Balance

"Better to live on a corner of the roof
than share a house with a quarrelsome wife." Proverbs 21:9

This morning I was reading about finding the balance in one's life. What was being pointed out was the perfectionism that we're confronted with every single day in this country. Just look at the TV line-up and you'll see what I mean. There are channels devoted to perfectionism at every level. There's HGTV where you can see over and over how to make your garden and home perfect. There's the Food Network where you can see how to cook and how to eat perfectly, there's the Fine Living Network which shows that you need to own vineyards and islands in order to be happy. I could go on and on with examples. And sometimes we can watch these shows or channels and feel inspired to make a change or do something- and that is never really a bad thing. Or is it?

What about the people who watch those shows on decluttering the home, and then they look around their own home at their disaster and feel discouraged. So discouraged, that it doesn't even occur to them to try and take action. That's where we find so many people, in a state of discouragement, because they think they'll fail before they even start. That's where we may find many women in the verse I posted up above. She may be a in a state of discontent because no matter what she could do, she's never going to be able to keep up with the Joneses.

But there is a way to find balance and contentment. You can try with just a little bit at a time. Instead of cleaning out your entire house of clutter, you can choose to clean out one drawer, or underneath one piece of furniture. There is truly no need to reach for the state of prefection. It's taken me a long time to learn that lesson. I used to be embarassed inviting people to our house with the current state of our furniture. But you know what? They really don't care. Our friends know they are welcome in our home- and that's what matters most. Sure, I'd love new furniture, but I also know that it would be completely irresponsible of me to get new furniture. That money needs to go elsewhere. And I used to worry about not being Martha. Not having every drawer and cupboard perfectly organized. And again, no one really cares. Sometimes, I do find myself attacking a cupboard in an effort to clean it out, and when it's done, there is always a sense of accomplishment. But I also know that all of my cupboards are not going to be clean at one time. It's just not going to happen. If it did, I would likely be the woman in that verse today. Angry and quarrelsome, because I've spent every waking moment trying to make my house perfect. And then my son would come through and make a mess and drive me batty.

" All hard work brings a profit,
but mere talk leads only to poverty." Proverbs 14:23

All hard work is rewarded- no matter what it is. Even if it's something as basic as cleaning off a counter or one shelf. One task at a time can bring a great reward for the person who does the task- a true sense of accomplishment. We don't learn to walk by getting up from crawling and starting to run. We start by taking baby steps. We take a step, and then we fall or step backwards. But then we get back up and try again. A clean and organized home can be had, it just takes baby steps. And as long as we realize that we don't need to be perfect- that our home isn't going to be featured on a national TV show, we can take one step at a time and bring our home to the place where it should be. And for me, that should be in a state of welcome. A state of cozyness and warmth so that all who enter know that they are welcome.

"She watches over the affairs of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness." Proverbs 31:27