Get Organized! It's Biblical

Introducing my bright, organized laundry room! Read on.

Yesterday, I shared about our marriage weekend getaway to pray, plan and strategize for our family this year. One thing Rob and I noticed as we discussed the various aspects of our spiritual and home life is that we need to be more organized. From infusing our family with scriptural truth to cleaning the laundry room, our world needs a bit less chaos and a bit more order.

This past weekend, our pastor even preached on order. First Corinthians 14:33 says, "For God is not a God of disorder but of peace..." Exactly the same thing Rob and I had discussed the previous weekend on our getaway. Do you think God's trying to get our attention? Peace, people. Get your lives in order and you can have peace!!! Yes, God. We hear you.

Maybe you're like me. In your head, you can see exactly how you'd like it to be. You can envision meaningful discussions at the dinner table, the real life kind where you discuss the ups and downs of the day and encourage one another with God's Word. Maybe you can relate to my inner design star -- organized spaces throughout your home. I see my beautiful, well-planned home office in my mind. We've lived here since 2002, and I can assure you, I'd fit in better on an episode of "Hoarders." The room is so bad, I pretend it doesn't exist. If the kids venture in (not that anyone wants to) and forget to close the door when they leave, it sends me into orbit.

Rob actually agreed with me. Yes, I was surprised. His greatest dream is for our family to be more connected spiritually (more on this tomorrow). His greatest frustration is weaving through the disorder of our laundry/mud room when he gets home from work each day. (I wondered why he kept coming in through the front door. Avoidance is one strategy!)

Neither of us ever wanted to finish the laundry. Literally, we'd sit side by side, listen to the dryer buzz in the next room and ask, "Do you want to get it?" "No. Do you?" "Uhhhh. NO!" One of us would cave in, gleefully walking the dog in the late night rain... leaving the other to go to the dungeon, aka laundry room.

We -- really Rob deserves ALL the credit -- did something very out of character for us. We acted. Immediately. Knowing that the laundry room causes so much stress, we decided to fix it. Our changes were dramatic, but not expensive. He pulled everything from the room and painted the walls a bright, cheery color. Since the room does not have a window, the bright color really helps. He installed shelves wall to wall all the way to the ceiling.

Then, I got busy organizing. Using inexpensive, colorful boxes, I sorted everything we store in the laundry room: lightbulbs, extension cords, household cleaners, and more. I even pulled items from the front hall closet, under the kitchen sink and in our bedroom closet. We cleaned more than just the laundry room. Yippee!

Every single member of our family loves the new and improved room. It's bright, clean and spacious. My only regret is wondering why we waited eight years to fix it. Now, on to that office...