Conversation Point

In This Moment

Organization and Creativity

Organizing is big business these days. Apparently the closets, garages and storage areas of American households are so stuffed with useless clutter we are drowning in our own consumerism. We don't just need homes with good closet space to store our stuff, we need professionals to come in to help us develop plans to clear out what we don't need and to develop the habits that will move us out of chaos into orderly, creative and productive lives.

Enter Julie Morgenstern, an organizational strategist with this great piece of wisdom: organization is personal and cannot be created with a cookie cutter solution for all people. Of all Ms Morgenstern's brilliant and creative suggestions, this one makes the most sense. We women learned a long time ago that "one size fits all" pantyhose was the biggest lie on the planet. That being a basic truth, what makes us think a day planner could be the answer to everyone's question, or that that $24.95 closet organizer could really divide the areas of concern to peacefully welcome all our clothing and accessories in an orderly fashion? One size doesn't fit all in anything, but that is the beauty of humanity and creation as a whole.

What Julie Morgenstern speaks best about is our individual ability to know our lives, and to frame our choices in ways that uncomplicate the whole process of living satisfied, full lives. Part of her directives include mapping out how an individual spends her/his time, having the person look at the map, and discussing how this all came about. The choices to keep or alter parts of the geography of the map come through deciding what is appropriate for that person.

For those who still believe that Rome was built in a day, and for those who felt overwhelmed getting the refrigerator cleaned out this morning, consider God's creation of the world: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and a darkness was upon the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters." (Genesis1:1-2) God didn't just decide one moment to create the world in the blink of an eye. God started slowly, worked on one thing at a time and took time to look at what had been accomplished before moving on to the next step. That first day had God dividing the light and the darkness, naming them Day and Night, and calling it a day. God rested, took the evening off and started fresh on the next project, firmament and water, and so on, until God felt comfortable with the project as a whole.

Framing creation as either a six day marathon or as God's Spirit interwoven in a process over millions of years of evolutionary development, the planet on which we live today was created in intimate detail and with thoughtful, loving intent. Our lives deserve that same consideration. Why do we believe we should reorganize our closets, our lives or our faith with the snap of our fingers? How would our lives look if we could? Squeaky clean, show house perfect and talk show slick, but not much else. And just as quickly, another snap could change it all back. There is abundant learning in the whole process of dismantling the old habits and reworking the new plan. All of that would be lost if recreation came so easily Without the plan and the steps, the lessons evaporate and we are back to complaining about an overloaded schedule and a crowded closet.

God, having begun with a blank slate, may be said to have had an advantage over us who are reworking an old plan. But with every action we take to bring order and clarity to our lives, we are making space for God to make something new happen in us, a continuation of the original creation.

Until next time, God's blessings.

posted by Cory L. Kemp @ 11:56 AM