Clutter, Clutter, Clutter
Susan Yates
 November 20
Lately I’ve been overwhelmed with clutter. My desk is a mess. My closets are a mess. My laundry room and . . . You get it. I just can’t seem to get “on top of things.”
And I feel guilty. When I had kids at home I had an excuse. I was busy with them. Or I was watching them while doing something else. Multitasking gave a greater sense of accomplishment. Back then I also had daughters who would rave over a closet I’d finally cleaned out. But they are gone.
Now I have a hard time getting the same satisfaction out of de-cluttering. It’s doing one thing at a time and I really don’t like doing it. I’d rather do something creative or spend time with people. I always thought I’d get organized when I hit the empty nest but it hasn’t happened. I keep finding other things to do to avoid dealing with the clutter.
As I’ve thought about this I’ve seen some spiritual parallels in my life. I think God wants me to clean out some areas that I’ve been avoiding. Like my tongue for example. I want to be more careful about what I say and when I say it, especially to my husband. I don’t have to hit him with my “to-do list" for him when he first comes in the door. And how I ask him to do things could be done with much more grace. I need to let God have greater control over my tongue. Then there’s the clutter in my thoughts. Instead of looking at another girl and thinking critical thoughts in my mind, I want to look at her and pray that God will bless her. These may seem like little things but they are clutter and I know God wants to clean out this clutter and make me more like Him.
Too often I find I get defeated with both the personal clutter that I know God wants to change within me and the material clutter in my household. Both seem to be overwhelming projects. There’s so much that needs changing.
Elizabeth Elliott used to have a favorite saying, “Just do the next thing.” Instead of looking at all that needs to be done, I need to take one small step.
“Lord, today give me gracious words to speak to my husband. Remind me to tell him how proud I am of him. Today, help me to clean out one drawer in my office.”
Somehow just doing the next one thing does not feel quite so overwhelming!
| 
