Adding Beauty to Order

Nice & Wavy

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This is really good....enjoy!


Adding Beauty to Order


By Glynnis Whitwer



"On the walls all around the temple, in both the inner and outer rooms, he carved cherubim, palm trees and open flowers. He also covered the floors of both the inner and outer rooms of the temple with gold." 1 Kings 6:29-30 (NIV)


Devotion:
My second job out of college was for a developer of retirement and assisted living communities. The CEO of the company was a woman named Prill, with a passion for developing beautiful living communities for seniors. While she abided by all the right code restrictions and architectural guidelines, she pushed the envelope to make them lovely. Prill always imagined her mother walking the hallways or sitting in the dining room. Where would she rest and what would she gaze upon as she got her mail? These types of questions guided her philosophy of blending function and grace.

One of her pet peeves was cluttered-looking administrative offices. While people at other companies might tape notes to walls or windows, we had to put them in picture frames. We drank our sodas out of glasses and never ate at our desk. Clutter was abhorred and order was the rule of the day.

I learned a lot from Prill. When she was in town, she'd walk with the management staff around the community and share her philosophy of caring for the aging and creating a beautiful home for them. One such walk sticks out in my mind. It was the day my approach to organization changed forever.

As we walked around the administrative offices, Prill shared tips on how to keep our workspaces attractive and clutter-free. As she chatted she warned us to stay away from "the-cereal-box-on-top-of-the-refrigerator syndrome." I sucked in my breath, wondering if someone told her about my house. The top of the refrigerator was exactly where my cereal boxes were, and had been for years.

I mused about her comment for days; alternately defending my approach (they don't all fit in my small cupboards) and considering other options (I could put them in storage containers that do fit in my cupboards). Needless to say, the cereal boxes came down. I scrubbed the layers of dirt and grime off the top of the refrigerator and positioned a plant in an attractive pot there instead.

Now let me assure you, it's fine if you have cereal boxes atop your fridge. What I learned from Prill is that when we put a little extra effort into organization, our surroundings look peaceful and nice. While I don't pour my sodas into goblets anymore, I have incorporated Prill's concern for making practicality as pretty as possible in my home and office. Because I spend so many hours each week at my workspace, keeping it attractive and organized is a priority for me.

Keeping things in beautiful order is a practice we also find in the Bible. In the book of First Kings, we find records of the temple Solomon built to the Lord. Not only are we given precise information about the details, but we get a hint of its beauty, complete with floors of gold, engraved cherubim, and the tops of pillars in the shape of lilies.

While our offices aren't temples, they can be a place where God is worshiped and honored in our hearts and in our lives. Perhaps you'd like to bring a little beauty and order to your workspace. It may just take a few changes to create a place of organized inspiration. After all, God is a god of order and beauty.

If you would like to pursue this idea, I invite you to visit my blog where I just did a series on bringing order and beauty to our workspaces. I'd love to hear your thoughts and answer any questions you might have.

Dear Lord, You are the creator of all things lovely. You are also the giver of peace and the designer of order. Help me bring that peace and order to my place of work. I long to bring honor and glory to You everywhere I am. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Related Resources:
Visit Glynnis' Blog for practical tips on bringing order and beauty to your workspaces
 
How did you know that my study/home office is a cluttered undecorated mess and that I was just making excuses not to get in there and fix it up? I am so glad that you posted this because I needed to read it.
 
How did you know that my study/home office is a cluttered undecorated mess and that I was just making excuses not to get in there and fix it up? I am so glad that you posted this because I needed to read it.

It wasn't me....it was the Holy Spirit....:yep:

I'm glad that you needed to read it...so did I!
 
Working on this now. I will remove everything off the top of the fridge tomorrow and clean it. :grin:

ETA: Getting ready for my flower deliveries. :yep:
 
God knows I've been cleaning out my room for a month. I've thrown away and given goodwill at least 20 bags, and I'm still going. Its so tiring, but I'm determined to bring some order to my life this year.
 
Precious Wavy, this is so on time....

I had to make a 'tough' decision NOT to purchase new furniture until I move. Trust me, it was a hard decision (my livingroom has endured my babies :lol:).

The Lord was showing me that I could 'cover' my sofa instead...ummm, by myself. He even lead a friend of mine to bless me with upholstry (sp?) fabric. I always wanted a 'white' or off white livingroom set, BUT now is not the time until I move later this year.

God showed me how to take what I wanted to 'throw away', and create it into something worth holding onto.

I was interested in a new table; a glass one; God even blessed me with a 'new' table for just $15 at Goodwill. :yahoo: Praise Him! I asked Him first.
Do I have a scripture...you 'know' I do :yep: "Ask and it shall be given" and as for my 'new' sofa .... "Beauty for Ashes"... :lachen:

Cause Sis, I was ready to 'axe' and burn that old sofa....Indeed I was.:lachen:

Here's a picture, but you have to turn your head sideways....:drunk:

sorry...:lachen::lachen::lachen: But you know how I do... :rolleyes:

2.2
 
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Working on this now. I will remove everything off the top of the fridge tomorrow and clean it. :grin:

Girl...get all those fruit loop, captain crunch, sugar smacks boxes off the top of the fridge...cause girl, you have got to make room for what is about to come!!!

ETA: Getting ready for my flower deliveries. :yep:

They are going to be fresh, flowers that won't fade away....:yep:
 
God knows I've been cleaning out my room for a month. I've thrown away and given goodwill at least 20 bags, and I'm still going. Its so tiring, but I'm determined to bring some order to my life this year.

We women don't realize how much we accumulate until its time to clean up and give it away...my goodness, right lil sis?:rofl:

The Lord is about to do so much for you this year....I can't wait to hear the testimonies....yes!!!
 
Precious Wavy, this is so on time....

I had to make a 'tough' decision NOT to purchase new furniture until I move. Trust me, it was a hard decision (my livingroom has endured my babies :lol:).

The Lord was showing me that I could 'cover' my sofa instead...ummm, by myself. He even lead a friend of mine to bless me with upholstry (sp?) fabric. I always wanted a 'white' or off white livingroom set, BUT now is not the time until I move later this year.

God showed me how to take what I wanted to 'throw away', and create it into something worth holding onto.

I was interested in a new table; a glass one; God even blessed me with a 'new' table for just $15 at Goodwill. :yahoo: Praise Him! I asked Him first.
Do I have a scripture...you 'know' I do :yep: "Ask and it shall be given" and as for my 'new' sofa .... "Beauty for Ashes"... :lachen:

Cause Sis, I was ready to 'axe' and burn that old sofa....Indeed I was.:lachen:

Here's a picture, but you have to turn your head sideways....:drunk:

sorry...:lachen::lachen::lachen: But you know how I do... :rolleyes:

2.2

I love your sofa!!!! Your livingroom looks so cozy and comfortable and I love the colors....:yep:

Girl, God does give us ideas, doesn't He? He gives us such creativity...I love what you did with that sofa.

You are a blessing, Shimmie...that's why God always will bless you. This year shall bring you so much...to the overflow...going out the door and down the street..wherever you go...the blessings shall follow you!!!

Hallelujah!
 
This is soooooo goood, thanks for posting. I am going through a career shift right now and moving into......Organizational Consulting!......WOW! That was like a direct message to me, to always remember to put God first in my new career endeavors and to remember that being organized is a God Given Gift! I was just sitting yesterday trying to figure out how I was going to pay my way to the NAPO conference. That is the National Association for Professional Organizers....I NEED to be there, I feel there is something there for me, but it's going to be around $1000 to go....and it's only in a few months! But this just reaffirmed for me that God will make a way when it is his will, and all I need to do is keep pressing and keep his will first. Faith without works is dead, and I've been provided with the vision, so now I'm just going to work it out. I welcome all prayers for my strength and stamina in this move.

Also, I love love LOVE helping people to get rid of clutter and get their lives organized. I also LOVE helping people to get their surroundings and themselves looking pretty and stylish. If anyone ever feels overwhelmed in their organizingg endeavor shoot me a PM. I've helped many people with their homes and am only now deciding that I want to make a full time career of it....so I have LOTS of experience.

Shimmy, that living room is beautiful! Nice&Wavy thank you for sharing this! Ya'll just don't know....I feel so full from that article.....I am at the start of this career shift and its moving so fast that I KNOW that it's God....and I'm so overwhelmed and grateful that I was shown my future and told to "go get it"....I just don't want to fall short, so this message just strengthened my resolve.

*sorry for rambling....just sooo excited!*
 
I love your sofa!!!! Your livingroom looks so cozy and comfortable and I love the colors....:yep:

Girl, God does give us ideas, doesn't He? He gives us such creativity...I love what you did with that sofa.

You are a blessing, Shimmie...that's why God always will bless you. This year shall bring you so much...to the overflow...going out the door and down the street..wherever you go...the blessings shall follow you!!!

Hallelujah!
Thank you Precious Wavy....:kiss: These same blessings and more are prayed upon you and 'hubby'.
 
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