Day Nine – Removing Clutter

Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will received, that your joy may be full.
John 16:24

Yesterday, I had to remove mental clutter to regain focus on clearing my home of things not needed and or wanted. So! My husband, my son, my baby daddy and I took a trip to one of my favorite stores! Menards! And as usual I got lost in the joy of being there. The field trip reminded me home is where the heart should be and joy should always be abound. Let’s pray!

PRAYER

Father God, give my home and all who live within it your unquestionable joy. Amen

Day Eight – Removing Clutter

Whoever is patient has great understanding, but one who is quick-tempered displays folly.
Proverbs 14:29

Yesterday was overflow/large item trash day. It was a day much anticipated. I could finally get rid of the 4 x 4’s post that had rotted and removed from a raised strawberry-bed. To my dismay, the city workers left them neatly stacked as I’d place them at the curb. So, sometime later I called 311. I told the city worker they forgot to pick up the rotted posts and could they come back. She said, “I’m sorry. We don’t pick those up. They are considered part of construction material.” I replied, “they were removed from my garden.” She said, “I understand but they are considered construction material.” After the soft blow of disappointment hit me like a ten ton brick I sat there bewildered. I didn’t want to drag those things to the backyard. Let alone figure out how to dispose of them. It was clear I needed to quickly get my emotions in check because the situation wasn’t that serious. And it was then when I realized I would just pull out my miter saw, cut the posts into smaller pieces and throw them away in the weekly trash bin. Now! There I fixed the problem! As I notice when we don’t become distraught over things, solutions are plentiful.

PRAYER

Father God, keep us in your perfect peace at all times. Amen

Day Seven – Removing Clutter

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.
James 1:5 NIV

Yesterday, I learned that sometimes we keep things out of guilt even if we do not have space available for that thing and or associated feelings. As a result, we put ourselves in all sorts of uncomfortable positions because we do not want to hurt others. And, honestly, it’s hard to apply appropriate decorum to gifts and situations when the fear of hurting someone is present. Let’s pray!

PRAYER

Father God, give us your wisdom on how to handle matters that tug at the heart. Amen

Day Six – Removing Clutter

September 19, 2023

I’m on a roll! Yesterday, I forced myself to get going! I had a date with destiny! I took those men’s shoes and Southpole sporting vests to the Denver Rescue Mission. The guy that took the items was amazed that I was donating new items. I explained to him that I felt God wanted me to give them to people less fortunate than myself. Then he quoted Luke 6:38, “Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.” Let’s pray!

PRAYER

Father God, prepare our hearts for the goodness of the Lord. Amen

Day Five – Removing Clutter

September 18, 2023

For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.
2 Thessalonians 3:10 ESV

I tell yah! I’m getting the hang of removing clutter! For months, weeks and days, I’ve been after my son concerning his stuff stored at my home. Well! He finally came back to Colorado to visit his children. And, yesterday, he stopped by to visit and go through his things. He had several large totes and a few backpacks stuffed with paperwork. As he was sorting through his belongings he was sweating and claiming my house was too hot. I felt fine. The temperature in my home was spot on for me! But! It wasn’t for him. He was the person doing the work clearing his clutter.

I learned from this moment that sometimes we crowd our lives with other people’s baggage, even when we don’t have space available. And if we don’t insist that they take their physical and emotional baggage with them it becomes ours, whether we want it or not, whether we can handle it or not. Let’s pray!

PRAYER

Father God, help us to know when and how to help others. Amen

Day Three – Removing Clutter

Friday, September 15, 2023

Failures and fears are the part of the journey we call life. Don’t let them stop you or derail you from your chose path.
Debasish Mridha

Well! Happy Friday! Yesterday, I was busy with other matters. It seems finding those spiders the other day [dead and alive] temporarily derailed me from my journey of decluttering. However the tasks I did accomplish were just as draining; yet, finding solutions to what seem to be unsolvable problems was emotionally freeing. So, I venture to write, I did work on removing clutter from my life but this time it was mental clutter. And! I say, emotional clutter is worse to manage than material clutter on any given day. Let’s pray!

PRAYER

Father God, keep us on task to free our wonderful lives from things that steal our joy. Amen

August 8, 2023

Finding Your Way – Living Your Life

“The lazy Christian has his mouth full of complaints, when the active Christian has his heart full of comforts.”
Thomas Brooks

My days always begin around 3 in the morning, long before I get up and start moving. I lay awake thinking about what I need to do first, ways of improving my life and how I can help my adult children reach their goals without being an overbearing meddlesome parent. However, on this particular day, I started with soaking the dishes from yesterday, folding clothes I’d washed and dried from yesterday, putting a load of clothes in the dryer from yesterday wash, putting another load of dirty clothing in the wash and waking my husband that isn’t mobile because of a bad hip to “Jeff, you need to wake up and start living your day.” In his mind I’m sure he’s thinking “what the heck can I do when I can barely walk.” And I know this is how he thinks because this is how he chooses to live! He waits on me and our son to do most everything for him . . . and sadly he’s enjoying the luxury so much that it robs him of having a meaningful life. Let’s pray!

PRAYER

Father God, Proverbs 20:4 says, “The slacker does not plow during planting season; at harvest time he looks, and there is nothing.” Lord help those that are struggling with laziness. To their dismay, them sitting around doing nothing but passing time waiting on others to do even the little things they can do for themselves rob them of abundant living. Open their eyes to the knowledge of strength is always gained by first helping ourselves and then others. Amen

August 5, 2023

Finding Your Way – Praying for Enemies

You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. ‘ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.
Matthew 4:43-45

Why the heck would anyone pray good things for their enemy! Really! That has always been my mindset for however long. Honestly, I don’t even know what interaction with whoever produced that spiritual hair-raising mindset. But! God opened my eyes to why we should pray for our enemies as I was telling my husband about all the demons that held my current enemies captive.

As I began to list all of their demons and say to my husband, “There isn’t anything good about them. Why does God allow them to live? They give nothing to making this world a better place.” OMG! No sooner than I spoke those words the Holy Spirit immediately with love and kindness showed me why God loves them despite what they’ve become and or what they’ve done to me. Simple, they are His and He wants to really be their Heavenly Father. And my mom’s death has put them in my life for however long it takes God to teach each person [directly or and indirectly] valuable lessons for our spiritual journey. Let’s pray!

PRAYER

Father, God, I love you more and more with each new day. Today, Lord, I pray for my enemies. I pray for peace for their wounded hearts and for your joy to enter their lives giving them hope for their life’s journey. In Jesus name I pray and in Jesus name I ask. Amen

July 27, 2023

Finding Your Way – Fruits of Suffering

“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”
Romans 5:3-5 (NIV)

Happy throwback Thursday! Ten years ago, on July 26, 2013, I posted an inspirational story about the struggles of a butterfly. It was befitting for this however long series titled “Finding Your Way.”

I’ve often seen people fall completely apart when facing trials and tribulations. The emotional stresses tied to struggles sometimes paralyze folks to a point they can’t see the forest for the trees; thus, rendering them helpless. And as a result nothing gets done to the best of their ability. As to why finding your way through difficult situations is so very very important to living an abundant life.

“A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to squeeze its body through the tiny hole. Then it stopped, as if it couldn’t go further.

So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bits of cocoon. The butterfly emerged easily but it had a swollen body and shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch it, expecting that any minute the wings would enlarge and expand enough to support the body. Neither happened! In fact the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around. It was never able to fly.

What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand: The restricting cocoon and the struggle required by the butterfly to get through the opening was a way of forcing the fluid from the body into the wings so that it would be ready for flight once that was achieved.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. Going through life with no obstacles would cripple us. We will not be as strong as we could have been and we would never fly.” ~~Author Unknown

July 21, 2023

Finding Your Way – Evil Intentions

They hatch the eggs of vipers and spin a spider’s web. Whoever eats their eggs will die, and when one is broken, an adder is hatched.
Isaiah 59:5

Yesterday my son called to tell me about his son’s unfortunate situation. It was identical to what he had experienced with his son’s mother. Apparently my grandson went to visit his toddler twin girls. When he got to their home he’d learned their mother had taken them elsewhere, thus, ensuring he would not get to visit with them. My grandson became upset and called his dad about his heart wrenching reality. My son told him not to do anything foolish over the matter and explained what had happened to him and what I’d told him about dating.

What I told my son when he was a young man: “if you want to know how a girl will act, meet her mom. Chances are she’s going to either be a carbon copy or polar opposite but more likely a carbon copy.” However that analogy can also be applied to social groups! If you want to know how a person thinks, observe the circle in which they travel. And! Even then you gotta be careful because you will always find chameleons in any social structure.

My grandson is very young and has little to no life experience; therefore, he’s paying a heavy price for his youthful follies. I pray he makes it to manhood without too much emotional baggage. Because, sadly, he’s not getting it when it comes to cultivating healthy relationships. His drive to score sexual encounters prohibits him from learning everyone has desires and or agendas. Let’s pray!

PRAYER
Father God, thank you for this day not promised. Heal the brokenness of people that have cultivated evil in their hearts. Speak peace and blessings to their life. Amen