Pruning and Purging

The last week of each month in the meal ministry I pick a topic for devotions and it becomes the focus for the entire week. We just ended the week yesterday with: Pruning.

Pruning is a verb. To cut off, clear away or remove.

God says in the bible ...

A whole week on pruning was a lot. The focus and purpose is to drive the message home. If someone says, "pruning" there is a community, under me, that knows exactly what it means.

Pruning is a painful process and I am open to God showing me what or perhaps who needs removed from my life that has become a dead branch or simply preventing me from being more fruitful. I cannot teach this stuff and it not become so personal in my life.

On the home front ... I am SO proud of Brooke! My girls are hoarders. Getting Mariah packed up and moved out was much harder than it needed to be because she hoards. Her sister, Brooke, was a fount of comments and judgment, anxious to push her out the door to take her room.

With Mariah's room renovated and transformed into Brooke's new room, the focus was now on Brooke's old room, hoarder #2. 

Flashback: When Brooke was little, I would send her into her room to purge trash and old things in a cleaning process. She would spend hours going through stuff and would happily want to show me what she was willing to get rid of. Four toys. Truly everything was a treasure.

Yesterday it was time. Time to tackle the monstrous project of purging Brooke's old room, although she was fine living out of both rooms, it isn't fine with me. 

Trash bags for trash, bins for Goodwill. 

She purged like a champion! 

Five large trash bags filled, two extra large totes + miscellaneous pieces hauled to Goodwill.

Everything she has hoarded for years, she let go of. The best part was her dad's things she let go of. Just stuff that had become sentimental treasures that took space and was never used. She made the decision and was perfectly fine with it. It is truly part of her healing process.

Her old room is now empty. She has let go of the old and open for the new season in her life an uncluttered beginning.

Renovations in the empty bedroom begin this week. Painting to refresh the walls and ceiling, changing the look to make open for the first open room in our home since I bought it almost 14 years go.

I may make the room an office. Brooke is thinking a prayer room.

Whatever this room becomes, it has been purged of the old and made way for the new.


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