A new year...the dead of winter...what better way to spend the day than tackling projects that have been put on the back burner for far too long! A few weeks ago I knew I needed to address my kitchen pantry. I had caught my husband in there with a measuring tape, who was dreaming up an idea to add more shelving and improve its functionality. To be honest with you, my pantry is nothing to brag about. It's barely a walk-in closet, perhaps more accurately called a step-in closet! But deep down inside, I knew it didn't need a complete overhaul; it simply needed to be organized! There were times I couldn't find an ingredient I needed, so I simply bought more. Then a few days later, I would find it and the duplicates would continue to grow. I feel vulnerable sharing these photos, but I suppose most people can enjoy a good before and after transformation!
Yep, complete chaos that kept the door from being shut at times! I admit I felt very overwhelmed I didn't know where to start! But, I pressed on and started with items on the floor and took one shelf at a time.
The oldest item I found was this can with an expiration date of October 2017 😅
The pile of discarded items that were past date wasn't as bad as I thought!
After a few hours, the mission is accomplished! It's clean, and organized and each item has its place; what a great feeling! The best thing is that the organization has been maintained for several weeks!
Just like typical, everyday life needs a good deep cleaning or maintenance tune-up, so do our relationships. This past weekend Sheldon and I attended our first-ever marriage retreat. Over the past (almost) 18 years of marriage, we've enjoyed times away from the demands of life by vacationing or traveling. But this is the first time we dedicated time together, along with other couples, to grow spiritually in our marriage. It was such a rich weekend!
Similar to my pantry, our marriage was not functioning to the best of its ability. There were unhealthy things that needed to be discarded. Our habits of communication needed to be reorganized. And just like I needed courage to keep going when the pantry looked so overwhelming, we needed to have the courage to have the difficult conversations and grow through them. Life gets busy and it's so easy to fall into habits and rhythms that can hinder a marriage from thriving. It takes time, effort, and intentionality to connect heart to heart each day and we had become victims to knowing each other's schedules but not always knowing each other's hearts.
Just like continuing to keep my pantry organized is a daily process and choice, so it is with my marriage. Never will a couple arrive at "the destination" of no more disagreements or hurts. Because we are sinful people, we will continue to mess up and hurt others. But sharing our feelings, processing our thoughts, and extending forgiveness will give us the gift of a thriving, growing, Kingdom marriage! It's a process that will never end on this side of Heaven, but approaching marriage with an attitude of brutal humility will bring complete and lasting joy and peace.
We have a few more weeks of winter left! Where are the areas in your life that could use a deep cleaning? Maybe it's an area in your house that could use a little love and attention. While you tackle that project, ask God if there is a relationship that needs some TLC too! Maybe you need to make time to reconnect with your spouse on a deeper level. Or maybe you have tension between you and one of your children and God wants you to speak words of life and encouragement over them. Surrender those overwhelmed feelings and let Him lead you through the process. Taking that first step is the hardest, but you will find your new rhythm through imperfect progress. You won't regret the freedom it brings!
Comments
Post a Comment