Jan 11, 2026 – Restoring Order
For most of the cold, rainy day yesterday, I was organizing and decluttering. I had set my sights on restoring order to our bathroom counters and perhaps even our closet, but I noticed that a Hallmark movie that I’ve seen before (and really liked), Villa Amore, was about to start. So, because I have a TV in the cabinet above the ovens in the kitchen, I changed venues (which included a few side projects in the laundry room during commercials) .
Our coffee mug collection was my first focus mainly because the shelves I’d ordered came in the day before, and I was anxious to be able to move more of the mugs to the cabinet above the coffee station. As you can see in the photos, our (my) collection is vast; and, that’s not even all of them. If you pull any one of them out, I can tell you how it came to be one of the many beloved options that keep me company each morning which is why I haven’t been able to streamline the collection…and thus why I bought the new shelves to facilitate keeping, displaying, and using as many as possible.
Why do we have collections like this? Are we undisciplined and don’t know when to stop? Do we recognize beauty in certain things and like to be surrounded by it? I had a pitcher collection when I was a young teen, some of which found its way into my adult life. (Actually all of it now that I think of it!) I still feel a pull when I see one in stores that speaks to me, but I am better able to resist bringing it home. I said better, not cured.
During one season of my life, I had a pig collection and when the subject came up during a conversation with the person who gave most (all) of them to me, she said she thought I collected pigs. I said, “I do now.” And then the pig gifts stopped. I was sort of relieved, but also a little sad that I’d taken that joy away from her. The thing is, they didn’t bring me joy like my mugs, pitchers, and even the tote bags do.
I wasn’t going to mention the bags because the pile is so vast (and almost embarrassing). I could never use them all; but, I have trouble thinning the collection because they bring back memories of where/why I got them. Most of the designs are so interesting (at least to me), that I’ve even thought about making an art display of them on a wall (but I won’t). Shouldn’t our collections and what/who we surround ourselves with bring us joy? I don’t know how all of this fits in with the small group devotions today, but it was on my mind to share so I did. Sometimes God meets my concerns (and chatter) with answers and thoughts to consider, but sometimes He just seems to listen. Sometimes that’s all we need.
JA – “THERE IS A TIME FOR EVERYTHING, [a time for collecting and a time for decluttering] and a season for every activity under heaven. When you seek My face and My will – searching for guidance – I may show you the next step on your journey without revealing the appointed time for you to take that step. Instead of going full speed ahead as soon as you know what is next, you must wait until I show you when I want you to go forward…. Moving from a comfortable season of life into a new situation can feel scary – especially to those who dislike change. However, I want you to trust Me enough to cling to Me and follow wherever I lead, whenever I choose. Your times are in My hands. See Ecclesiastes 3:1 and Psalm 31:15.
Power – Joyce bases today’s devotion on Ephesians 6:14 (“breastplate of integrity”) and writes, “If people truly understood what the word integrity means, we would hopefully have more people in the world with good character, trying to keep their integrity. Since God has given us the ‘breastplate of integrity,’ we know we are to do battle against the enemy of deceit. Let us all choose to do right and trust God to honor our decisions.”
JC – “When you bring Me prayer requests, lay out your concerns before Me…. Then thank Me for the answers…. When your requests come to mind again, continue to thank Me for the answers that are on the way. If you keep on stating your concerns to Me, you will live in a state of tension. When you thank Me for how I am answering your prayers, your mind-set becomes much more positive.”
Streams – Isaiah 40:1 – “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.” Cowman takes today’s devotion from selected entries. “You will be wounded so that in the binding up of your wounds by the Great Physician, you may learn how to render first aid to the wounded everywhere…. As the story unfolds, God will apply the anesthetic He once used on you to them…. And you will bless God for the discipline that filled your life with such a treasure of experience and helpfulness. From John Henry Jowett she shares, “God comforts us not to make us comfortable but to make us comforters.”
Utmost – Chamber writes, “Beware of the inclination to dictate to God as to what you will allow to happen if you obey Him.”
Prevail #11 – Larson’s prayer today speaks to part of Pastor Mark Pettus’ message this morning about relationships (churchofthehighlands.com/media). “Father, Refresh my perspective. Help me to see my ‘enemies’ the way that You do. You are ultimately in control, so no scheme of man can ever interrupt Your ultimate plan. Yours is to establish me; mine is to trust You with my whole heart. Lift my eyes above my problems to the greater purpose You have for me. Amen.”
