Friends, I’m a pack rat. When I took a couple small bags to Goodwill about a week ago, I immediately questioned if I should have kept what I gave away. Yes, as I drove out of the parking lot. My husband cheered me on…“You can do it! Get rid of things!”

Even though I just LOVE a clean place to live in, I collect, I pile, and I let dust gather on things I don’t really need (or want). Do you do this?

I’m guessing I’m not alone.

I discovered a certain level of freedom from the clutter when we finally had the chance to get new carpet in our house. The mission to pack everything into boxes got me dusting off junk and making piles of things. One pile was called “I haven’t touched this in 3 years!” and another: “Can’t let it go yet!”. One of those piles went to Goodwill (hooray!) – a huge breakthrough for me.

When the boxes came back in after the new carpet was installed, unpacking brought another level of letting go. The “Can’t let it go yet” pile got smaller and the fresh, new carpet smell convinced me to keep things simple and beautiful – not piled up!

There’s another cramped place of my life that receives clutter – my schedule! What about you? Do you feel like you rush from one thing to the next some days? I’ve asked myself the question, “Does life have to be like this?” Christmas has made me slow down this year (and I know it doesn’t slow down for everyone..) I feel lucky to have had time to breathe to take inventory and reassemble life. In my day-to-day routine, what can I do without and what’s missing?

Time with God needs a place in our lives. My soul is thirsty every day for His living water. Don’t you feel it? Life without personal time with God is a seriously lacking existence. We’ll be short and empty on love; all the good things His Presence instills in us.

Then why is time with God one of the first things to get crowded out? A friend of mine said “schedule first what matters most”. This is it – a quiet ten minutes, no, twenty minutes with Jesus.

To be uncluttered in our time is really something. I figure, to add something in, like actual time with our Creator, we need to pluck something out of our schedule. What will it be for you? TV time, 15 minutes of sleep, Facebook time or maybe staying home one more evening a week? Try it and see if your days are more revived, more breezy and you are more yourself. Time with God will lift you up.

-Elissa

Thanks for reading. What have you learned through the Christmas season? Please share in the comment box below.