Particpating in Lent

I've decided to participate in Lent this year. Growing up in a Baptist Church it wasn't really talked about, but as I have gotten older I'v found myself thinking that only celebrating holidays such as Christmas and Easter on one day each doesn't portray the significance of these events in my life. I believe that God sent his son to be born as a baby, live life on earth and then be crucified for my sins on a cross. This is the core of who I am and how could I not spent more than 2 days a year thanking God for this. Today is the start of Lent, Ash Wednesday. I didn't even really know the history on Lent, I knew that people gave up things for it and only ate fish on Fridays so I did a little research
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Here's a link to an article on Christianity Today:The Beginning of Lent Christian History

Lent is meant to be a time of self reflection, a time to acknowledge that we are sinners and need repentance. I am going to be participating in an unhurried pilgrimage through Lent. This is a study through done by reFresh ministries. I've been a fan of them on facebook for awhile now and decided today to go for it. You can find the link on my facebook page if you want to participate.

I'm looking forward to this unhurried path of preparation for the Easter season and can't wait to see what God has to show me on this journey.

February goals

So in my year of setting goals for myself every month I've learned a bit about setting goals. First and foremost, goals are only acheiveable if you have a plan starting out. I set 5 goals for last month. 1 was easy for me, that was to pay cash for everything. I had already started working on my dishes daily so that also was easy. With my Mom's help I've almost finished a complete transformation of my master bedroom. The last 2, tackling the paper as it comes in the house and putting clothes away daily, were very hard for me. I found that because I didn't have an organized system for doing either one that it was hard to even start them. Once I got laundry baskets in my bathroom and bedroom I have been able to easily put things away. Still haven't got my office organized so the paper thing is still going to be a work in progress. Overall I feel like I'm making progress and learning that the clutter in your house/life really has an impact on how I feel. Before I redid my bedroom I would spend very little time in there. Since I have done it I feel very relaxed in there and have spent more time in there and also sleeping much better!

So here are February's goals:

1. Get an organized system for paper in my house: this will mean having my office organized so that when things need filed or shredded there is a place to do that easily every time.

2. Put shoes away: I prefer to be barefoot inside. So my shoes end up dropped wherever I kick them off when I come in. This month they go back in the closet!

3. Dust and Vacumn the Master Bedroom weekly: It's nice and new so it needs to be kept looking that way(and the glass topped sidetables are dust magnets).

I'm looking forward to seeing(and feeling) what happens as I continue to decrease the clutter in my life. Realizing that I can't have room for what God may have in store for me if every nook and crany of my life is stuffed with things that don't matter.

Making Progress: Master Bedroom

So here are "After" and "Before" pictures of my bedroom. It's been a while coming. The inspiration for this room are the prints that are on the wall. They were a wedding gift my grandparents received when they got married.