My heart fluttered a little as I watched the neat lines appear on the plush, wine-red rug in our apartment.
It wasn’t a rug I’d have chosen.
It showed every little thing. But we were renting a furnished apartment, and at first I didn’t mind vacuuming that rug two or three times a day.
I was newly married and I was having a lot of fun doing all of the “house-wifey” things that came with marriage. At one point my husband said with exasperation: “Will you sit down and stop cleaning for just one minute??”
Fast-forward 9 1/2 years later and I’m not nearly as excited about cleaning as I used to be.
Oh sure, I still flutter around cleaning all of the time. I’m a little OCD on that front. I can’t stand crumbs and clutter, and a sink of dirty dishes makes me want to break out in hives.
But it’s not as fulfilling as it used to be.
Maybe that’s normal for some, but I don’t want it to be normal for me. Okay, okay – I’m not expecting my heart to skip a beat at the sight of a laundry basket full of un-paired socks, but I am looking for that joy in the everyday things like I used to have.
And I have a plan!
As the queen of planning, it would only be expected that I would have a plan for this, too.
How to Rekindle Your Joy in Homemaking
1. Identify your joy-killers. What saps your strength each day? For me it is two things: a) Facebook and b) Doing everything myself.
My-oh-my, there is a solution for that! And I can’t wait to share that in point 2, but in order to rekindle your joy you need to identify what it is that steals that joy. Take some time this week to be a little more alert to those things that are killing your joy and jot them down.
2. Create a strategy to eliminate your joy-killers. Now you know what they are, what are you going to do with them? You have two choices: a) Let them exist and live in continual frustration or b) Eliminate them and start living in joy!
You wanna know what my strategy is? a) Kill my Facebook news feed and set certain times to check my notifications, and b) Give my kids chores. So easy!
3. Assign prayer of thanks to each task. There is nothing that will rekindle joy faster than a thankful heart. As you fold socks pray and thank God for the good things He’s provided for you to stay warm. As you wash dishes, thank the Lord that you have “never seen the righteous forsaken nor His seed begging for bread”. As you pay bills, rejoice and thank the Lord that He faithfully provides money each month.
4. Make an organizational binder. I know these are super-popular and you can find them everywhere. While you have to purchase the bigger ones, I’ve found that a simple binder that allows me to add my own pages is best. I don’t always do things the way others do, and so I like binders with just the bare basics so that I can create my own additional pages in Word to add to it.
I have found a binder with a schedule, shopping list, a place to add phone numbers and emergency lists is so helpful for me in making my home run smoothly.
Another joy-killer for me is disorganization and ever since we renovated our home this past summer our home is very disorganized. So, one plan for this spring is to get our home completely organized. I want one home for every thing (not 3 or 4 so I’m running around the house for an hour looking for a plug converter!) and I want our living spaces to look tidy.
That is why I created this very simple My Organized Home organizational binder. There are 8 pages in this simple binder and a lot of room to add whatever you feel you need to help get your home organized.
When you type in your email below, you’ll receive a link to download it and many other printables for you quiet time, home and homechool.
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Are you ready to join me in 2017 in rekindling your joy in homemaking?
Rosilind, a Pacific Northwest native, is a missionary living in Croatia and married to her Bosnian hero. Together they live in the country with their 2 active boys where she enjoys fruity candles and a hot cup of herbal tea on a blustery fall evening. She holds an Associates of Practical Theology and is passionate about discipling and encouraging women. Her passion for writing led her to author a number of books. She is the author of A Little R & R where she encourages women to find contentment in what God created them to be. You can follow her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and Google +.
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