Using Minimalism to Your Advantage
How a Minimalist Lifestyle Invites Peace into Your Home
We’ve all been told that it’s important to keep an organized home, but what does that look like practically? How do you get organized when you just have so much stuff?! The answer is obvious: Get rid of things! Minimalism helps us identify the things in our house that serve a function (essential), and are beautiful (non-essential but value adding). Then we can declutter the rest (the junk). Minimalism is not only a design aesthetic, but a tool we can use to our advantage when seeking peace and clarity in our lives.
When embracing minimalism in our homes, we must be very intentional and brutally honest with ourselves about filling our space with things that spark joy and removing the things that don’t. We all have things we have an attachment to but that don’t actually serve us. Minimalism is freedom! It helps us break our chains of attachment and clutter and create space for things that really matter.
As you start your journey towards a minimalist lifestyle, or if you simply seek to get your house in order, remember that organization is the enemy of decluttering. Shoving everything you own into storage bins does not actually achieve the goal of decluttering. You need to declutter to truly simplify your home. Letting go of excess removes the unnecessary distractions and gives your space (and mind!) a chance to breathe! Think about all the time and mental energy you could save if you had less stuff to maintain, manage, clean, fix, replace, etc.
Minimalism also speaks to my spirit. I believe that the philosophy of minimalism is quite compatible with Christian theology. Minimalism fights back against the desires of the flesh– greed, envy, pride, and worship of worldly things. It rejects materialism and consumerism, and instead focuses on living intentionally and generously. Minimalism and Christianity both teach that possessions will not make you happy. They are both a pursuit of joy! Joy in our identity as children of God leads to contentment in our relationships with ourselves and others. With minimalism, we are able to set aside our pride, leaving space to love and serve others instead of constantly chasing “more” or “better.”
Join me on this Minimalist Journey!
Check out these additional resources to dive more into the topic:
Less: A Visual Guide to Minimalism by Rachel Aust
Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up by Marie Kondo
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo
The Home Edit Life: The No-Guilt Guide to Owning What You Want and Organizing Everything by Clea Shearer & Joanna Teplin
Everything That Remains: A Memoir by The Minimalists by Joshua Fields Millburn & Ryan Nicodemus
Love People, Use Things: Because the Opposite Never Works by Joshua Fields Millburn & Ryan Nicodemus
How does minimalism inspire you? Have any resources you love? Let’s connect!
Homemakers University creates home guides, Biblical art, and apparel that inspires homemakers to intentionally manage, style, and steward their spaces. Sadie Jean works to bring her love for God, minimalist design, and homemaking together through her modern designs.
HU proudly supports women who see their homes not just as spaces, but as their ministry.
