Peaceful Homes = Peaceful Minds

We talk a lot here about peace itself and finding peace. Mostly, we're really talking more about like that feeling of peace, that inner peace, that untouchable type of peace. What I want to discuss is the difference that peace in your physical environment can make.

At one point, all three of my kids were in diapers (stress #1). We had toys everywhere—Matchbox cars, Legos, Lincoln logs (stress #2). All of the things were everywhere—crayons and markers and papers and more papers and stuffed animals and all the little Happy Meal toys and all of the things everywhere (stress #3). Also, I was not very good about going through my mail. I had piles of mail to go through sitting on my kitchen counter and there was just stuff everywhere. It driving me crazy (stress #4).

And there was so much of it, could barely even wrap my head around it (stress #5, 6, 7….).

I didn't realize how much that was impacting how overwhelmed I felt because I was looking at all the stuff everywhere I turned.

I thought that I just really needed to just need more discipline. I needed to be able to get it together. “Come on, all these people on Facebook and Instagram, they have beautiful homes and have all their stuff put away. They have all the things taken care of, ” ran through my head constantly.

Look at my life. I have got stuff everywhere.

And whenever we went away, I was always apologizing to the girl that came over to watch our pets that my house was a disaster.

It was 100 % contributing to my overwhelm. It was not the only piece that was contributing to it, but it was not making it any better.

There's definitely a connection between our home, physical environment, and our emotional well-being.

But there's a practice in finding that additional peace.

Peace is not silence—it's stillness.

It's what the word shalom alludes to, which is wholeness, harmony, and completeness.

A lot of times, whether we choose to admit it or not, the tone of our home mirrors the state of our hearts and vice versa.

Our outer environment really can either anchor or agitate us.

As you look around your house right now, is it anchoring you? Or is it driving you up a wall?

We look to scripture for some advice.

It always refers back to having a peaceful home, a place of rest.

Isaiah 32:18 says, “my people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest.” So the intention is for our place, our house to be a place of rest.

In 1 Corinthians 14:33, it says, “God is not a God of disorder, but of peace.”

So if we can reduce the disorder, we can bring more peace.

When I hit that point where all of that clutter was driving me up a wall, I decided to read the book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. I found online courses on decluttering. I was ready to go through the house and pretty much trash everything.

When I finally faced the task, I realized that it was going to be a lot harder than I thought.

Then my motivation to do all those things—go through all of those resources, the books, the courses, all of the things—it actually caused me twice as much stress because I was reading all these things about how bad all the clutter was. It started to make me feel really bad about myself.

If decluttering is what you need or decide to do, the first thing is don't go about it because the book tells you to. Because the course tells you to. Because social media tells you to.

Your reasoning, your why, as to why you're doing this—that has to come from you.

That makes a lot of difference because when you lose motivation, the fact that Marie Kondo told you that you should be doing it is not going to make you get up off the couch to go straighten up your kitchen counter.

However, the fact that you are trying to find more peace in your life which will make life more fulfilling for you and for your family—that is the difference.

We're not trying to meet these invisible expectations. We are trying to do it all to bring peace and calm.

While you're trying to create this peace, find a way to support yourself as you're working through it. Maybe it's some kind of music to get you going. It could be worship music, but it could just be whatever else that you choose to listen to that gets your blood pumping and makes you motivated to do things.

So what motivates you?

Maybe you want to light a candle, diffuse essential oils, or do something with your other senses. The goal is for them to be calming and relaxing as we move through what we're doing.

If you are decluttering, make sure you start small. Bathrooms are super easy and it's a quick win because they're small. You could do one kitchen cabinet at a time.

But it's not just about decluttering. It's also about making peaceful spaces.

For me, that might look like a couple extra pillows on the couch, some comfy blankets, just creating places you can snuggle into. I am definitely a comfort and snuggle up kind of girl. I will take comfort over fashion any day.

For you, it might also be making your living room just a little more cozy, but it could be making a quiet space for yourself, such as a prayer corner or desk, or just a chair that you can relax in and close your eyes and take that five minutes.

What's even better would be trying to get your kids involved in this, too. Instead of singing the cleanup song of the end of the day, maybe you could call it a “peace reset” and work with music or just conversation about the fun things of the day.

That way, it sets the stage for your kids to learn to find peace in their physical environment.

The challenge this week is to look around your house and find one space to reclaim for peace this week.

It doesn’t matter whether it's you are going to call this your prayer corner or you're just going to clean off your kitchen counter, whatever it is that works for you to bring more peace in your house.

The next step to take is to speak peace over your atmosphere.

Now you might be rolling your eyes at me on this one and thinking I'm a little nutty for this, but just stick with me for a minute—because your words have power. Your words change how you view the world and how you view yourself.

Even if you don't say these words out loud (although it might have a little more effect if you do), just thinking them in your head will make a difference. For example, when you get up in the morning, you declare peace over your home by saying, “this is a house of peace. This is a house of joy, and the Spirit of God rests here.”

It's that simple because you've put it out there into the universe. You have put it out there in your space, whether anybody heard you or not. That is the first step because again, our words make such a difference and they have such power.

When we look at the words, we can even apply this to keep general peace in the house.

For example, instead of telling your kids to stop yelling at each other, say “let's reset this with some peace.” And then explain if they don’t understand. Be the visible example of peace.

Then the mindset and the whole atmosphere of the situation changes just by changing the words that you use.

How do we set the example? Start by physically weaving peace into the home, speaking peace in the home, changing how you word things, or excusing yourself from a situation for five minutes to take five deep breaths when you need to defuse. When your kids see that, they will begin to learn peace as well.

You can also pray. Praying for peace, whether it's your own peace prayer or make it a family prayer.

If you want to have a daily reminder, you can stick a peace verse on your fridge or bathroom mirror. I’d suggest starting with Isaiah 26:3, which says, “you will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast because they trust in you.” Or try John 14:27, where Jesus says, “peace I leave with you, my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

As a reminder, you don't need to have a Pinterest perfect home to create a peaceful home.

Everybody's ideas of peace are different., but you need to have some intention behind it. Remember your “why” as you're going through creating these peaceful spaces in your home, which doesn't always have to do with decluttering.

What I challenge you to do today is to choose one space in your home that you're going to reset. Could be a little space, could be a big space, it doesn't matter. And speak peace over it.

And if you want, can share that with me. If you feel a little funny about talking to your family or friends about it, share it with me. Drop me an email. Drop me a DM on Instagram. I want to celebrate you and the steps that you're making towards creating more peace in your life.

I hope that this helps you. I hope that you're able to find more peace.