Month: October 2018

A Bible Plan to Fill My Heart with Peace and Tranquility

There’s a song that says, “Life in this world can be hard. Life in this world can bring tears and pain. Still ev’ry day I will say, ‘My life is not in vain.'”

Let’s face it, all of us have one trial or another. With an upcoming move, I am dealing with a number of emotionally charged situations. How will I downsize? What should I do with my things? How will my son stay behind to finish the fall and spring semesters? What about Lucy, my golden retriever? Can I handle the cold weather of Ohio?

I’m not worried about moving to a new congregation. Spiritual friends are friends anywhere in the world, and I have a plan to jump right in.

The Daily Text of Monday, October 22 was Ps. 55:22 which says, “Throw your burden on Jehovah and he will sustain you.” It encouraged me to rid my heart of disturbing emotions and fill it with peace and tranquility. So, I have decided that I will start a Bible program to do that.

  • Monday: Bible reading project. Each week, I will type a Bible reading into a document, verse by verse, and include notes.
  • Tuesday: Study for the midweek meeting and prepare comments. Attend my Christian meeting.
  • Wednesday: Share in the ministry. Family study with my husband.
  • Thursday: JW Broadcast project. JW Broadcast is an Internet TV channel which features spiritually upbuilding content. A monthly section called From Our Studio started in October 2014. I plan to watch one each week and take notes. There have been 49 of these, so this project will take me a year.
  • Friday: Show interest in others by writing letters and visiting in person.
  • Saturday: Share in the ministry with my family. Study for the meeting and prepare comments.
  • Sunday: Attend my Christian meeting. Show hospitality and have upbuilding association.
  • Every day: Heartfelt prayer.

I believe this plan will be of great benefit and help me be a more joyful Christian.

Photo credit: Julio Jimenez, Instagram @julesphotocamera

 

Fall 2018 Moving Challenge

This post started off as “Fall 2018 Cleaning Challenge Week 4” to talk about decluttering my office, but I have some big news:

WE ARE MOVING TO COLUMBUS, OHIO!!!

Now, decluttering the office has changed to downsizing our possessions by 1,000 square feet. We have two weeks to pack and then make the 16-hour drive in a car and U-Haul to move into a two-bedroom, two-bath apartment that is within walking distance of work.

It’s been a difficult process going through our stuff. I’m a glass collector, so I have glass vases and paperweights from the 80’s. I have photo albums and pictures, craft paper, and stickers.

I also have stationery and letters. I have practically every letter, wedding invitation, birth announcement, and graduation card I have ever received, so my hanging folder box weighs 10.8 pounds and I cannot fit one more card into it. When I hoisted it up to show my husband, he did his best imitation of Sheriff Brody from Jaws and said, “You’re gonna need a bigger box.”

My husband has computer books and Bible notes he took where he wrote in microscopic-size lettering. I offered to scan them, but he said no.

My son has put many possessions on Letgo. He has sold a number of items such as a motorcycle jacket and LEGO. He is willing to let go of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid set and LEGO books.

He wanted to sell our Yeti cooler, but my husband said, “No way! Mom and I are going to use that when we go on all of our camping excursions.”

Crickets chirping…that would be a hard NO.

We’ve gotten rid of childhood books, magazines, a coffee table and two side tables. But no one seems to want DVD’s anymore.

I’ve discovered I have an obscene number of notebooks, papers, and pens. It’s not completely my fault. Every time my husband went to a vendor event, he came home with them. Then there’s all the notebooks the teachers required we get for our kid for the school year. You have to buy one for each subject. After a number of years, I stomped my foot and said, “NO, I will not buy any more of these notebooks!” Or #2 wood pencils. All the kids started using mechanical pencils, so what was the point of buying them?

Notebooks and papers and pens, oh my!

The house is in a mess. Our Akita, Kumo managed to sneak into my bedroom and gnaw on some of my jewelry boxes. I think this week he has been in my room more times than in the last 9 months. Fortunately, he didn’t swallow any jewelry. Imagine me for the next two weeks, walking behind him every time he did his business, to find my emerald ring….

I still count the number of things I discard. Why? It increases the likelihood of succeeding.

“Measurement itself creates improvement.”

“Track a specific outcome makes it more likely to improve.”

Here’s my results:

  • Total things gotten rid of: 670
  • 10 lbs. of papers
  • Packed 5 boxes

The downsizing has been hard, both physically and emotionally, but in the end, I believe it will be beneficial.