Soul Clutter (de-clutter your soul and give a gift to those you Love)

We all know about the stuff we leave on the counter, intending to put away later. We all have articles of clothing and multiple pairs of shoes that we never wear. Our closets are jammed, our kitchen cupboards are overflowing and we keep things that we haven’t used or looked at for years. It’s our clutter. This is the same way that clutter comes into our mind and our souls. Soul clutter is the stuff that we shove down thinking we will attend to later. Soul clutter affects my priorities. It clogs up my thinking, causing me to become self-focused, overly critical and self condemning.

Last week when I posted about de-cluttering my life I was focused on the task of reorganizing and sorting through my physical stuff. But as I have continued to work on my New Year’s project of de-cluttering my home I have been thinking a lot about how easily my clutter effects more than my physical surroundings. Being disorganized can affect my closest personal relationships. So I started thinking this week about “Soul Clutter” Is my stuff altering my priorities? Do I spend more time taking care of my stuff than taking care of the needs of those I love? I my stuff clogging up my ability to think and plan and maintain a balanced schedule? Do I neglect my own emotional and spiritual needs and those of my loved ones when my life is full of clutter?I will do whatever it takes to be the healthiest me I can be so I can truly LOVE these blessings!!!

Soul clutter can be a by-product of my physical clutter. When we keep too much stuff and do not give it away it may be because we have fear, guilt or shame.
Fear asks, “what if I need it in the future?” Guilt ponders, “do I need to keep this because it is from someone that loves me?” Shame reminds us that something from our past is trying to prevent us from having a healthy present and if we do not do something about the shame it will continue to contribute to an uncertain future I want to be free to love those people that God has blessed me with in my life. I want to have joy that overflows. I want to stand in the balcony of those I love and have a big part in cheering them on as they journey through life. I want to have time to walk alongside friends that are hurting. I want to be free from clutter in my life.

Our physical clutter can have emotional, mental and spiritual ramifications. Emotional stress develops when we have too many choices and can lead to confusion and anxiety. Sometimes this leads to placing our security in being prepared and sometimes over prepared. Stress, anxiety and depression are on the rise. I believe some of this may be due to “soul clutter”-a collection of emotional, relational and spiritual issues that we have allowed to clutter up our lives If I use the metaphor of de-cluttering my life of the overflow of too much stuff to take a look at my soul clutter I can be more available to lead and guide and love those that mean so much to me. Each day as I see the physical clutter in my life that I need to sort through, I will also look at the soul clutter. I want to start the sorting process on the emotional and spiritual things that are holding me back. Do I have a spirit of unforgiveness? Am I holding grudge? Do I have expectations that those I love cannot measure up to so they are continually feeling discouraged? Do I have a root of bitterness as a result of a wrong I have suffered unjustly? Instead of stepping over this pile of soul clutter, I need to pick it up, sort it out and put it away!!!
Here are a few things I am going to try:
Ask myself the hard questions.
Acknowledge my mess.
Receive forgiveness.
Offer forgiveness.
Call for help.
Pray and seek prayer.
Expect the healing to take time.
Journal through the process.
Tell God you are willing to do whatever it takes.
Am I willing to do whatever it takes to remove everything that stands between me and my relationships and between me and God in order to restore my soul and clean up my soul clutter?

So the big question we need to ask ourselves is what is more important, emotional and relational health as we strive to become clutter free or a life full of clutter? I want to continue to work on repacking my bags for a swifter and lighter journey. So my goal in 2017 of trying to de-clutter my life physically, emotionally and spiritually is hopefully going to free me up to have more time to invest in my relationships and be more time to be available to do the work that God has called me to do.

EVERY DAY I will say to myself something that my mom learned from her mom and passed along to me…”repack your bags for a swifter and lighter journey.”
Are you willing to do whatever it takes to de-clutter your soul?