The Beauty of Thy Peace

Drop Thy still dews of quietness

Till all our strivings cease;

Take from our souls the strain and stress;

And let our ordered lives confess

The beauty of Thy peace.

 by John Greenleaf Whittier

Order and peace in the home can silently reflect God's character. I know it is possible to have a peaceful home. Growing up, it was something my mom would always strive for. And it seems that God gifted her with creative ways to make our home cozy and warm, surrounded in love.

This year, I was eager to decorate for fall early. Although I dread saying goodbye to summer, decorating and organizing helps makes us ready to embrace the anticipated change in season.

Along with this has come a desire for me to have order and more structure in the home. By that I simply mean structure in our daily routine, order where things are placed, limited clutter, and a cozy and inviting surrounding. It doesn't happen over night. I don't stress if something is out of place.

Having order in the home seems to have some great benefits:

1. Helps our daily routine run more smoothly. Everything has a place. Less chaos.
2. Less chaos leads to less headaches, less frustration, less arguments. Peace.
3. Teaches the kids to put things back after they use something/ clean up their toys.
4. Able to invite others into the home more readily. We are more available to be God's hands and feet.
5. More time to do other things. It takes much less time cleaning when things are kept up. Helps keep me accountable with my time to keep things orderly.

I know that this is something every mother struggles with. If this is a desire of yours, re-read the creation story and see how God pays attention to every detail. Read Genesis 2 and all the details God created in the garden of Eden. What works for us might not work for your family. Keep pressing on and find what does work, how to find order and peace in the home. It's worth it.