ezra 1
I'm about as qualified to write about home management and organization as I am about eating healthy, as I sit in my local Panera Bread eating butter. I mean I've got a bagel (it's even whole wheat), but it's just a glorified spoon, because, butter. I spent the weekend doing laundry which now resides on an extra bed in precariously tall piles, because I didn't do the load (or 2-3) per day that I really should do. The truth is, I know what I should do, but I just really don't like doing it. No, Mom, laundry is not fun.
So why on earth did I decide to blog about home management this month? First of all, I think it's something a lot of us struggle with and none of us (except my mom) feel truly confident in. We live in the space between not wanting to have it too together and make other people uncomfortable around us and not wanting to step on grapes when we walk through our homes. We live in the space between wanting to have a clean house but also wanting to enjoy our family in our homes. We live in the space between gratitude and overwhelm. We live in the space between stewardship and relationship. Figuring out where to stand in these spaces isn't always easy. We know we shouldn't be standing in the extreme outer edges of any of those spaces, but that still leaves a lot of roadway in the middle.
I think we get caught up in the methods of how we manage our homes. I can't tell you the number of times that I've gotten myself all set up to be organized. I buy baskets by the basketful. I once bought 16 laundry baskets at once. People stared. I gather cleaning supplies. I order the newest planners. I set up stations. I make schedules. I still love office supplies, especially pretty ones. Surely a gold stapler and pink file folders will get me organized! None of it works. Oh, sure, some of it is helpful, and I'll share some of my favorite tips and tools with you, but the method can do more to trip us up than we realize.
Will you go on a little journey with me? It might seem an odd destination, but I think we'll learn a lot. Is it crazy to think that we could learn a lot about how to manage our homes in 2018 from a group of exiles over 2500 years ago? Maybe, but I'm pretty desperate, so let's give it a shot. I'm in the book of Ezra today, in chapter one, six chapters and about 70 years before Ezra even shows up in the book named for him.
In chapter 1, verse 1, God stirred King Cyrus' heart to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem, so Cyrus asked that the survivors of the exile to go back to the promised land and rebuild the temple. And then he commanded everyone else to support them! God will work through multiple kings to accomplish His plans in the book of Ezra. It's amazing to see how God provides. Sometimes we can become so focused on what we're doing that we totally miss what God is doing. God not only stirred the king's heart, but also the hearts of specific remaining exiles to go and do the work of rebuilding the temple.
The most important thing we can do in managing our homes and in living our lives is being available and in tune to God's leading in our lives. When we are either too rigidly tied to a schedule or too undisciplined, we will find the kind of flexibility required for kingdom living nearly impossible.
Keep your focus on the Lord and what He is doing. It's not about keeping everything in it's place, but rather keeping God in His rightful place in your life.
Tip:
One way that you can effectively be ready to do the kingdom work God has called you to, while speaking into your people is to automate and simplify as much as possible. There are things you do on a repeating basis. You make breakfast every morning. So how do you automate and simplify breakfast? To automate breakfast, you're going to plan it. You are going to know that on Mondays you eat cereal or that the choices for breakfast are always bagels, fruit, and cereal. Automation involves making the plans that work for you ahead of time so you know what's coming. Simplifying breakfast might look like buying frozen waffles or making those fancy egg cups you saw on Pinterest ahead of time. Simplifying involves figuring out the most efficient way to execute your plans.
You can repeat this process for any repetitive activities, such as meals, grocery shopping, appointments and chores. If you know you're going to have to do it, create a plan that keeps it as simple as possible and puts it on auto-pilot for you.
Tools:
You can get my simple weekly planner by signing up for the monthly let us belove(d) newsletter. For the entire month of March it is free to you!
Here is one of our favorite go to recipes for a simple meal. My kids love this for breakfast, lunch and dinner. You can put anything in it: sprinkles, chocolate chips, fruit, whatever you like!
