How to Get Your House in Order

I’ve been working on sorting through documents that needed an overhaul for quite some time. Dreading the whole task caused me to put the project off for several years.

During that time, more papers found their way to the unsorted piles and made the situation worst.

A while ago I separated the documents according to categories. Although I had accomplished that phase of the discarding process successfully, I didn’t continue the process by eliminating excessive copies of the same documents until recently.

During the past two weeks, I forced myself to finish the project and was surprised at the progress I made. It wasn’t as bad as I thought based on my perception of the piles I had to sort through.

Currently, I’m down to one box, however, I’m proud to say that I can locate exactly what I need within a few seconds.

If I find another document, I am able to file it away quickly in chronological order which is the best benefit gained when you take time to get your house in order.

Another benefit is knowing what matters I need to take care of specifically instead of having a vague idea about how many bills I have, medical care information, and other matters that need to be addressed. When this task is accomplished, confrontation is inevitable.

Facing the Facts

It’s easy to act like things aren’t there because they’re mixed in a pile and camouflaged by junk mail or books. The same analysis can be applied to other areas of our lives such as relationships whether personal or business-related.

When you sort through papers, you can quickly identify what needs to be saved. and what’s need to be thrown away. If you apply the same method for analyzing which relationships need to be saved, and those which do not benefit you, you can save your energy and time while reducing unnecessary emotional pain.

However, the latter is not easy to do especially if you’re in relationships with those who have manipulative or controlling personalities. The process, however, can be accomplished if you force yourself to address issues so that you can move forward in your life.

Getting your house in order whether financially, spiritually, mentally, or emotionally requires a lot of effort. It also requires commitment to achieve the goal. You may have to admit that some personal behavioral changes are needed, or that toxic relationships need to be severed.

James 1:23-25 states …”For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.”

Everyone generally wants the best of everything, however, in order to be the best, a continual improvement process must be implemented to stay organized and free of physical, emotional, and spiritual mess.

I’ve been intrigued lately with watching various home and office organization videos on YouTube. Although not claiming to be organizational experts, these YouTubers definitely offer some good advice and show excellent examples of how to organize your home.

Although I have made significant progress in sorting through documents and placing them in order, the organization videos show me how much more work I need to do. My comparative analysis doesn’t make me feel bad but inspires me to increase my standard of living for the sake of my own sanity.

II Corinthians 3:18 states … “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

This verse can be a spiritual guide to reassure us that positive changes are being made.

If you need help in making changes in your spiritual life begin by reading a passage of scripture pertaining to spiritual growth such as:

• Ephesians 5:22-23

• Psalm 101

• Colossians 1

If you need additional tips on decluttering your physical space, I offer some recommendations on my Streamlined Life Solutions blog here.

Be encouraged and know that God is taking notes of your effort to make changes in your life, and He is proud of you.