Put It Away!

One of our family rules is:

If you get something out, put it away.

Confession time: my kids aren't very good at that.

Another confession time: I am not very good at that.  I mean to be good at it. I want to be good at that. I plan on being good at that.

But I am not. Sigh.

Note: this is NOT my desk. My is MUCH less messy. Really.

It is just that I get stuff out to get started on a project and then get started and begin making headway, and then get called away to some other need, and then get a phone call, and then put a load of laundry in, and then see something else that needs to get done, and then get hungry, and then get distracted by another job, and then remember an email that needs to get sent, and then (while I am on the computer) check Facebook, and then........

By the time I return to the original "scene of the crime" of the half-begun but not yet finished project I have to start making dinner. But I don't put it all away, because I am going to sit down and finish it right after dinner!!! Really, I am. And then......

There are lots of distractions, but it is the putting away that is the problem.

Like laundry. I can get it washed and dried easily. But then it might sit in the basket, permanently setting the wrinkles for a while. But we pull it out, I read aloud, and the kids fold. Okay, two-thirds done.

But then, getting it put away.  Sigh....

Note: to all you neat, together, check your list off, house all clean, type of Moms who have no clue what I am talking about and always put everything thing away the moment you should....you sort of irritate me and convict me and I think you should get off the computer and go dust something- that is if you can find something that even needs to be dusted! If not, come to my house- you can definitely find something to dust here!

As I was reading the end of Ephesians 4 the other day I saw this in a whole new light. It says:

Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.  And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.

 Ephesians 4:31,32

Now these verses are so chock-full of so many important things, it is hard to concentrate in on one of them, but possibly because of my ailment of "not-putting-away-what-you-get-out-itis" I was struck by the intentional, purposeful determined action of putting away.

Just think how different the atmosphere in our homes would be if every time we wanted to let bitterness out we put it away instead.

Or when the wrath and anger started building up we put it away.

Or how about clamor or slander- put it away.

Don't leave all the bad, ugly selfishness lying around, making a mess, and cluttering up the place. Because the mess that is made with bitterness and wrath and clamor destroys relationships and hurts hearts and looks NOTHING like Jesus.

So what have you left lying around? You might want to go put it away.  I would write more about it, but I have some serious cleaning up and putting away to do!!!!