We are all grateful for our family, our homes, and our “stuff” but we don’t often consciously think about it. Those things are just always there. If you suddenly didn’t have a home and then it was returned to you, you’d really be grateful for it! We tend to take those things for granted. You know who isn’t taking those things for granted? Ukrainians.
When I watch the news and see so many people who just a few weeks ago had homes and families and jobs and lives just like we do, and now their families are torn apart, they are running in fear from their own country with only a few items in a back pack….I feel so blessed? Lucky? Actually I feel pretty crappy that we (all of us not in that situation) take so much for granted and even complain about what we don’t have or what a bad day we had at work. I dare any one of us to find something valid to complain about. Can you imagine saying to a refugee, “I had the worst day at work today! It was so busy I didn’t even get my lunch break!”….ummm. yikes. Or how about “I am so tired of my dumb phone, I need a new one!” Or “I cant give up my ten pair of shoes I don’t wear! Those were expensive!”. “What if I need that ____ (fill in the blank) someday?” Perspective. We have so much and we hang on to it like our life depends on it but forget to be grateful for it. It is just clutter in a closet. They are incredibly grateful for the little they have and have lost so much. I pray for those people, that they can soon rebuild their lives. I pray that we can learn from them and change our perspective.
Let’s honor those refugees by exercising gratitude for each thing that we use, look at, consume, throw away or give away. Really pay attention to the things you have and use. Even the little things you don’t normally think of. The garage door opener, the TV remote, the refrigerator, the glass pan you used for dinner, your tennis shoes. Notice them. Thank God for them and thank them.. yes them, your tennis shoes, for the work they do to benefit you.
Practicing intense gratitude like this in a daily basis actually changes your brain!! Gratitude lights up the reward pathways in your brain boosting serotonin and dopamine, making you feel happier, more secure and help you think clearly. It will help you make good decisions. Gratitude is like a God’s anti anxiety medication! We could all use a little of that!
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
— Colossians 3:15
This blog post doesn’t sound like a house keeping post but it really is!
Be grateful for and take care of what you do have.
Think of others by not selfishly hanging on to things you don’t need.
Those two key things are what keeps a house clean and clutter free! When you practice those you will have a peaceful home that is a haven for you and your family.
Please pray with me for the people of Ukraine. Keep perspective.
“Prayer is not a preparation for the battle; it is the battle!”
Leonard Ravenhill
Happy Housekeeping!
Elizabeth XOXO
The Self Cleaning House 