Called to action (update)

Yesterday, I more or less updated what I had written about on Jan. 1.

Today, I'll update what I wrote about on Jan. 2. That's the day, inspired by "Reset: Diligence Is a Choice; It's Time to Execute," a YouVersion Bible app reading plan by Vance K. Jackson, I tried to commit to putting action to my intentions that arise from seeking God's guidance.

The "dream" I thought was at hand was "to take responsibility for my messes; to clean up my spaces; to get rid of the clutter and excess. God is telling me if I ask Him for guidance and trust Him to deliver guidance, He will equip me to complete the task."

I also prayed:  

Heavenly Father, please help me know what to do with this stuff. Help me let go of what I don’t need. And help me know what to do with it, whether it be to donate, keep or toss into the trash. I trust You to guide and equip me — and to balance this work with service to and fellowship with You and the people You bring into my path. That is perhaps my biggest challenge. Help me, I pray. I trust You. I love You. May my faithful, humble, gracious response glorify You. In Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

I asked and, for that day, I accomplished the things it seemed God had placed before me.

Since then, not so much. At least, no more progress on the clutter.

Most days, I've had a sense that even though I didn't work on the clutter, I did other things of service to God and others. I trusted that God was placing me where He needed me and I was grateful and peaceful.

But what about the mess?

As I wrote to a friend: "Last Thursday, I felt strong assurance God was directing me to get to work on my clutter. Readings reminded me I could ask for His help and trust Him to provide. And He did. So, have I asked Him for help since then? If I’m honest, the answer is no. Today I’m asking again. I’m praying for God to guide me in dealing with my messes (to His glory, “the ability to simplify [declutter?] means to eliminate the unnecessary so the necessary may speak”) and how to balance that with what seems to be His continued call to visit people who are homebound or hospitalized, while also being a good wife. God knows I can’t figure out how to do that!! But when I truly seek first His presence and will and allow myself to trust Him, I have peace and see that things work out fine, even if it’s not how I thought it should have been."

I ended up visiting rather than working on the clutter. 

I have not given up on the hope that God is trying to shape a new perspective within me. As I wrote last week, "Seeing the task more clearly as God's assignment for me today helped me keep at it. And the concept of sacrificing my desires, pleasure and will, and replacing them with God's will for me, also helped today. I think in the past I was trying to do what needed to be done through my own sufficiency, and that never worked. Today, I tried trusting God, believing it was His will for me, and the results were much better." I'm not sure I embraced that idea as fully today.

Change takes time. This change will take God's timing. It will also take effort -- sacrifice -- on my part. I believe it will be worth it, to God's glory.