Let it go!

A dear friend loaned us the Frozen DVD.  The kids had seen it in the theater and I was anxious to enjoy it myself. Thanks Lisa! Great music and story.  

Let it go. I keep singing it over and over and since I don't know many other words at this point the same words keep rolling out.  Let it go, let it go. 

What is this message saying? It fits right in with the de-cluttering we have been doing together.  Totally. Many items that I have hung onto for years out of guilt, nostalgia, or memory's sake...I have decided it's time to let them go. 

During the journey of healing there are many other aspects I have discovered I need to let go of.  This requires self evaluation. Negative self-talk is just one of those habits that HAS to be dealt with. Let it go! Don't do it anymore. I have become more aware as soon as the thought flits through my mind.
I promise you...many of us do it. You may not even know it. 

Old habits. Let it go.
Old behaviors. Let it go. 
Old beliefs. Let it go.

Check out the lines from the Frozen song:

Don't let them in,
don't let them see
Be the good girl you always have to be
Conceal, don't feel,
don't let them know

Yep, old habit, behavior and belief!

Well, now they know.  Now you know...
I am not perfect.
I am a sinner.
I struggle with life.
I have too much stuff.
And it is OK to admit. It is good.

Now, back to the physical de-cluttering.
Does scrubbing my oven count as a bag. It did carry baggage!  Nasty grime and smelly, very black stuff-gone. Wowza!  

The rest of the week will be dedicated to bag filling. 

Letting it go,
Amy

What do you need to let go of?

Ephesians 4:22-24

The Message (MSG)

^20-24 But that’s no life for you. You learned Christ! My assumption is that you have paid careful attention to him, been well instructed in the truth precisely as we have it in Jesus. Since, then, we do not have the excuse of ignorance, everything—and I do mean everything—connected with that old way of life has to go. It’s rotten through and through. Get rid of it! And then take on an entirely new way of life—a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces his character in you.  [Emphasis mine]

Bag #27  Grime from oven...yep, I'm counting it!

Pity Party

Today, all I feel like doing are "numbing" activities. 
Things like read Facebook posts.
Ding around on Pinterest and look at pictures of Downton Abbey.
Drink Coffee
Look at magazines.

All non-productive activities.  Why?  Why do I have this tendency to unplug from reality?

I look around and there are an over abundance of things to do: 
Dishes
Laundry
Book keeping
To Do List of odd ball phone calls
Errands
Order entry

Not feeling it. Not feeling the love for every day life.

Maybe it's the intense detoxing I am doing that is wearing me out. 
Maybe it's the view out the window that looks the same it's looked for 6 months, white, grey and another hue of grey.
Maybe it's a full blown pity party!!!

Then this verse came to mind.

And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.  Galatians 6:9 NKJ

And this one...This is the day the Lord hath made. I will rejoice and be glad in it.
And this fabulous one I read last night...in The Message Phil 4:4
Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in Him! 
And this...Let petitions and praises shape [you], let God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. Philippians chapter 4  

Once again...Less Me; More Him  

I get it. I get why He says to offer yourself as a living sacrifice. 
A live sacrifice...me...keeps getting off the altar!  Same message, different day. 
He is so forgiving and patient and I am thankful.

Ok, pity party over.
Only thankfulness.

Blessings,
Amy

P.S. Bags purged since last post
#23  Expired supplements and OTC drugs
#24  tea bags that I don't like
#25  Perfume and fragranced lotions and shower gels...purging chemical smells from home
#26  Recipe box--purged recipes I know I won't use and reorganized storage wahoo!

Less Me; More Him

The world is a needy place; do not go there for sustenance. Instead, come to Me. Learn to depend on Me alone, and your weakness will become saturated with My Power. ~ Jesus Calling by Sarah Young March 9

This is fitting right into my theme of "Less is More".  I am so thankful for my devotional. It seems to always hit me between the eyes. Which is most of the time where I need it so He can get my attention!  
Weakness = Strength
Less of my own strength = More of His
Less doing it by myself = More of letting Him
Less hanging on to control = More of knowing Who is in control

"Satan’s angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn’t think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me,

My grace is enough; it’s all you need.
My strength comes into its own in your weakness.

Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ’s strength moving in on my weakness...And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become."  The Message 2 Cor 12:9

It is so much easier too. Why as a mere human do I think I can control anything? Why do I think I have to?  

What is it? A pride thing..."Hey, everything is ok over here." Ignorance? "I didn't know this thing about getting on my knees."  

My dad used to sing the song, "Oh Lord, it's hard to be humble, when I'm perfect in every way." I can't tell you exactly why he sang that...it had a great tune... Could it be that this is part of the problem...deep down I want to be perfect...I want everything to run smooth? Maybe it's inerrant (def: incapable of being wrong) in all of us...or maybe it's just me?

Humility is not exactly promoted in this world. Even possibly frowned upon.  Hey, it might even show our weakness!?  Ho-ho!  Exactly where Satan wants us.  Satan knows the scripture..."The Lord hates pride." Prov 6:17 It's easy pickens' for the Father of Lies.

Combat pride with humbleness.  
Humble yourself before the Lord and He will lift you up!  James 4:10
He will. He does and it is good!  Trust me on this one.  
Try it. Get on your knees. Lay your head on the floor and just start talking to Him. 

Less is More

Less Me; More Him

Amy

Less is More

Jammin' to Sunglasses at Night by Corey Hart
There is just something about 80's tunes. And now Rick Springfield....it's nearly impossible to concentrate on writing! 

Ok, so here I am several days after my last post about being a hoarder.
I am intentionally using less. When I asked my youngest son what he thought of the mantle (mind you, he is my marketer, designer, guy with the eye!) and he said, "it looks so clean and simple...nice"!  Wowza!
This is exactly the goal here. 
I have decided I can't go completely without bling for my house. I have heard from several ladies that my decor' is welcoming and a reflection of my spirit and love for family, the Lord and others.  It doesn't change  the time needed to reflect. And you can see I am working on this Less is More theory. Which, by the way was introduced to me by my English teacher, Mr. Walker. In fact, he often wrote it on the top of my papers!  "too wordy" less flowery" hmmm...

I really do enjoy the change of seasons and moving around my stuff. Repurposing and energizing an area...why not use a cute neck scarf as a table runner or garland? 

I have also cleared away an area right next to the fireplace. One little corner with NOTHING sitting there or hanging on the wall.  Last night my hubby stopped in front of it and said, "This is nice. An empty spot. I like it!"  Well then...

The de-cluttering will continue! This is really quite fun and challenging. It is all good.

I have a lot going on the next couple of weeks so I won't be able to purge a lot of bags, but do hope to do some work on email purging, figuring out why my iCloud is too full and won't back up (what is an iCloud anyway?) and all of the media/gadget clutter, you get the idea.  Although I did get some bags done at the end of the week. I made some progress in the office. Wow! Things multiply in there when I'm not looking!

As the 2nd evening closes before I get my blog published...I looked up evening verses
Let my prayer be counted as incense before you,
    and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!. Ps 141:2

Rest well friends,
Amy

Bag #21 Kitchen garbage bag from office
#22  Broken Household item/decor that I thought I might fix one day...