It’s beautiful! A beautiful mess indeed.

The glitter that is scattered on the floor and stuck to my face from the presents opened.

The presence of others is beautiful.

It’s beautiful! A beautiful mess indeed.

The joy that has come from rejoicing over the birth of our Savior. The pain that is felt from grieving with others who are struggling while they try hard to rejoice.

The joy and pain coexist.

Every year after Christmas my heart is torn like pieces of wrapping paper down the middle. One side ready to put away the beautiful reminders of our celebrations together and the other side wanting to linger and let it stay just a while longer.

Several years ago I reminded myself that we can “sweep away the glitter, turn down the twinkling lights , clear out the bags of torn paper and bows. Tuck away the ornaments, remove the adornments from the doors and windows. Its ok. That’s not Christmas anyway.”

The goodness of His Love, the luster of His grace, the sweetness of His mercy will all remain long after we put away our things if we truly take in Christ at Christmas.

This reflection has me wondering did we truly take in Christ at Christmas? It’s an individual heart question. One that lends itself to the making of decisions about how we allow Christmas to linger in our hearts the next year.

Reflection. It can also be beautiful. A beautiful mess indeed.

The deep thoughts that spur us toward things or away from things can leave us exuberated or exacerbated.

Simple reflections the day after Christmas left me excited and ready to make lists. But, I admit, I knew that my reeved up intentions may lead me to exhaustion by January 2nd. If you aren’t following my bunny trail, let me wrap it up into a few words that I hope will clear the clutter of my otherwise jumbled thoughts.

Clean. I want the beautiful of Christmas to linger, but I want a clean place for it to residewithin my heart and within my home.

A clean heart.

A clean home.

Will you join us in January? Join us as we let Christmas linger and as we create beautiful spaces in the messy places we call our hearts and home.

White space ready for Christ to linger long; free of the world’s distractions and open to the receiving of His continual gifts throughout the year.

A clean heart.

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Psalm 51:10

Let’s start at the heart of the matter. Our heart.

This January we will do like many and recommit to studying the word of God each day. Psalm 51:10 will be our starting point and each day we will encourage the reading of a verse. Starting places create a place to begin. Begin your day in the Word, asking God to come into the white space that you have cleared for Him.

We could stop right there, but like many, the after effects of Christmas celebrations have us wanting a clean space to reside in physically.

A clean home.

It’s a battle that never ends. Right? Dishes and laundry, dust and dirt.

Like our walk in the word each day, if we walk into our homes with a desire to make white space for beautiful moments to unfold, we can. In the folding of the clothes, there is a fresh feeling that is renewed. In the clearing of the clutter there is an open space created for more gatherings to occur.

Join us in January on Facebook and Instagram. We are making space in our schedules to start you with a scripture each day and we will share tips for the home each week. Join us here each Monday as we reflect, review and encourage one another.  Our hope and prayer is that we will be renewed and refreshed as we open our hearts and homes to the goodness of His Love, the luster of His grace,  and the sweetness of His mercy.

Beautifully messy~ Jodie

 

 

 

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