Letting Go of Stuff Part II

Yesterday, I posted on Letting Go of Stuff. I have received many wise words in the comments section of my blog, and want to make sure that you've had a chance to read and be encouraged by these ladies:

"A good spiritual application for this is how many things we have going on that crowd out what God wants to do in us. Keeping busy for the sake of keeping busy or just hanging on to old habits can really junk up our lives." ~ Glory

"I have been doing very well in recent years - at getting rid of things. I started when God told me to cull my books the first time, and the second culling was much easier. A lot of curriculum went in both of those cullings, and the liberty I felt at getting rid of things I really didn't need led me to get rid of more, even a piece of antique furniture I'd been hanging onto for way too long. Still, though, just the other day, when I was pulling a few, last bits and pieces to bless a homeschool mom with, I caught myself hanging onto a particular video curriculum. This I'd gotten for myself, rather than the boys, and I thought that just maybe I'd want to pull it out and watch it again. It was a week later before I admitted I was still showing too many signs of the hoarder and pulled it out to pass along to her as well. " ~ Tammy

"I tell myself if I am serious about giving my children real learning experiences then I don't need these particular books and workbooks for that "one day" that I am sure will never come. By the way, that "one day" hasn't come to our family in 7 years! " ~ Belinda

"I kept all of my first dd's clothes in the event I had a second dd which I did four years later. When I went to retrieve two large containers of them I discovered they had mildewed. What a stench! Trust me, mildew is a smell that doesn't wash out no matter how many times you try. I love your perspective: hoarding might be depriving someone else of a blessing." ~ DreweLlyn

"Give and it will come back to you, pressed down, shaken together and running over! I have learned this principle over and over and over. With nine children, so close together, I do typically hang on to clothes from season to season because they are just moving right into the next size. However, each year, I purge and try to keep only enough clothes that will fit into one cardboard file box. Each year, we have TONS of clothes given to us. God is so gracious!" ~ Cynthia

"Every August our church sponsors a huge "shopping spree" for the seminary we are closely associated with. They take donations from our church members and then set it all up in our gym and let the seminary students and their families come in and "shop" with special money we give them. They pick out whatever they want or need. I have struggled with releasing some of my stuff, but I realized these students come here without a lot of things, and of course they can't afford to buy all they need. I've heard their testimonies of how God supplied just what they needed through these yearly shopping sprees. They look forward to it, and I have begun to look for things that I no longer use or need to bring them a blessing." ~ Robyx5

I hope you are further encouraged to let go of a few extra things lying around the house! I know I am motivated by the words of these ladies!

Maybe I don't need 12 Phillips screwdrivers after all...

by Lori Seaborg