Minimalism Part 1 – Decluttering and De-Owning Reasons

If you read my blog last week, one of my New Years Resolutions is minimizing our home.  Link: https://wp.me/pbgHGQ-sK. 

Are you also longing for a simpler life and know that scaling down on possessions, is key?   If you are following me on this minimalism journey, we need to figure out why we’re drawn to it.

My Reasons to Minimize:

Top Driving Force…I want no barrier between Jesus and myself.  Keep only what I need.  Jesus told His disciples, “follow me.”  I want no material goods in the way so I can truly follow Him.    

Realization that I own way too much.  Word for owning too much is “excessive.”  Our home is filled with excess.

I want to start fresh.  Like an artist with a clean canvas or page.  Each year of life adds more possessions.   I want a new beginning.

Less stuff, less maintenance, more time to spend on what I love.

Give to the poor.  Someone else may need these possessions.  Makes them happy.  Give now versus waiting until I’m dead.

Become more peaceful.  I don’t want to see clutter on every surface.  No visual clutter equals visual peace.

With less things, I am seeing opportunities to redesign areas and whole rooms.  Our home can be a place we really use, that serves our everyday needs, instead of a repository for items we don’t need or care about.  And rooms are looking larger with minimal pictures and possessions not scattered on every surface (removed or in drawers.)

Items remaining are things we truly need and/or things we love.

After purging clothes, what I kept, makes me feel great when I put them on; things that knock my socks off versus this item was a yard sale bargain or “who knows when I’ll ever fit into this again.”

Items remaining are purposeful.  The pictures on the wall now represent what’s important to us.  Before, it was an item purchased for a few dollars at an estate sale and it fit on this last bit of free wall space.

Each area of decluttering, spurs new motivation for more decluttering.  Removed 3 extra large suitcases from shed, found that none of them truly worked as a future replacement for my present suitcase, even though they were only $5-10 at estate sales.  Instant space and encouraged Dave to remove van seats from shed.  He wants to repurpose one to look at night stars. 🙂

I loved an airbnb home in Colorado and couldn’t place my finger on why exactly.   I only know I felt so much peace.  Now I know why.  The place had large, open, sunny, uncluttered rooms, like a very long farmhouse table in an all windows dining room.  And a sunroom with a very large simple daybed to sit/lay down and gaze at wheat fields.  I felt very close to God there, like no barriers and God blessed me daily with animals and nature.

Regarding my beloved airbnb, I was able to do the things I love because of the room designs. Decluttering our own home, we can focus on our passions and create room for them.  I’ll have areas for worshipping God, reading, crafting.

Think about why YOU want “less stuff.” 

Taking pictures of before and after are big motivators.  I take my first picture of the cluttered surface, strip it completely and take second picture.  Add back slowly, take pictures.  A lot of the time, I go back to the stripped surface or one article that is important to us.

If you’re busy, start slow at minimizing.  Pick an area that won’t be painful, like you open the laundry cabinet and know you don’t need 8 shoe polish cans.  Set a timer of ½ hour and go to town!

Please share your experiences if you’re purging.

Join me next week for my before and after pictures of my clothes closet.

Happy purging and may God this project!