The Closet Clean Out

Dear Readers,

It’s that time of the year. The time of the year when we receive so much and give so much as well. It’s that time of the year when it gets cold and all my sweaters are acceptable. It’s the time of the year when lots of coffee drinking is encouraged. And it’s time of the year when everything is unnaturally crazy, at least for my family it is, I just assume a general chaos is implied for the last two months of the year.

--Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.-- Matthew 6:19-21

I have to admit, I have prolly somewhere near twenty sweaters. It’s bad, I know, but I can’t help it, I just love sweaters. And I continue to want more. I tell myself this simple equation; if it’s cold outside then I need sweaters. Not the best equation, because then it causes me to spend any money I have for the holidays to buy more sweaters. Sweaters aren’t evil, not at all what I’m saying, I just think it’s my amount of sweaters that may not be the healthiest. It’s not just sweaters that I have an unnatural amount of, it’s a lot of things actually. It is all stored up in my closet, as is most miscellaneous junk. I have a lot of pairs of shoes that don’t fit me, clothes I don’t even look at, and nail polishes that are beyond dried up. That’s my cue for time to clean up now.

Recently, on Monday,  I did a necessary closet clean up. I found piles of dust behind storage bins I don’t even use, so I got rid of  some storage bins. I had about ten shoe boxes I swore I was going to use and threw them all away. And who knew how many bobby pins could fit in one corner? I do, because I found nearly thirty in my clean up. As I finished I was satisfied with my work, but now I don’t think it’s enough, I think I need to do a closet clean out.

What I mean is taking a good look at not only my closet , but also my room, and see how much of this “stuff” I really need. We are told that we need this and we need that, so get this and we get that (and sometimes never use it.) We are buying stuff we don’t need with money we don’t have to please people we don’t know. That’s what it comes down to, is this idea of having to please people by our quantities and not our qualities. We gain all these possessions, and while some may hold some sentimental value and are necessary, a lot of the stuff “we need” is just there for us to have comfort and security. Now this is prolly the most stereotypical form of simplicity you’ve heard. Get rid of the stuff you don’t need in order to achieve a simplified life. I agree 100% with that statement. All these things that we think we need are just crowding our life and determining our social status, when all they really are are distractions from God. God is to be our number one and what do we do? We buy something to replace him and end up putting it in our closets.

So let’s clean out our closets, let’s get rid of all the stuff we don’t use and ultimately don’t need. When I clean out mine, I’m bound to find trinkets from years ago I told myself to hold to, childhood toys I played with when I was eight, and clothes...Oh the clothes. I’m going to need a large trash bag for this. We have all cleaned out our closets before and gotten rid of the stuff we haven’t looked at in a year. But this time it’s going to be different. What I encourage you to do this week is to dig deep into your closets and inside your rooms and clean them out. If you haven’t worn it give it away, if you haven’t read it give it away, and if you have forgotten it, give it away. What I’m saying is don’t get rid of pictures you've had since you were a child, but get rid of the sweater that has turned into a three quarter sleeve shirt. It won’t be easy, going down memory lane and choosing what is worth keeping and what really isn’t, but the result is very much worth it. Your result is more than satisfaction; it’s accomplishment and contentment and a step to a more simplified life. Without all the distractions placed in front of us, it’s easier to see God. With all these chaotic holidays coming up, we should go into them seeking simplicity and with not only an emptier closet but an emptier mind. Without all the things we “need” it’ll be easier to receive and love the things we have, because we see how important they are to us. Let’s clean out our closets so we can find the joy in what God has blessed us with already instead of finding joy in what the world tells us we “need”, even if it’s a whole bunch of sweaters.

XOXO- Em