Clearing Out the Clutter

“There just aren’t enough hours in a day!”

“I feel like I’m drowning in stuff.”

“I have so much on my mind lately that I keep forgetting things.”

“I don’t even know if there IS a place for everything in our house.”

“It feels like there isn’t enough time in my schedule to even breathe some days.”

“Let’s just gift experiences to each other this year – we already have too much!”

Any of these statements sound familiar? I know I’ve said or thought some derivative of these in the last month and with Christmas approaching, I’ve started working on a “clean sweep”. And I’m not just talking about in my house.

I was thinking back to the beginning of 2019 and the cleaning trend sparked by Marie Kondo’s Netflix show “Tidying Up”. I jumped on board and started purging. I was so excited! This was going to be a new beginning and I was finally going to have a tidy house.

I wasn’t quite as ruthless as Marie might have encouraged, but I managed to make it through our clothing and the kitchen. Things were starting to look a little tidier. But when we got to paper (which I am drowning in) and books (Hello, book lover here – 30 books is not enough) my enthusiasm and momentum fizzled. And as old habits crept back in, so did the piles.

I used to think that clutter was simply “stuff” – things that didn’t get put away, piles of random items that didn’t have a home, or things that you’ve accumulated with good intentions to use, but never did. But, over the last several weeks the definition of clutter has changed for me.

Merriam Webster dictionary defines the verb “to clutter” as:

“to fill or cover with scattered or disordered things that impede movement or reduce effectiveness”.

However, I think if we are honest, we will discover that what impedes our movement and reduces our effectiveness isn’t always just “stuff”.

Scripture talks a lot about casting off or putting aside. We are told to cast our cares on the Lord (1Pet 5:7; Ps 55:22), to put/cast off the sin nature and works of darkness (Eph 4:22, 25; Col 3:8; James 1:21; 1 Pet 2:1; Rom 13:12), and to lay aside every weight that encumbers us from running the race that God has given us to run (Heb 12:1).

Lay aside every weight that encumbers and sin that entangles. These are the things that “impede our movement” and keep us from living life with the abundance that God desires for us, and also keep us from fulfilling our calling effectively. And this isn’t always just the bad things, it encompasses good things that we have allowed to clutter up our lives and sap our strength. Sometimes, it is the negative thoughts we allow to dominate our minds or the old habits of our sin nature we allow to creep back in. But, sometimes it’s the demands we allow to be placed on our already full schedules, the roles we accept because it’s “for a good cause”, or the things we participate in because of guilt, FOMO, obligation, or trying to live up to someone else’s expectations.

With all this in mind, perhaps we should redefine clutter as anything that takes up room in our minds/hearts, our space, or our time that commands our attention and siphons valuable energy from the things that should have our focus.

According to this definition, I know that I have some work to do! So, how do we go about decluttering our lives?

#1 – Determine what season you are in.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 says “For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven.”(NLT). Verse 6 goes on to say that there is a time to keep and a time to throw away. That means that there are seasons for everything. So whether that’s things we have collected, habits we’ve adopted, activities or groups we’ve participated in, and sometimes even relationships – we need to take stock and prayerfully consider if these things are currently “in season” for where God has placed us right now.

Now, we know that in the life of a Christ follower, sin is no longer “in season” because we have been made new (2 Cor 5:17). We cannot justify allowing sin to reign in our lives any longer and it’s thought patterns and actions are things that we need to cast off. But for all of the other things, we need to ask ourselves if they are beneficial to the season of life we are in or if they are in some way impeding our ability to live fully in that season.

#2 – Prioritize and evaluate.

Once we have identified our season, we need to determine what our priorities are at this time. As Hebrews 12:2 tells us, Jesus should always have our focus first and pursuing a relationship with Him should be our number one priority. Then, the calling and purpose He has placed on our lives – the race we’ve been given to run – AND the current season that we are in should order and dictate our next priorities. Prioritizing helps us to see where we need to be investing our time, energy, and resources the most and will aid us in taking our next step.

When having trouble prioritizing – especially when it comes to the minor things – evaluate what the optimal investment each item requires is and whether it is within your current capacity to provide that investment. If you’re like me, this is the stage where you might discover things that you didn’t realize were lower priority and taking up far more time and energy than you thought. Just because it might be a good thing, doesn’t mean it is right for me, or right for now.

#3 – Identify and cast off the weights.

Now that we have identified what our priorities are, we are better able to see what is hindering us from fully investing in those areas and relationships. These are the weights that we need to cast off. The clutter that is filling our space and using valuable resources that should be used for things of higher priority.

That might mean cleaning our space and purging things that we don’t need or that are “impeding movement” or effectiveness in our life. This isn’t always an easy step and can feel overwhelming sometimes, but remember that we don’t have to do it all at once. Set a goal and commit to taking steps to work towards it.

Or maybe it’s confronting thoughts that the enemy has been weighing us down with and intentionally replacing them with Truth from God’s Word. Or finding someone we can trust to pray with us and keep us accountable in changing negative habits or walking free from persistent sin in our lives.

Or perhaps it’s prayerfully considering what things in our lives and schedule we need to release or step back from. Sometimes we hang on to things that were only meant for a season because they’re familiar or routine. And sometimes we participate in things to please others, but that are not optimal for us.

It might even mean asking God for wisdom in our friendships/relationships and letting go of some that are not healthy or are influencing us negatively.

Whatever area of “casting off” we need to address, it’s imperative that we listen to the Holy Spirit and follow His direction in what steps we need to take. Then rise up with bravery and confidence and step out.

Clearing out the clutter is not always a fun process, but it is a necessary one. For me, the last few weeks have been full of some difficult but necessary decisions to reduce the clutter in my life. But I keep reminding myself that when we cast off those things we don’t need or that hinder us – while it may be difficult or painful at the time – it is to embrace something far better. We become a new creation, we put on the new man, we walk in the fruit of the Spirit, we receive peace, we move easier, breathe deeper, relax more fully, grow stronger, and embrace life more abundantly.

Is it time to take stock of what is cluttering your life and begin a “clean sweep” too? If it is, I pray that you listen for the voice of the Spirit directing you and find the courage to cut loose the weights that are holding you back from the best that God has for you.

Until next time…