litter." Bits of paper and all sorts of odds and ends that needed a better home than on top every surface in my bedroom. Plus, it was dusty as all heck, needed vacuuming, and just thoroughly cleaned. Once I was done, and every surface was clean, organized, and simplified, I felt amazing. I still feel amazing every time I walk in there now. It's just so much calmer to be able to see the surfaces.
It has given me the nudge I needed in order to do the same thing to each room of my house. Clean, purge, rearrange and simplify. I want my whole house to feel calm instead of cluttered. And I know in my heart that purging all the clutter and stuff will put me at peace with God. I don't know His purpose for wanting me to do this, I only know that He does.
So that is my challenge to myself for the rest of the year. Go room by room and organize, toss, or donate as much as I can so that when January 2019 rolls around, I'll feel refreshed and closer to the will of God than I've been in a long time.
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