Reevaluation Resolution

It seems that most people make "New Year Resolutions" (what they want to change about themselves or their situation in life) at the start of each new year. This is great and certainly beneficial for many people. I have never been one to make a resolution and this is not the start of one, but the title sounded catchy.

Wikipedia has a definition of a New Year Resolution--"A New Year resolution is a commitment that an individual makes to a personal goal, project, or the reforming of a habit. This lifestyle change is generally interpreted as advantageous. A New Years Resolution is generally a goal someone sets out to accomplish in the coming year... The concept, regardless of creed, is to reflect upon self-improvement annually."

About.com has a list of the top Ten New Year's Resolutions
http://pittsburgh.about.com/od/holidays/tp/resolutions.htm
Over the last couple months I have been reevaluating my home, my family, myself. I have been asking myself the difference between "needs" and "wants". I have been asking myself "what is TRULY important in my life?"

There were two mornings this past week that I spend about 15-20min straightening my hair (something I've not done since early college days). After I had done it, I asked myself "was it worth it to spend that time doing my hair if I didn't make time in my day to read my Bible?" Please understand that we do have a Family Bible Time every morning, but there is more depth to having a personal quiet time reading on my own. So the real question I should be asking is "is it right that I prioritize doing my hair over reading God's Word?" The answer is NO. If I am not making time to read my Bible daily, but spend up to 20 minutes on my hair, then God is not my priority; I am.

Another thing I have been meditating on is my home. Brandon has always been a minimalist for as long as I've known him (except for his clothes). That has rubbed off on me. I have come to realize that we have a lot of "stuff" in our home that is just that--STUFF. It serves to real purpose other than to clutter up our home. We have been purging our home of random useless items.

This is a bit of a challenge for me because I always ask the question "could I end up needing to use this down the road?" Well, how would one define "down the road"?? If it's within a reasonable timeframe & I have a specific idea for an items' recycled purpose, then yes I will keep it. However, it if seems to be a useful item that I have NO IDEA right now what I would use it for, I put it in the "Get Rid Of" box and remove it from my home.

The purging has been great for Brandon and I. We are trying to simplify. I have realized that along with having 2 young kids & being pregnant, simplifying my home would make it MUCH easier to maintain!

Once I started, I got into focus. I am next considering clothes. My family has enough clothes to go without doing laundry (except for socks & underwear) for almost a whole month! So, I take all factors into consideration & then I purge. It is tough at first, but feels good once I do it. If I get rid of something and later find out that I really do NEED it, then I will go to the second-hand shops and pick up another one (buying brand new if I NEED it that badly). Notice the stress on "NEED"?? Now when I look into Ahna's closet, I don't have to wonder how to mix & match her clothes because everything is an outfit or purged if it is not. What a relief! Next is my closet...EEK!

My whole point in all of this and my underlying motivation is to simplify my home, my life, and my family's lives so that we might be more capable of serving God. If my day is consumed with laundry and dishes, then when would I have time to make another family a meal, or focus on cutting back our food budget through couponing, or praying for the needs of my friends & family, or educating myself on the benefits of herbs, or making more foods entirely from scratch?!?!?!?!?!?

So I don't really have a New Years Resolution, but I have a New Years Reevaluation. The big question I ask myself is "What is in the way of me serving God better?"

May you be encouraged to seek God more this year and to eliminate the things in your life that are distracting you from that.