Making Room…
And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. ~ Luke 2:6-7 (ESV)
As I was cleaning up our living room the other day to make a place for our little nativity scene, I was thinking about all the other areas in my life that need to be cleaned up. I needed to make more room in my personal life.
Some of you know what I have been digital scrap-booking for a while. Not only did I scrap for my own personal relaxation, but also promoted some designs from digital scrapbook designers. I just resigned from the last two I still ‘worked’ for in exchange for digital materials. Today I even went through all my bookmarked scrap-booking website to delete 80% of them. The time I spent on those sites were taking away from things I needed more – time with the Lord…
Although I do not make ‘New Years Resolutions’ (I never keep them anyway), I do seek that God may use me in different ways to make Him known around the globe. I want to make room in my daily life to be available to His calling – whatever or wherever that might be. I do not want to be like the innkeeper in Bethlehem to crowd God out of my life because I am too busy with other things…
Will I still be scrapping? Of course, just not to the extend I have been. I want to be inspired by His Word and a photo to create a digital page. Like John the Baptized said (recorded in the Gospel of John 3:30) “He must increase, but I must decrease.”
Sweet sisters, we are all busy. Either by raising a family full-time or have a full-time job outside the home. We are busy with good things in our lives. May I ask you one thing for the new year (don’t make a resolution – we know where they go in the first month 😆 )? Look at your daily schedule. See if you can find some time to spend with the Lord daily. Start in small portions; I know that He will increase your desire to be in His presence more and more. Maybe He will guide you to give up things that you enjoyed doing like He did with me…
Lord of Heaven and Earth. Thank You for helping me to clean out the ‘clutter’ in my personal life. Not only has it given me more time to spend with You, but it also has helped me to balance the rest of my daily life. Lord, show me ways that I may share Your love, compassion, and patience with the ones around me. Lord, here I am, send me; may I also be available…In the precious name of Jesus ~ Amen.
PS: In January 2010 I will start on a journey living ‘Fear-less’ on my personal blog “Grace Alone“…I hope you can join me bi-weekly on Mondays, beginning January 11th.
An on-point message Iris! Thanks for sharing with us the important reminders and encouragement. I say it this way, keep JESUS first.
Love and blessings to you.
Iris you hit the target of all our lives with that post! Thank you for sharing what He’s doing in you—He’s trying to do that in each of us I think. I know He is in mine.
Much love to you!!!
Angie
Iris, this is such a timely and much needed read for me! There are days, no weeks, when I feel like I’m not seeing the bottom of my to do list!
My time with the Lord is always a MUST to start and end each day, but my actual study time is shrinking. I’m very convicted by your post.
Blessings my friend.
Thanks for speaking my heart dear, love you.
Beautiful post Iris, just what I needed today. I’ll be sure to stop in when you beging your Fear-less journey.
Words of sweet wisdom. I think I have some deleting to do…