So the Lord Got A Hold Of My Closet (And Then My Heart)
I was on a financial call not too long ago, the kind where you talk through budgets and stewarding your money well, and in the middle of it the Lord impressed something on my heart that stopped me in my tracks.
We are not only in debt when it comes to finances. We are in debt to Him for our time. We are in debt for how we spend time with our families. We are in debt for how we use the gifts He has given us. And we are in debt for how we steward even the material things He has placed in our hands.
That word, stewardship, has not left me alone since.
So I started a little project. I am going room by room in my home and asking the Lord one simple question, where can I steward this better? Right now He has me in my bedroom, and honestly, the answer started out very practical. It started with my closet.
I have beautiful clothes hanging in there that I have not worn in a long time, simply because I am not in the same season of work anymore. They are still in great shape, they are still useful, they just are not useful to me right now. The Lord has been so clear about this. If it is good and usable but you are not using it well, release it to someone who can steward it better in this season of their life.
Then there is the other pile. The bucket of flip flops, probably ten pairs, that I had not worn in years. Some of them were just plain worn out. Not useful to anyone anymore. And I realized this whole process really comes down to one question for every single item. Is this a release or is this a disposal?
Some things are good, they still have value, they just need to go bless someone else. Other things have simply run their course and it is time to let them go completely.
I know this all started as a very material process, cleaning out a closet, sorting through shoes. But I have a feeling the Lord is not done with me yet. I think He is going to take this same question much deeper than my bedroom, and I am looking forward to sharing that with you as it unfolds.
Here is what I want to ask you today, the same question I have been asking myself. Are you stewarding your life well? Are you stewarding the gifts God has given you well? Whether that is a material gift sitting in your home, or a gift He has given you for writing, speaking, teaching, or something else entirely?
For me, if I am honest, the answer has been no in more areas than I would like to admit.
That is actually part of why Hatteras House means so much to me. That story sat finished for years while I told myself I was not ready. I was not stewarding the gift God gave me for writing, I was just letting it sit there taking up space, kind of like those flip flops in my closet. When I finally released it, that was me choosing to steward something God had given me instead of letting it go to waste.
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This same heart of learning to steward what we have been given well carries right into Weathering the Storm. Matt and Laura Garrison are learning how to steward their marriage and their family in the aftermath of Matt's PTSD diagnosis, discovering that healing is not a straight path, it is a daily choice to keep showing up and stewarding what they have been given, even when it is hard. I cannot wait to share more about this release soon.
If you want to join me on this stewardship journey, I would love that. Come follow along on Instagram, I will be sharing more of what the Lord is showing me room by room, and honestly, probably heart by heart too.
So take a minute today and ask yourself the same question I have been asking. What has God given you that needs to be released, and what has simply run its course and needs to be let go? Either way, friend, He is faithful to walk you through it.
