The ending of Proverbs 31:27 states, "... and the bread of idleness (gossip, discontent, and self-pity) she will not eat." (AMPC)
Proverbs 31:27- "...and ·never wastes her time [L does not eat the bread/food of laziness]." (EXB)
Proverbs 31:27- "...and does not eat the bread of doing nothing." (NLV)
I truly believe that the Proverbs 31 woman kept herself busy because she understood the dangers of idleness.
According to Eccleasiastes 10:18, Solomon wrote, "A roof sags because of laziness. A house leaks because of idle hands." (GW) "The roof sags over the head of lazybones; the house leaks because of idle hands." (VOICE)
We are called to be diligent in every single thing that we do. Colossians 3:23-24 states, "So no matter what your task is, work hard. Always do your best as the Lord’s servant, not as man’s, because you know your reward is the Lord’s inheritance. You serve the Lord, the Anointed One..." EVERYTHING we do, we should strive to do our best because we are the Lord's servant. This not only means at our jobs, at our ministries.... it also means around our house and with our family.
I'll be the first to admit it.
The beginning of this year, I was in deep pit of anxiety and hypochondria. I've told this story before. My housework suffered greatly. I could hardly get out of bed most days-- which meant dishes, laundry, and any other cleaning suffered greatly. I remember one morning I heard my husband up getting ready for work and it hit me 'He had no clean work clothes...' and it wasn't because I didn't have running water or laundry detergent or a working washer/dryer. It was because I spent most days in bed watching TV instead of caring for my family. I would scream at the kids to be independent because I didn't want to get out of bed. Laziness and slothfulness followed my anxiety and hypochondria. And you know who suffered from it? My family. The whole dynamic in our house shifted. My husband and I started arguing. I was a miserable mother. It was horrible.
And then, God started pulling me out of that darkness, one day at a time.. and I pushed through to care for the house. I started cleaning out the clutter-- not just in the house, but my soul.
It is amazing how when our house is cared for-- our soul is cared for as well.
I really didn't feel like cleaning this morning. My oldest and youngest child slept horribly last night.. okay, horrible is an understatement, LOL. I was up at least 9 times with both of them... slept on the living room floor.. my back hurt when I got up... two cups of coffee wasn't enough.. I was dragging. BUT. I started reading through these Bible verses and once again, God hit me with that feeling of 'I know you're tired, but your family needs you.' So, I stopped in the middle of this blog, got my booty up, pulled my hair up on top of my head, cranked up 'The Cure' by Unspoken (MY FAVORITE RIGHT NOW. Just a little plug for them!! Lol) and started going to work. It is hard for me to focus on writing, on reading, on being the kind of mother I want to be when my house is a wreck.
I think they align with each other well-- our homes and our souls.
My home was the worst it has ever been-- and well, so was my spirit.
Our family needs us, Momma. Our souls need us, Momma.
We have to be so careful that we do not get caught up in the spirits of slothfulness and laziness. They can attach to us easily- especially when we are struggling internally.
'Our clean homes can be a place of rest and refreshment from the outside world for our families.' [Becoming His Crown]
That is my one desire for our home- that His spirit would be so thick in our home that we are at peace and rest every single time we walk through that door!
And that our home is clean- that it smells clean and that everything is organized so that we are at peace and rest every single time we walk through that door!
I pray against the spirits of slothfulness and laziness today. I pray that God would wash our souls clean and give us peace. That He would help us remove the clutter from our lives so that it can be removed from our souls. An idle mind.. idle hands.. .it is the devil's workshop. We must pray against it every single day- every morning.
Becky Mansfield at 'Your Modern Family' stated, "Your home is your haven. You should feel relaxed the minute you walk through the door. If you aren't feeling that you need to make changes. How much time are you worrying about your clutter instead of LIVING? Free yourself and get on with your life."
That sums up this journey of decluttering our homes and our spirits perfectly.
Proverbs 31:27- "...and ·never wastes her time [L does not eat the bread/food of laziness]." (EXB)
Proverbs 31:27- "...and does not eat the bread of doing nothing." (NLV)
I truly believe that the Proverbs 31 woman kept herself busy because she understood the dangers of idleness.
According to Eccleasiastes 10:18, Solomon wrote, "A roof sags because of laziness. A house leaks because of idle hands." (GW) "The roof sags over the head of lazybones; the house leaks because of idle hands." (VOICE)
We are called to be diligent in every single thing that we do. Colossians 3:23-24 states, "So no matter what your task is, work hard. Always do your best as the Lord’s servant, not as man’s, because you know your reward is the Lord’s inheritance. You serve the Lord, the Anointed One..." EVERYTHING we do, we should strive to do our best because we are the Lord's servant. This not only means at our jobs, at our ministries.... it also means around our house and with our family.
I'll be the first to admit it.
The beginning of this year, I was in deep pit of anxiety and hypochondria. I've told this story before. My housework suffered greatly. I could hardly get out of bed most days-- which meant dishes, laundry, and any other cleaning suffered greatly. I remember one morning I heard my husband up getting ready for work and it hit me 'He had no clean work clothes...' and it wasn't because I didn't have running water or laundry detergent or a working washer/dryer. It was because I spent most days in bed watching TV instead of caring for my family. I would scream at the kids to be independent because I didn't want to get out of bed. Laziness and slothfulness followed my anxiety and hypochondria. And you know who suffered from it? My family. The whole dynamic in our house shifted. My husband and I started arguing. I was a miserable mother. It was horrible.
And then, God started pulling me out of that darkness, one day at a time.. and I pushed through to care for the house. I started cleaning out the clutter-- not just in the house, but my soul.
It is amazing how when our house is cared for-- our soul is cared for as well.
I really didn't feel like cleaning this morning. My oldest and youngest child slept horribly last night.. okay, horrible is an understatement, LOL. I was up at least 9 times with both of them... slept on the living room floor.. my back hurt when I got up... two cups of coffee wasn't enough.. I was dragging. BUT. I started reading through these Bible verses and once again, God hit me with that feeling of 'I know you're tired, but your family needs you.' So, I stopped in the middle of this blog, got my booty up, pulled my hair up on top of my head, cranked up 'The Cure' by Unspoken (MY FAVORITE RIGHT NOW. Just a little plug for them!! Lol) and started going to work. It is hard for me to focus on writing, on reading, on being the kind of mother I want to be when my house is a wreck.
I think they align with each other well-- our homes and our souls.
My home was the worst it has ever been-- and well, so was my spirit.
Our family needs us, Momma. Our souls need us, Momma.
We have to be so careful that we do not get caught up in the spirits of slothfulness and laziness. They can attach to us easily- especially when we are struggling internally.
'Our clean homes can be a place of rest and refreshment from the outside world for our families.' [Becoming His Crown]
That is my one desire for our home- that His spirit would be so thick in our home that we are at peace and rest every single time we walk through that door!
And that our home is clean- that it smells clean and that everything is organized so that we are at peace and rest every single time we walk through that door!
I pray against the spirits of slothfulness and laziness today. I pray that God would wash our souls clean and give us peace. That He would help us remove the clutter from our lives so that it can be removed from our souls. An idle mind.. idle hands.. .it is the devil's workshop. We must pray against it every single day- every morning.
Becky Mansfield at 'Your Modern Family' stated, "Your home is your haven. You should feel relaxed the minute you walk through the door. If you aren't feeling that you need to make changes. How much time are you worrying about your clutter instead of LIVING? Free yourself and get on with your life."
That sums up this journey of decluttering our homes and our spirits perfectly.
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