“God is not a God of disorder but a God of peace” – 1 Corinthians 14:33 (GW).
By Carol Round – Recently, during my morning time with God, I grabbed my prayer journal before opening my Bible. I needed peace. Needed to pen my thoughts to my Heavenly Father. Seeing, in writing, what was really bothering me helped me to slow down and listen to the Holy Spirit’s reply to my pleas for help.
After spilling my frustrations onto the lined paper of my journal, I took a deep breath. Then, I prayed, “God, please help me make sense of this mess.”
The mess I was referring to was clutter. Twenty years of writing notes, ten years of tax information in boxes piled in my office closet, magazines and books on writing on my shelves—some dating back more than 20 years. Additionally, I had teaching notes and handouts stored in a filing box, in case I ever needed them again to teach writing classes. I was overwhelmed.
Finding Peace in the Mess
I procrastinated after my last move in 2021. After moving for the fifth time since 2001, I put off getting rid of those things I might need in the future. While I did not need 10 years of tax documents, I dreaded going through the boxes and spending time shredding sensitive information.
Normally, I’m not a procrastinator. But I’d rather spend time on my writing or outdoors, especially working in my flowerbeds or walking my dog and enjoying God’s creation. My idea of having fun was not spending hours sorting and shredding documents.
Several weeks ago, I pulled the boxes from my office closet and placed them on the living room floor. I planned to watch my favorite TV shows and movies while organizing the documents into piles—either to shred or toss in the trash. Of course, I wasn’t going to accomplish the task in one evening, but I had hoped to put a big dent in the pile and find some peace.
When Peace Doesn’t Come
Several days later, I stared at the boxes still littering my living room, along with a large shopping bag containing the sensitive documents to be shredded, and a trash can with paperwork I could toss. I didn’t want to put the task off any longer. I’ve always been an overachiever, but as I stared at the mess, I asked myself why I couldn’t get it all done. Sighing, I headed to my prayer corner in my spare bedroom.
Overwhelmed, I finally found peace when I listened to the Holy Spirit’s response to my petition. The Holy Spirit reminded me I couldn’t do it all in one day. Breaking things down into achievable goals during a set time was doable. Instead of feeling like a failure, I could feel encouraged by the progress I had made.
As I get older, I’m finding peace by spending more time in the presence of my Heavenly Father. I don’t have to give in to my Type A personality. Instead, I can listen for His still, small voice offering me encouragement with the words, “I am with you always, my child.”
I always love hearing from my readers. Please e-mail me at [email protected] with your thoughts or visit my blog for more inspiration at www.carolaround.com. If you need a speaker or workshop leader, contact me at the above e-mail address or through my website. I’d be delighted to hear from you.
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