Category: Christian Living

A Step of Consistency – Find Your Even Place Part II

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Last week in A Step of Clarity- Find Your Even Place Part I, I shared a few thoughts on clearing space in the home and in my mind and heart. In my search for level ground amid the present challenging phase of life, instead of starting something new, I stopped doing a few things that were distracting from my work as a wife and mom. There seemed to be for me a lot of extra distractions from outside sources that were limiting me from living well and being all present. I stopped signing up for new and interesting e-mails and unsubscribed from ones which were no longer of interest or that I never read. The e-mail subscriptions, while good and potentially helpful, were piling up in my inbox and I was spending time on deleting them every week without ever reading any of them. I deactivated all social media accounts to clear my head and to focus on my own home. With my husband facing total hip replacement this month, I needed to eliminate distractions for more mental clarity.

This week, I am sharing “A Step of Consistency”. Look and Clear 3 has been my key thought process recently and it has been very beneficial in keeping the house running and in ‘presentable’ shape. Rather than being overwhelmed by a long to-do list, I look for three things needing to be done. When I am in the bathroom getting ready for the morning, instead of fretting over finding time to thoroughly clean, I pick three areas in need of attention – which varies from day to day. Clean off the counter, sweep, and throw away the trash. Another day I do three different tasks; wipe down the mirror, the sinks, and clean the toilet quickly. The same goes for other areas in the house. I wipe down, clean or tidy up, throw away, or shred three things and move on with the day. At first, it didn’t seem like much, but there is a noticeable difference by the end of the week. My tendency is to do all or nothing which can be very overwhelming. An all or nothing frame of mind hinders clarity and consistency in managing my day well.

In my continuing journey to own less, the “Look and Clear 3” mindset is helpful in this area of life as well. (For more on this, see my blog post: The Journey to Less Stuff.) The task of going through old boxes, drawers, and files can be mind-numbing. If I regularly take care of just three items, I still feel a sense of accomplishment in clearing space and getting organized. I want to manage what I have well, be intentional about what I own, and move forward wisely in the time I spend caring for things.

If you are feeling stressed by tasks left undone, try taking a quick look around in the space you are in throughout the day and consistently clear three things which are immediately noticeable. I am confident that within a week, you will notice a difference in the level of peace in your home and in your heart and mind.

My foot standeth in an even place: in the congregations will I bless the Lord.

Psalm 26:12

A Step of Clarity – Find Your Even Place Part I

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In The Journey to Less Stuff, Stable and Satisfied, and Grace Goals for July, I have written about my need to declutter, get organized, and own less ‘stuff’. I went through this process a few years ago and made great strides.

  • Old high school and college photo albums were looked through one last time and while I have great memories, I realized I no longer needed to hold on to them. Photos and saved greeting cards were shredded or recycled.
  • Homeschool material I had kept was shredded or recycled and books were donated that my son did not want to keep. Because he had become a college student, I no longer needed to hold on to all that paper! (I had files of school work and shelves of books from over the years.)
  • My mother’s box of memories that was given to me was just that- her memories. I kept a few photos, my son wanted her 4-H notebook, but anything else in there had no special attachment since I was three years old when she passed away. I realized I was close to my mother’s side of the family and the memories they and my dad’s side of the family share of her meant more to me than her school yearbooks and scrapbooks. That box of her memories had been through seven states and one foreign country and stored in a corner of a closet or garage. It was time to do something with it.
  • Series of books I had loved but no longer read were given to a friend who I thought might enjoy them.  
  • Note: It may seem harsh or unfeeling to ‘dispose’ of sentimental items such as photo albums, old notes from friends, things given to me, but I knew I had to say “enough” at some point -enough of storing things in drawers, files, or boxes left untouched for long periods of time. I wanted to manage what I had well, be intentional about what I owned, and move forward wisely in time spent caring for things.

My foot standeth in an even place: in the congregations will I bless the Lord.

Psalm 26:12

When I went through this process a few years ago, I had the theme in mind of finding an “even place” or a balanced perspective. It became increasingly difficult to ‘bless the Lord’ when I felt overwhelmed. There was so much I possessed that I did not need anymore. I felt indifferent to a lot of things I had been keeping for one reason or another. I had a difficult time, though, in knowing where to start. I lacked clarity of mind to make that first decision on what to empty, throw out, or donate first. What I started with back in 2016 was not in finding a place to start, but in figuring out what to stop. I wanted to articulate what was adding stress or more pressure. I needed space to breathe, to think, and to restore. And things that were taking up space which took my breath away due to frustration, I needed to clear.

I am at that place again, so I am revisiting what I had done a few years ago to make more headway in clearing space- whether physically (in a closet, on a shelf, etc.), emotionally, or mentally. And I do believe clearing space affects my spiritual life as well.

The first place to find some balance is with internet ‘stuff’ and this is how I am seeking clarity:

  • I am stopping all social media. I deactivated my Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. There is a lot of negativity, over-sharing, information overload, scrolling and scrolling on my part, and distracting ‘mental noise’ for me right now. I told my husband the other day I felt my brain was ‘quieter’ since taking a step away. I felt I could be more mindful about my time. I could focus more on me and what I needed to be doing rather than what the masses were doing. I still keep in touch with those close to me through text or through Messenger.
  • I am stopping signing up for new recipes, health news, weight loss helps, gardening tips, etc. E-mails pile up and I never get around to reading all of them. If I need to look something up, Google is readily available.

While it is a meager start, it is a start nonetheless. It is where I began on the journey to find level ground a few years ago. When I stepped away from social media, I felt a nice quietness to my thoughts. When I started cleaning up the e-mails, I was able to see clearly the messages which needed a response.

There is more to come on clearing up space in my next entry: A Step of Consistency – Find Your Even Place Part II. For this week, though, I am stopping a few things that are distracting from my work as a wife and mom and seeking clarity of mind.

If you are seeking for clarity, maybe instead of looking to start something new, consider STOPPING something first–something that may be hindering your focus on what really matters in your life. Take a step back. Evaluate what is important. Clear some space. Breathe.


Grace Goals for July

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My foot standeth in an even place: in the congregations will I bless the Lord.

Psalm 26:12

A few years ago on my former blog, I wrote a series of posts about finding balance in life with stuff. We had just made a decision to simplify our work in ministry and my husband made a leap of faith to enroll in college courses to become a full time student. We felt overwhelmed. We felt at odds with ourselves, our finances, and our stuff that had built up over the years. He is now a college graduate, but due to the need to have both hips replaced, looking for work has been put on hold. We are thankful for his veteran benefits due to time served in the Navy. The blog post series entitled “Finding Your Even Place” was written in 2016. Three years later, we still have need for balance in some areas. Over the last few years, we have downsized quite a bit, but lately we have found that we could work on it a bit more. I am finding the more stuff we own, the more we have to manage it, find a place for it, clean it, etc.

In studying through the Psalms that year, I referred often to the phrase which became our new mantra; “My foot standeth in an even place” -Psalm 26:11. 

An even place: balanced, steady, continuous, unwavering.

I did not know where to begin in finding an ‘even place’ or balance with issues that felt overwhelming. There had been so much going on in my mind of things I needed to clear out that were weighing me down, but I had too much that was weighing me down to do what needed doing. All that added stress. And who needs more stress??? And now with my husband facing two hip replacement surgeries and physical therapy, among other life challenges, I am definitely needing a steady frame of mind. Another Scripture verse which stood out to me is in Hebrews.

Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us…and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.

Hebrews 12:1

I still think of that verse often as, again, I am going through my closets, desk drawers, papers that need to be shred. Stuff (especially things I do not really need but I have due to various reasons) tends to be a distraction and takes away from a peaceful frame of mind.

While we have made great strides over the last three years in cleaning out items we no longer need, we could do another revision. For July, I am revisiting the old blog posts, renewing purpose to find more balance, and rewriting the posts with fresh perspective.

Coming up next: A Step of Clarity

Stable and Satisfied

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Faith does not eliminate questions. But faith knows where to take them.

Elisabeth Elliot

In my last blog entry, The Journey to Less Stuff, I shared about working to live with less. I have been reading a lot of blog posts and articles about simple living and about living satisfied with simple pleasures. Sometimes a lack of contentment in God’s provisions stems from a lack of confidence. I tend to compare my ‘stuff’, status in life, and self to others. What holds me back from fully trusting is not what I have, but what I think I don’t have. I believe, though, that when I am a good steward with what I am graced with and I live well with His graces, contentment follows. And when “Thy will be done” becomes the heart’s desire, it is then that my mind is stable and satisfied with God in the lead.

I may not understand where God has me right now. I may not know why God created me a certain way. But when I take my eyes off Him and look on the lives of others or to self for answers, I lack wisdom.

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.”

James 1:5-7

God gives wisdom generously and without scolding when I ask for it in full faith. But when I go back and forth between trusting and uncertainty, He knows that I am like a sea’s wave moved by winds of doubt. And God does not reward a double minded mindset.

Faith in God still has questions. Lots of them. But stability and satisfaction comes from looking to the right Source for the answers and being wise enough to know that God has His own timing in everything to reveal a matter- even if it means something to know only when I get to Heaven. True faith is confident to take those questions to the throne of Grace and leave them there.

The Journey to Less Stuff

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People overestimate the pleasure they’ll get from having more stuff. This does not apply to new rose bushes, crayons, or yarn stashes.

Dr. SunWolf

In every place John and I have lived in, we have always had a closet, a bedroom, a shed, a garage dedicated to boxes of stuff. I had photos albums from high school, family photos, things that had belonged to my mother, memories from college, clothes I had hoped to fit in to again someday, and etc. John had his boxes of memories, too…and etc. Since we have been married, we have lived in seven states and one foreign country. And with those moves, we carried those boxes of stuff. I do not remember what officially sparked being fed up with having so much, but I do know I was tired of having to find places for it. I do know that if we ever move, I do not want to take all that stuff with me again. I do know that in the desert area where I live, dust falls on everything. And I do mean, e v e r y t h i n g. If I don’t wear a shirt for awhile that has been hanging in the closet, a layer of dust will be on the shoulders of the shirt and it has to be washed before I can wear it. Or if I hadn’t shampooed our bedroom carpet in the seven years we have lived here (just for a possible example), a layer of sand and dust will be found on baseboards hidden behind dressers…which have their own layer of dust because it is annoying to move things off dressers to thoroughly dust.

Everything we own is something we have to think about- how to store it, how to clean it, or how to use it and when left too long, the task to organize becomes overwhelming. I had saved old college papers I had written, my husband had his school papers he had saved. We had books, old letters, photos, and little bits and pieces such as keys, and coins, and dead batteries. Some of that was found in a bucket we had used to clean out the truck a long while ago; we just moved the items to another location and cluttered up another space. In the last few years, we have been convicted over being better stewards over our possessions and have been figuring out how to live with just what we need. Anything we own, we want it to have a purpose and we want to manage it and our time well. Time spent cleaning, sorting, organizing years of stuff is not the way we want to spend our days.

I loved the quote at the top of the page because we have, indeed, overestimated the pleasure of having stuff and the journey to possessing less stuff is a lot of work because it affects every area of life from clothing, to books, to papers, to memorabilia, to appliances, to furniture. I also loved the top statement because it implies that you can never have enough pleasure from roses. While I may not get too much pleasure from crayons or stashes of yarn, I do love my roses and wouldn’t mind a few more in the yard. Everyone in the family enjoys them and they add a different, simple sort of pleasure to our summer.

Speaking of roses, here are June’s #straygifts (photo of a rose included) with the themes of finding something: early, tiny, sunny, and in the shadows.

  1. Morning Glories are starting to show up in various places in the yard. The time to see them in bloom is early morning.
  2. Red roses are thriving in a sunny spot. There are more on the bush, but I loved this one in particular because of the sun rays.
  3. I have no idea what these tiny flowers are. I believe these flowers came from the birdseeds the birds like to scatter from their feeder.
  4. In the shadows, a sunflower is growing – from the same birdseed package as the flower growing in photo number three.
Pleasure is spread through the earth in stray gifts to be claimed by whoever shall find.
-William Wordsworth, 1806

Comfort Medicine

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“Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all.”

2 Thessalonians 3:16

The other day, I went with my dad to his doctor’s appointment at the Veterans Administration. Through different things we were talking about, the doctor mentioned that when he came to work there, medicine regulations were not what they should have been. The VA was prescribing pain medication left and right and just kept renewing the prescriptions. “We’ve created addicts”, he said. They used to prescribe pain medication for six months after a surgery. Since around 2015, they have tried to correct this. Now they only give 2 weeks worth. This doctor is originally from India. He said that we are the only country who prescribes “comfort medicine”. Some medication is necessary, yes, but we have it for just about any ailment, and so easily available. And now that the VA is scaling back on re-prescribing certain medications, there are a lot of upset veterans trying to cope with the change.

But medicine is not the only way in which to seek comfort. We look for it in food, in television, in work, in social media, in the approval of strangers and acquaintances, in unhealthy ways, and in our personal relationships. The world is full of distractions and “remedies” to ease the pain of loneliness, boredom, rejection, discontentment, emotional stress, and more. And we have become addicted to our own ‘comfort medicine’ of choice that is within reach twenty-four hours a day. But the only place to find everlasting peace, the kind that goes way down deep, is through “the Lord of peace himself.”

Today, no matter what we are going through, may we look to the Source of Peace while we wait for medical results and upcoming doctor appointments. May we seek Him while we pray for our children who are struggling to find their footing–the younger and the older alike. May we know His peace when responsibilities weigh heavy. May we pursue the true Peace Maker in difficult relationships, in trying times, and remember Him always by all means. May the Lord be with you all.

The Mark of Mercy

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My favorite time of year is when my roses start blooming and the sweet scent of honeysuckle fills the backyard. Right now the weather is pretty pleasant, but I know it will not last long as triple digit temperatures arrive in May. Even though I have not written much this month, I still am reading about and thinking over my study topic for April, “Seasonal Joys”. With the celebration of Easter this weekend come advertisements for seasonal Easter decorations, clothing, and events. It is a season I look forward to because it is a time of year of growth and vibrancy. Everything seems fresh and new. Seasonal things such as vacations in the summer, pumpkin flavors in the fall, and Christmas music in the winter all have their rewards. There are seasonal jobs and produce as well which rotate in and out.

One thing to keep constant no matter the season is the joy of our faith. Every day we live, we should be celebrating Christ’s death and resurrection in our hearts. He is the heart and soul, the reason for our faith. He calls us to Him daily, loving us, guiding us, and caring that we know Him. If we only celebrate and remember His sacrifice and gift one day out of the year, then we have missed the mark of mercy. Christ’s life, death, and resurrection came to set us free from sin, from guilt, from eternal separation from Him and to lose that focus in every day life surely makes life much more difficult.

Happy Easter. May we celebrate life in Christ with sincerity today, tomorrow, and in our hearts always.

Grace Goals for April

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How times and seasons are in concert! Spring is suggestive of morning, summer of noon, autumn of evening, and winter of night.

Henry James Slack (1818–1896), The Ministry of the Beautiful

In January, I shared an idea of having a study theme for each month along with a possible prayer plan, Scripture verses, and a ministry goal. I have named this ‘idea’, “Grace Goals 2019”. Each month looks different than the last as I wait for God to show me what the theme will be. January’s blog and Facebook posts were about encouragement. In February, I shared verses and thoughts on being strong in heart. March’s theme was about renewal. This month’s theme is entitled, “Seasonal Joys”. As each of nature’s seasons look different; so it is with life’s seasons. Some winters are colder and more bitter than others. Some springs occur later than we would choose. Some summers are hotter than you ever remember. And some autumn’s are more grand than ever before. In each season, there are joys and sorrows alike. My husband and I are going through a rough season right now with his health issues and working with doctors to figure out how to manage his chronic pain. Seasons of joy and struggle are in concert, all allowed by God, all to bring glory to Him in ways we may never know. More to come throughout the month of April.

I am continuing to look for the #straygifts that are spread throughout the days and here are a few suggestions for April:

  • Alive
  • Cheery
  • Spring Green
  • Warm

Renewing Hope

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“God uses broken things. It takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to give rain, broken grain to give bread, broken bread to give strength. It is the broken alabaster box that gives forth perfume. It is Peter, weeping bitterly, who returns to greater power than ever.”

-Vance Havner

“Hope” is a word my husband and I are using often this year. His body suffers with arthritis and pain from the hips down. He barely makes it to work and school, but pushes on because graduation is seven weeks away. Almost there. He has been seeing a rheumatologist outside the VA for pain issues, but any x-rays or attention to new medicine being prescribed is staying ‘under the radar’ of his VA primary care doctor. There has been confusion over medicine, over what is actually causing all the pain in my husband’s hips and legs, and more. We have been on an emotional roller coaster and my husband has been in contact with an advocate to seek help in communicating effectively with his doctor that something is wrong. The pain is too much to be ‘simple arthritis’. Is the pain from his fibromyalgia? Google doesn’t have all the answers we seek, and help with the VA is limited at this time. We have hope that the right someone at the right time will review all the x-rays and MRI results and see that the degenerative issues my husband is having needs attention. New medicine? A referral to see an orthopedist? Hip replacement surgery due to severe degeneration in his hip joints? Physical therapy? We have hope that this year, someone will be able to help him relieve some pain. We have hope that he will walk normally and not bent over working to put one foot in front of the other. We have hope that after graduation, he will be able to get a full time job. Driving is uncomfortable. The pain affects everything, yet every morning we wake up hoping this will be the day that my husband can be seen by someone who can help. Without hope and without knowing that God does see, He does hear, and that He may very well be working on the other end of the situation, I do not know where we would be. The days are hard. We are taking one step at a time. One x-ray, one MRI, one conversation with the advocate in hopes that things will change for the better concerning pain management is how we are managing. We do what we can do and pray God is working in ways we cannot see right now. In the meantime, my husband is able to keep a good testimony at work. He works with a lot of young people and they know he suffers and have shown they care. He is able to share with them about disabled veterans and how they can help support the military. In the meantime, we are still looking for ‘stray gifts’. In the meantime, we still count the blessings…the days when his pain is ‘manageable’ and the hours at night he sleeps. Every gift matters… especially in trying hours.

“…Though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.”

2 Corinthians 4:16

Stray Gifts Update: For March’s “stray gifts” themes, I had chosen to look for gifts fragrant, charming, growing, and sunlit.

  1. Sunlit peach tree blossoms and blue skies- When this photo was taken at our church in Mexico, it had been a few weeks since we had been there due to an ER visit with my husband and pain issues. It was very cold in our cement building for months. On this day, we had the door open and the ceiling fans on.
  2. One lone charming flower on a succulent plant outside.
  3. A homemade greeting card from my niece who is attending Bible college in California. I labeled this ‘stray gifts growing’ because she is a young lady far away from home (Australia) growing in the Lord, in knowledge, and in beauty.
  4. Sunlit mountains on the way home from a visit with my in-laws.
  5. Sunlit, growing leaves on trees and bushes.
  6. Charming, fragrant Lady Banks roses starting to bloom.

Pleasure is spread through the earth in stray gifts to be claimed by whoever shall find.
-William Wordsworth, 1806

Renewing Purpose

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“Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.”

Psalm 19:14

I wouldn’t consider myself a good listener. I am quick to form an opinion or offer a solution. I often judge and am impatient with myself and with others. My Grace Goals for March Bible study has been about “Renewal”. (See also: Renewing Rest and Renewing Focus) Today, I am thinking on Renewing Purpose – a purpose to listen more, talk less. It is challenging to be still and quiet thoughts and words. And if I am not saying anything out loud, noise is going on in my head about what I want to get done in a day. Always thinking, planning, plotting my next project. Even in ‘down time’, I am meditating on what is next or what needs to be crossed off my ‘to do’ list. (Especially since spring is here and I have gardening plans!) So far my studies have been about resting in the sufficiency of God to heal and to renew, and about focus; taking my eyes off media and distractions to recognize more His working in my life. Renewing purpose to listen for God’s voice, His leading, it is easy to think that is reserved for Sundays, sitting in church, listening to preaching. It is more difficult to turn off the television, to turn down the radio, to separate from noise, stress, work, and busyness to be still during the week. It can be unnerving as I think I should be doing something. And when I move my focus to incorporate moments of stillness or quietness to read, to be outside, to journal, I find myself quieter in spirit and calmer in attitude. Renewal may look like something entirely different to another person and with God making us each in a unique way, He can work in different ways through various means, but with the same message in mind; “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me: for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Matthew 11: 28, 29. First things first: Come unto me → If I move towards Him, then rest/renewal will be given. Take my yoke → If I identify with Him and learn from Him, learn His direction for my life,  then there is rest/renewal ‘unto your souls’ – renewal because, no matter what happens, I am secure in my every-day-purpose here on this earth. God is not limited to time and space, yet sometimes ‘time and space’ is what I only understand. It starts with recognizing the need for time set part (in any given place at any given time), breathing in the moments of peace, and letting God teach what renewal means to Him for me as an individual- purposing to rest my words and thoughts and listen to Him.  

For a busy minded person, taking time to renew rest, energy, and peace of mind can seem a bit of a nuisance with so much to do. But, didn’t God create rest? Doesn’t He offer renewal daily?

“Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable”…not just the words that come out of my mouth, but what goes on in my heart as well. Proverbs 4:23, “Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.” What goes on in the heart, usually comes out the mouth. It is a refection. And if I find myself being more judgmental, more impatient (even with God) or stressed, then it is indeed time for a ‘time out’ to rest my words, to renew purpose to listen more, and to calm my heart.

Renew:

to replace (something that is broken or worn out)→ working on replacing my need to have my opinions heard all the time with listening more; pausing when tempted to judge 


to resume (an activity) after an interruption→ working on resuming quiet moments in the day, purposing to take a break from the noise of television, the radio, from work

to give fresh life or strength to→ working on letting go of self made plans when the day changes, recognizing God is still in control, He is not surprised. Trusting His hand is on the day no matter how it goes renews life and strength.

Resting words and whirling thoughts and renewing purpose to listen more and talk less become difficult when using our own strength. In Psalm 19:14, David names God as his strength and redeemer. To withdraw words, opinions, and judgment can be done through God’s strength. And when I fail and need to be reminded to let go of control, to yield my plans to Him, to set apart time to take a break, there is the Redeemer to renew purpose, to make things new, right, and whole.