What time is it?

It is time for Spring Cleaning.

Get your house in order, 2 Kings 20:1b

Time management experts report that throughout our lifetime we will spend, 5 years waiting in line, 6 months waiting at red lights, and 1 year playing telephone tag. The average American spends, 6 years eating, 3 years in meetings, 8 months opening junk mail, 4 years doing housework, and 1 year searching for belongings amid clutter!

– Barbara Johnson in Joy Breaks

The Parable of the Lost Coin

Luke 15:8-9

Or suppose a woman who has ten silver coins loses one of them – what does she do? She lights a lamp, sweeps her house, and looks carefully everywhere until she finds it. When she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, and says to them, "I am happy I found the coin I lost. Let us celebrate!"

How much time are we wasting looking for one lost thing or two?

Let us begin our spring cleaning today!

Spend a week on each room in the house. Ask your self these questions:

What activities happen in this room and how can I make this room what I want it to be?

Bedroom: Sleep and relax – keep clutter free, one basket by the bed for reading material, pen and paper for closing thoughts, lamp, place for husband to put his things on the night stand (small basket, pewter dish, gold bowl). Organize closet, pack up out of season clothes ( under bed storage or covered garment racks), when packing if you have not worn this season once, give to charity.

Kitchen: Keep things close you use often and things you don't use in those hard to reach places. Make a drawer for phone book, pen, paper, scotch tape, address book. Only one junk drawer allowed.

Address book: Purchase A-Z dividers use notebook paper and if you have computer address book, make label, stick to page. Or from the Christmas card, cut out the return, tape onto page. Add and update as you need without all the markings.

Bathroom: Cleaning supplies under cabinet. Also purchase plastic shoe boxes (89 cents at Home Depot), divide makeup, first aid, hair supplies, toiletries, use computer labels to label boxes if you use the lid. If you don't use the lid place it under the cleaning supplies to protect the base of cabinet. One basket for washcloths on top of vanity, tissues handy.

Living Room: No toys allowed permanently. Have play time here if you must, but use mostly for relaxing after dinner, entertaining. Keep a basket for newspapers, recycle weekly. One container for magazines, empty monthly.

Child's bedroom: Pack up 1/2 of the toys and date the box for 7/1, over the summer give him/her the new toys. Move the hanging bar down so they can reach their clothes. Purchase a plastic dresser and let them get their socks, undies, and pj's out themselves. (Age appropriate) Have pictures of happy times in plastic frames to remind them they are loved. A bulletin board can house their favorite art work. A bookshelf with good reading.

This year take a week to clean your house and you will find a little at a time works out fine!

Monday – Mop (sweep/vacuum first) and Mirrors

Tuesday – Tubs & Toilets

Wednesday – Wash and Iron (strip beds)

Thursday – Tabletops (dusting, de cluttering)/Tubs and Toilets

Friday – Finish up, anything I missed on the days listed above, Family night!

Saturday – Something I want to accomplish (refrigerator cleaned, super supper)

Sunday – Attend the church of your choice and choose to do nothing. On the seventh day God rested and so should we. Genesis 2:2

ISBN # 0-9678996-0-5 (Year 2000 edition),  ISBN # 0-9678996-1-3 (Year 2001 edition), $14.95, 176 pages.

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