Naturally, I spend a lot of time between Christmas and New Year de-cluttering. The past week my focus has been on our bedroom. Overtime, it turned into a storage area for homeschooling books and donations. Now, with a lot of prayer, parting and patience - I walk into a room that brings me peace and joy. Here is a mini tour of my haven-making mission and at the end I'll offer a few haven-making tips:
I started with one focus, a centerpiece. For now, it's our bedding. Okay, okay, so my 6ft tattoo-covered hubby wasn't as excited as I am about my post-Christmas Target deal, because its "so pink" and at some point I retorted with "no, this wasn't from Gram."...But we agreed that it will eventually end up in the guest bedroom. He is just happy that Target gift cards + Clearance = free bedding :). Tee-hee. Happy wife :)
This is a 1930s child's school desk that my grandmother handed down to me. It was her mother's and I feel so honored and blessed to have it. We use it as our nightstand; it holds my Bible along with some bedside reading.
Beautiful flowers from my husband :) He brought them home the same day I received our new bedding. I said "See, hon! They totally go with the new quilt. It's so meant to be." lol!
This is a journal my parents gave me for Christmas. It was love at first sight. I absolutely love it and look forward to writing in it every morning. I love starting out with a morning intention and write it down in my journal. This week I've asked the Lord how I can be a blessing to 3 people today (i.e. my husband, my son, a friend from church). I love having an encouraging verse to store in my heart throughout the day. A simple entry looks something like this:
This is a lovely bookmark of the Ten Commandments from my sweet friend, Heather
Also in the desk is the Life Story of my great grandmother. I absolutely love reading her life story and have done so over and over. She was a very humble, gentle-spirited lady.
One of my most favorite, sought after Bible verses was read at her memorial service. I didn't know this until after I came to Christ.
On hubby's side of the bed is a basket from my step mom with two candles. Believe it or not, he loves candles more than I do, so he was pleased with the arrangement. Plus, his beloved remote is in the drawer below :)
At the end of our bed is a hope chest that had belonged to my Meme (my dad's mom). He handed this down to me. I have begun sanding the hope chest and plan to do some light remodeling to it this coming spring.
On our dresser are our favorite photos of our babies! They had to be framed :)
Aren't they so sweet?
Does your bedroom have a case of the clutter bug? Here are some tips that personally worked for me in making our room a haven:
1. Pray - Yes, pray even about your bedroom! God cares about every detail of our lives, so why not present this space to Him and ask for His help? My bedroom is the place I meet with the Lord every morning. Trust me, I typically run to the Lord in prayer midday when its hectic and He draws near to us no matter how clean or messy our homes are. But I really cherish my coffee with Him every morning, and it just means so much to me to invite Him into a peaceful place.
2. Part - Are you idolizing your possessions? Yes, it is possible for us to even create an idol of the things we own. Oftentimes, we don't even realize we're doing it. I started placing items in three categories while decluttering:
i. Give - Who can I bless this with? Here are some people you can be a blessing to:
- A family member
- A friend (do you know anyone expecting? a single parent?)
- Your church's nursery
- Your local library
- Goodwill or Salvation Army
ii. Invest - Can I make a profit from this? I use Ebay for homeschooling materials and books, but don't go sale-crazy. The fees will add up, so do your research to see if its even something people are interested in buying. Also, check out your local Swap & Sell on Facebook.
iii. Devote - I am devoted to the items that God has blessed me with through others. Most of them were things that were loved and cared for by the previous owner, mainly family members of past generations. I will be honest here and say that there are only two pieces of furniture in our house that we bought with our own money (the queen size bed in the guest bedroom and our daughter's toddler bed, which was previously Gavin's and purchased it for $7 from a thrift shop). Everything else the Lord has blessed us with through family and friends over time. I wholeheartedly believe in the Lord's provisions and it keeps my heart away from wanting more, more, more. This brings me to tip #3 in haven-making.
3. Patience - Building a haven, whether its your master bedroom or your living room happens over time. Remember to that its not the house that makes the home, but the people in it. As much as my husband jokingly smirks at my decorating, he knows how much I really do think of him when I'm making our home. He also compliments my decorating and encourages me even when I pick out floral bedding. He is often the first person in our family I think of, mostly because he is not physically here as much as me and our kids. I love that he can walk into a home, a haven.
I hope you are encouraged by my post today as you begin or continue making your own haven :)
