A couple weeks ago we had our annual neighborhood yard sale (we’ve missed this the last three years because we can never get our act together), this year I was determined to make a large dent in the ‘Toys R Us’ that is our home.
As we were cleaning out I found my kids repeating the phrase, “should we get rid of this?” To which I eagerly nodded each time without even really looking at the item. This was, after all, my desperate attempt to find the floor of the garage. hashtag hoarders.
But as we plowed through our stuff, for some reason the phrase started to bother me. I didn’t want my children to think these items don’t have value and that we just cast to the side things that are in our way. So we took a quick break so I could talk to them about this.
My kids already know that “people are more important than things” in every situation (I use that phrase a lot when one of them is trying to kill the other one over something like the last Oreo). But these “things” did cost our family money and time. That needed to be addressed.
We talked about how all things have value, meaning and purpose in different ways at different times in our lives. But our goal for that moment was to “make space for things that are important to us.”
Sometimes it’s difficult to see the things we truly love when there is so much stuff surrounding us.
Here comes the “life metaphor”… I pondered this new line of thinking as we cleaned, and God started using the seed that he planted in my mind to teach me more about myself than organization abilities. I realized this is an area in my personal life that I could certainly take a note from. Or maybe several chapters.
As school begins there are so many “things” that begin to take up time and often “clutter” our schedules. I say “yes” to everything! I love to do it all, but it’s certainly not easy or really even possible to do it all WELL. So I am taking a note from God and ‘making space for the things that are important to me’. One of our delightful pastors gave a sermon about a year ago, talking about building our schedules not around who we are, but who we WANT to be. It’s very humbling to look at my calendar and realize that is who I am.
This year I invite you to take a moment as I will; to pause and ponder whether I’m making space for the things that are important to me as I pack my calendar with activities. I’m asking God to fully take the task into His hands.
- Where am I needed?
- What will be in servanthood to You?
- What should I be doing to build my life under Your guidance to be the person I want to be?
I’ll strive to be quiet and still when my inclination is to shout “yes” and run in head first! I’ll allow Him to be the purveyor of my ‘to do’ list even when it doesn’t mesh with my desires.
Let’s allow God to intercede in miraculous ways and just see what He will do with us! Obedience takes courage. And let’s just be honest, He is much smarter than I am.
But if you’re in need of a bread maker, old backpacks, baby dolls or a box of unusable computer equipment, look no further; I can help you out.
Written by Lindsay Yochum
About Lindsay
Hi there! For those of you who don’t know me, my hubby, Ron, and I have attended PRC for about six years with our two kiddos, Addison, 8 and Joshua 12. We’ve worked a lot in the children’s ministry and AWANA so if you have a child, I’ve probably met you at some point!
Ron is a Major in the Air Force Reserves and a navigator on the C-130 aircraft. He’s off fighting the fires in California via air this weekend. Josh loves everything baseball, Addy is my little artist, and I enjoy gardening, home improvement, and marketing projects. We have a dog named Kipper that barely survives everyday in spite of his lack of any type of common sense.