Thoughtful Tuesday- Decluttering and Organization Time

Well, after spending the entire weekend earlier this month digging through the unpacked boxes in the garage, I have decided we need to declutter and organize a bit around here.  We were looking for an expired passport so my husband could apply for a new passport so he could go on a missions trip to Haiti this summer. It was a grueling process and it made us realize just how much disorganization and clutter had taken over our lives. We have 'lost' hundreds of things over the years, many of which we found during the Big Expired Passport Hunt of 2011.  Some of these boxes hadn't been touched since we moved into this house almost 4 years ago. Now, I know that is shocking, however, some of those boxes hadn't been touched much longer than that and had been moved from house to house while we lived in England. That's a LOT of  junk. Useless junk. Junk that has just been taking up space.


So, in an effort to help minimize the stress in our lives, and make our house hold run a bit more smoothly we HAVE to declutter and organize.  First we are going to get started with the house, then move on to the garage. That just makes the most sense.

First I think I am going  to set up an area for backpacks, jackets, shoes, etc.  The boys have bins to place their backpacks in, but very often notes and other school related things get misplaced or lost around here. Mostly because there really isn't a home for these things. Of course some of it is because my children have been blessed with an ADD mother. :) Add  that in with a busy husband serving in the U.S. Air Force,a 3rd grader, an ADHD middle schooler, 3 dogs, mom going to school, and an almost 20 yr old working out of town during the week but home on the weekend, and it's a little chaotic around here.

What are your best ideas for organizing school stuff? Do you have a designated area for things? How to you corral all those notes and homework papers that need to be taken care of?  Post what works for you in the comments area below. I am sure we can all use a little help with organization.

Thoughtful Tuesday- Family Organization

Hmmm....It's time for another Thoughtful Tuesday post. I'm at a loss for what to blog about.

Not only was the time change last week, it was also Spring Break for me and both Small Boy and Medium Boy. We spent the week hanging out with friends and having fun. I still don't feel as it I have recovered from either one of those things.  The time change has left me feeling out of sorts, and with the change in our schedule due to Spring Break, I just feel....well, out of sorts. :)

Now, we are not a very structured family as far as schedule goes. I mean, we have our regular scheduled things we do like work, school, church activities, etc. However, when we aren't doing those required things, we just kinda fly by the seat of our pants. I am thinking that is gonna have to change a bit. There just seems to be so much down time, but we never seem to get anything done.

I have tried a million different organization programs, chore charts, schedules, and the like. None of which have worked well. Most of that is due to my inability to stay on task and keep up with things. I did find a  chart somewhere that I think will work. We have implemented some things recently, but there are many more things we need to work on and get sorted out. 

So, this week (and the weeks to follow) are going to bring some changes at our house. More structure is in order. We need more organization and structure around here in order to fully enjoy our down time. :)

What are some things that you do to keep yourselves and your family on track and organized?

Thoughtful Tuesday-Becoming a Missions Minded Family

I think that in our efforts to bring people to God, we sorta dumb Him down. We make Him a pleasant, jolly type of god and make people think that following Him is all rainbows and puppies and sunshine. Not totally true. Of course God is loving, kind, gentle, etc. Of course He has our best interests at heart. However, to truly live the way God wants us to live. To be totally sold out for Him. To be of the same heart as Him. To have the same mindset as Him is so not a rainbows, puppies, and sunshine life.
Don't get me wrong. I LOVE the life I have in Christ. I am blessed beyond measure. My family is blessed. My life is wonderful. But, it's not always like that. We have lost 'friends' because of our faith. We have been verbally attacked because of our faith. We have been tested and tried. Sure some of our tests and trials could be considered 'self-imposed' because they come as a direct result of our choice to follow Christ and life our lives for him. However, I would never give that relationship with Christ up just to make things easier. For us it is not an option.

With all that being said, the sacrifices that we have made as a family are nothing compared to sacrifices that Christians all over the world are making.  Some are leaving families behind to travel to dangerous countries to serve GOD in the way HE has called them to serve. I have a missions heart. A desire to go where GOD wants me to go and to do what GOD wants me to do. Right now, GOD has called me to pursue my nursing degree. Not sure what HE has planned for me after that, but for now I'm pressin' on and pressin' in and doing what HE has instructed me to do at this time. Hopefully, eventually HIS call will be more missions oriented, but even if that doesn't happen, it's ok. I know that HIS plans for me are wonderful.

Jeremiah 29:11

 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Our family has talked about supporting a missionary family for a while. Well, Dave and I have talked about it. We want our boys to be more aware of what is going on to further GOD'S Kingdom. To understand the sacrifices involved. To develop a heart for missions. It has been hard to pick a missionary family. We wanted one with boys the same ages as our boys, or as close as possible. Sounds easy, but it's not. We wanted one that really spoke to us. A missionary family whose mission field resonated with our hearts. It's been a long hard search, but we finally found the family for us.

Every Sunday is Missions Sunday at our church. We have different missionaries come and speak about their mission fields. It is always amazing. However, this Sunday was different. Our church had the privilege of hosting Randy and Dezra Freeman and their lovely children, Hudson (who is roughly the same age as our Medium Boy), Olivia, Griffin (who has the same name as our Small Boy. It's not terribly common), and Ella. Randy and Dezra have been called to  the nation of Swaziland. Swaziland has the distinction of having the highest HIV/Aids rate per capita in the world. It is projected that it will be the first modern nation to become extinct. As I watched the short video presentation Randy showed before he spoke, GOD began speaking to me. He was telling me that this was 'our family'. The family we had been searching for. The family I had been praying for.  So, I nudged my husband and told him, "This is our missionary family." He agreed.

I am so excited to be able to support this missionary family. They have a website set up with photos and information about their family and their mission, a blog, and a schedule of their speaking events and such. I have been doing a bit of research on Swaziland, but there is a ton more research to do. We are setting up a change jar for pledges in our house so we can put in our pocket change and get that sent to their account. I personally can't wait until they actually get to Swaziland so we can find out what their physical needs are going to be and what we can do to help meet those. 

The Freeman Family

I am looking forward to what GOD has in store for us as our family moves forward in developing a more missions focused mindset. I am looking forward to hearing how GOD moves in Swaziland and through the Freeman family. I am looking forward to seeing how this changes the boys and their outlook on life. I am looking forward to seeing how our perception of things change, how our priorities change, and how our lives change.

Thoughtful Tuesday-Getting the rest we need.

 

As I was doing some bible study/personal God time this week I came across a couple verses that got me thinking.  One of them is Galatians 6:9. In the Message version, it reads like this, " So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit."  I think that sometimes people understand this as meaning keep doing services, actions,  'stuff', even if it is to the detriment of yourself or your family, because eventually we will get something out of it  and we will be greatly rewarded if we just stick to it long enough. Even if we are worn out, broken down or physically, spiritually, and emotionally exhausted, we just need to keep trucking along and do all the 'stuff' everyone thinks we should do.

 I don't think so. I think that we are supposed to do 'good' and not let it get us down. I don't think that we are supposed to run ourselves ragged trying to be everything for everyone. Doing 'works' and doing good are not always the same thing. Sometimes they are, but not always. To me, and you don't have to agree with me, doing good is well...doing good. We all know what good is, really. Doing good is doing what God wants you to do when and how HE wants you to do it. It is living a life God would be proud of. A life that would please Him. We should do what it says in 1Corinthians 10:31 "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." Everything we do should glorify God. Everything.
 It doesn't necessarily have to be a public thing. It can be very private. No one but you and God even needs to know what your particular 'good' thing/things is/are. We just have to do those things in the right mindset. We can't do them begrudgingly, or just because it's expected, or whatever your personal reasons might be. We have to make sure that we are doing the things God has called us to do. Sometimes we don't get the right message from God. Sometimes the needs of the church or ourselves or even our own emotions cry out louder than the voice of God and we end up making rash judgements or wrong choices. Do we keep doing those things anyway and wait for our 'right time' to come? Maybe. That's a personal call, I think.

Galatians 6:7-8 says "7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life."NIV

If we are sowing when we are tired (spiritually, emotionally, or physically), unfulfilled, concerned about our image, worried about what other people think, sowing with halfheartedness, resentment, or anything that is not 'good', what kind of harvest will we be reaping at the end?  Not the kind of harvest I am personally looking for. I don't want a half-hearted harvest. I don't want a harvest full of resentment. I don't want a harvest that doesn't bring joy. I don't want a harvest that comes with a 'whew, I sure am glad that's over'. I want a joyful harvest. Maybe that's selfish, I don't know. That's just me being honest right now.

Matthew 11:28. "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." We go to God.  We let Him restore. We ask Him for guidance and we keep asking until we CLEARLY hear what He wants us to do.  Maybe we step down from things, narrow our 'to-do lists', clear out the clutter of our lives, re-focus. Whatever it takes to restore that relationship with God. Whatever it takes to get back our energy, our hope, our fervor, our zeal, our excitement for God and for following Him. That is going to look different for each of us, but that's OK. Your friends will still like you.(Probably, and if they don't then well...re-examine your friendships.) Your Pastor will still like you. God will still like you. It is not selfish. It is not self-serving. It is what it takes for you to be productive in the kingdom and in your calling.

Isaiah 40:28-31

NIV

28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.

29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.

30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;

31 but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.

Thoughtful Tuesday- Getting your priorities in line

I'm just gonna say this post is not going to be nearly as good as the original one I had all typed up and then somehow magically deleted with my fat fingers 2 seconds before it auto saved. :) You're just gonna have to deal. LOL


I think I might have mentioned last week that we were shutting our cable off. We were waiting for the Super Bowl to do it, though. So, after the Super Bowl on Sunday( and the commercials that reinforced our decision to cut the cable off), we shut the TV off and it wasn't turned on again until Thursday night when we watched a movie on Netflix through the Wii. My husband finally got a break in his schedule and was able to call and cancel it totally on Friday. However, a quick check on Saturday showed we were still getting cable channels, so another call is going to be made this week.

I know that some of you may not understand our choice to turn off the cable. I mean we're still watching shows and movies on Netflix or renting movies from the Redbox machine. I know the hubby has found some way to get his Glenn Beck fix. What is the big deal with the cable, you ask. Well, it's the content. We just were tired of being bombarded by inappropriate content. Now, we didn't watch a whole lot of inappropriate shows. No Glee, Private Practice, Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, etc. Nothing super violent or twisted like Criminal Minds, Supernatural, Vampire Diaries, CSI, Law & Order, etc. However, even with what we were watching ( NCIS, Glenn Beck, Discovery Channel programs, History Channel programs, etc) we were still getting bombarded with in appropriate content from the commercials. It was insane. We would be watching a home renovation show. Safe for the kids. The boys aren't getting hit with sexuality, the language is acceptable, no moral dilemmas we'd have to explain, then WHAM!!! Viagra commercials or some other sexually inappropriate commercial. It was just way too much mess. We're watching a hot rod show. That's safe. Then BOOM!! We've got half nekkid ladies selling brakes and other auto parts. Not good. When you are the parents to 3 boys you really have to guard them against the constant sexual bombardment they get from this world. It's everywhere all the time and they don't need that issue to deal with. Life is hard enough, society is skewed enough, and the whole girl thing is hard enough, without adding to it. The lessons we want our boys to learn about women and sexuality are so far from what is out there in TV land, it is unbelievable.

Now, I am not saying that if you watch any of the shows I mentioned as unacceptable for our family, that you are some horrid person with issues. You may not have issues with the commercials. You may be just fine with watching whatever shows you wanna watch and whatever commericals pop up. I'm good with that. I am in no way judging you for being different than we are. I say have at it. Those shows and things just don't work for our family and they don't fit in with our lifestyle. That is just where we are right now. You might think we're weird or odd. That's fine. You do what works for you and your people and we'll do what works for our people. I'll still like you, I promise. :) 

Anyway, we thought the kids would have a harder time with the switch. With the exception of our oldest who experienced no TV the first year we were stationed in England ( He was around 8 at the time and he'll be 20 in May, so that tells ya how long ago that was.) the boys have always had TV and it's been on a lot. We used it as background noise, as a time filler, as a boredom fighter, as well....whatever. It was on A LOT.  So far everything has gone smoothly.  Medium Boy did ask what they were supposed to do with no TV, but they figured it out. The Small and Medium Boys have been reading more, which is great. Small Boy just got some books from the book fair at school and they have both been reading those. They are actually playing outside together. Usually Small Boy ( who is 9) is outside and Medium Boy ( who is 12 and can't be bothered with his little brother) is inside watching TV. It has been an adjustment, but they are doing fine.

Things have also been a lot more calm around here. Without the constant noise of the TV, there is just not as much stress. Now, I'm a noise sensitive person. Some noises I can block out, but other just annoy me to no end, and if there are a whole lot of noises at once I just can't handle it. Having the TV off has personally made me less edgy. No more super loud TV blaring in the front living room over the sound of the 3 dogs playing  along with another TV with a different show on  blaring from the back living room, people yelling at each other from one room to the other because they can't be bothered to get up and miss part of their show to actually talk to someone. The silence, well as silent as it gets around here, has been nice.

So, what are we doing with all that extra time?  For now we are using this time to re-connect as a family. We're eating dinner together at the table, like I mentioned before. We're playing games, watching movies, talking to each other, cleaning the kitchen and doing other chores together. Medium Boy is spending more time practicing his violin and flute. Small Boy is reading more. Large Boy is spending more time with this brothers. I am actually studying for my  microbiology class, getting Sunday School homework done, and doing my bible study stuff before bible study. My husband is doing...well, whatever it is he does when he's not working. LOL I'm not exactly sure. I've never asked and he looks busy. LOL Oh, and we're all getting much more sleep. :)

When we were deciding on wether or not to keep the cable my husband said something that was so true. He said "In 10 years from now we're not gonna remember what shows we watched or what was on the tv. We're gonna remember the stuff we did as a family. If we don't do things now, our kids will be out of the house before we know it and we won't have anything to look back on." He's right. That time is quickly coming for us. Who knows where we will be in 10 years. I do know that by getting rid of the distraction of tv, we will have plenty of time to make plenty of memories during those years. To foster a sense of family in our children. To teach them how to look out for each other. To foster compassion and caring in them. To help them reach their goals and to dream big. To encourage them and build them up.To grow them up to be the men God created them to be. All of those things are more important than anything on tv. Those things are the things that make up life. Those things make a family.

Thoughtful Tuesday- Treating God Like the King He Is.

So, Sunday at church our pastor's sermon was titled "Developing a 'Bring' Mindset". (You should be able to listen to it here. If it's not up today, it will be soon. ) The basic premise of the sermon was that we, as American Christians in general, life in a false mindset. A mindset that is totally opposite to the mindset we need to have a Christians. We are always looking for the pay-off. We gauge how much we do based on how much we get. We're always concerned about 'what's in it for me'. We don't value God for who He is. Now, before you get your knickers in a twist, understand that I am not saying that ALL American Christians live in this way. However, most do. Be honest. We have all been in that mindset at one point or another in our lives. It is easy to live the watered down version of Christianity that most churches teach. No risk involved. Show up on Sundays with your 'church face'. Check the boxes. Play the game.



Anyway, back to the point. :) You wanna know what I think the issue is? No, well then stop reading for today and come back tomorrow. I might post something more agreeable and easier to swallow then. If you do wanna know what I think the issue is, then read on baby. I think the main issue is that we as a culture have a skewed sense of value and our priorites are out of whack. We value all the wrong things and we put those things before God. Maybe we just don't understand who God really is. Maybe we are just ignorant in our understanding of God. I think the biggest, most common problem is that we just don't treat God like the king He is.

I am guilty of this. Of not treating God like a King. We like having God available to us when we need him. We like having Him work in our lives and in the lives of our friends and family. We enjoy all the perks we get from having a relationship with him. We do what we can when we can to foster that relationship. However, it is not usually our number one priority. We have great intentions. We plan to do pray more, read our bible more, worship Him more, but we just don't get around to it. Is this the way we should be treating our King? The Creator of the Earth? The Lord of Lords, King of Kings, the Alpha and Omega?

My challenge to you this week, and to myself, is to find ways you can honor The King this week. Now, I'm not saying beat yourself up and think about how horrible you are and how you totally suck at this "Christian thing" and come up with a huge list of how you are lacking in your walk with Christ. Just think about one or two things you can do to bring honor to your Saviour and actually do them. That is the hardest part for me. I can come up with lists all day long, but actually implementing them is not my strong point.

Here is what I am going to do this week:

1. Actually wake up early and read my bible and pray. I've been meaning to do this for months, but I just never got around to actually getting up. I'm not exactly a morning person, so this is a tough one for me. However, my dear husband has actually been getting up at 4 to get his personal devotional time in and well, there really is no reason I can't get up and do it.

2. I want to implement a daily family devotional. We're turning our cable off this week. (Just as soon as my husband calls the cable company.) Our hold out was the Super Bowl, and now that it's over we're done. With the extra time we'll have I think this will be a great thing to do. I'm thinking about doing it at dinner time, but we'll have to see how the schedule works out.


So, those are my two things for this week. Leave a comment and post what you are doing to properly honor The King in your house.