Peace and less clutter

I am so thankful to have a dear friend who happens to also be an older lady who is my mentor. It has been such an encouragement to my life in all areas. I would encourage anyone to seek out that kind of relationship if it hasn't yet materialised. I continually see the fruit of her wisdom play out in my role as a wife, mom and in general life too. We have been working through two books which I have not finished reading through yet but HIGHLY recommend if you have the chance to get hold of them.

The books are written by Donna Otto and are titled:

1. Finding your purpose as a mom- How to build your home on holy ground http://www.amazon.com/Finding-Your-Purpose-Mom-Ground/dp/0736912975/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351197924&sr=8-1&keywords=finding+your+purpose+as+a+mom
2. Secrets to getting more done in less time http://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Getting-More-Done-Less/dp/0736917152/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1351198025&sr=1-1&keywords=getting+more+done+in+less+time

I can just tell that they are the sorts of books that I will re-read and discover other very helpful points that I may not have noticed as much in my previous reads.

One of the points that Donna makes in one of the chapters is to try to set your home's thermostat on 'peace'. That everyone living there should feel like home is a refuge and a safe place to be. We have a thermostat in our home here and whenever I glance at it, I remind myself to set our home's thermostat onto the peace setting. :) It is interesting to see how much influence we have as mom's and wives. It is very convicting!

The convicting thermostat!

Also, she made another helpful point about how righteousness and peace go hand in hand- that Scripture in Psalm 85:10 is so vivid, "Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other." So, when we are faithful in our management of our home and trust the Lord to enable us by His grace to be righteous in all the areas of our lives, there will be peace. I find this such a helpful truth to ponder on.

Also, it is interesting to see how clutter can get under your skin and cause you to feel overwhelmed and irritable and I began with a home project named, "Operation Declutter" for one week! Well, I soon realised that it is really a weekly project and not something that can be done once off. But a helpful tip that I read on a blog recently was to always try to leave the room with something in hand- it makes me feel more purposeful and sometimes I catch myself smiling at how stream-lined some 'room-to-room' trips can be! 

My dad's mom was lovingly known as Goggo by all the grandkids (it is the Xhosa term for grandpa but my one cousin had thought it was the name for grandma and we all began using it and once we had figured out it was the wrong name for our darling gran, it was too late- she WAS Goggo and there was no turning back!). Well, she taught me something profound too. It is a motto that seems so simple, but if you really manage to implement it into your life, it will change it! It is, "DO IT NOW!" In other words do not procrastinate! It is fascinating to see how things often take less time than I think they will and just getting them done is such a relief.

In conclusion, in one of the chapters I read recently, Donna mentioned that we are more tired from what we don't do than what we do do! Isn't that sooo true?!? I hope this blog post has motivated you as much as it has been motivating me! 

My prayer is that your home's thermostat would be set on peace and you would be diligent workers for His glory!