I typically try to give something up for Lent, but this year I am going to go about it differently. Last April/May when we started trying to manage our money more effectively, we started having serious thoughts about the difference between wants and needs. We have been blessed by God and need to make smarter decisions when using His money. We started budgeting and paying off things. We realized that we didn't miss that extra stuff too much (it was mostly eating out and entertainment). This year my main goal is to simplify. I want to get rid of unnecessary extras that take up time, money, and space in our home. I want to get rid of extras that take me away from God's path and my relationships with family and friends. Although stuff is nice I don't want it to be what I use to try to be happy. I want to learn to appreciate the simple things and declutter my life. With these ultimate goals, I began thinking how can I incorporate this into the Lenten season. Clover Lane gave me the best idea. Every lent season she does "40 bags in 40 days". Now she uses black garbage bags, I think we are going to do it with plastic grocery bags and brown grocery sacks. Tim and I thought this would be more doable for our family. I feel this is a way we can rid our life of unnecessary stuff. Less to clean, less to organize, more family time and less stress. I will hope this will help with the re-focusing I am searching for in my life. I will let you know how it goes.
2 comments:
I love this post, and I wish you the best of luck with your goals. I agree that sometimes the less stuff we have the better off we are, as long as we have enough to be comfortable. It helps that I'm married to the most frugal man alive :)
I did "40 bags in 40 days" for two years, and last year I changed it to "A bag a week". But... I don't even have a bag a week now.
It really has a nice "organizational" feeling, doesn't it?
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