Declutter Your Marriage Daily

Decluttering your marriage is a little like decluttering your house.

As you navigate the hustle and bustle of life, certain things tend to pile up around the house.

It’s not that you don’t notice things are out of place. You’re just choosing to get everyone where they need to be. And you are making sure they have what they need when they get there.  As a result, other things get put on hold.

Can you relate?

Here’s how this shows up from time to time:

• You don’t need to go to your dresser for today’s outfit. You can look through the pile of clean clothes in the corner of your bedroom. Or, you pull something out of the dirty clothes (don’t lie, you’ve done the sniff test)
  
• When you look at your kitchen counter, you find everything from receipts, to unopened mail, to earrings, to a leftover bag of raisins.
  
• The living room is where you stumble over completed science fair projects or Christmas decorations that never got put away (even though it’s July). And then there are  the clean clothes that didn’t make it to the pile in your bedroom.
  

Find a way to take on less, and help your family do the same, and battling the clutter in your life may get easier.

While catching up on the to-do list in your physical space can be challenging, it’s needed in  your marriage, too.

If things have piled up in your relationship with your spouse, just a few minutes each day can help you declutter your marriage and bring more order to your life.

Declutter your marriage with this daily fifteen-minute routine:

• Clean up the pile of daily communication tasks (5 minutes). Are you and your spouse on the same page when it comes to the basic things you have to accomplish each day? Are you clear on schedules, what happened during the day, or what needs to happen tomorrow? If you are too busy to talk about the basic details of life, you are too busy. Make time every day to talk through what’s happening and what’s coming up. Simply talking through your schedules can help you help each other, and feel more connected during a crazy-busy time.
• Open some spiritual packages together (five minutes). Many couples stay centered through a shared relationship with God. However, this is often one of the most neglected parts of a marriage. Even five minutes of reading God’s Word, praying through struggles and victories, and talking about how you see God at work each day can bring order to a chaotic life.
• Plan to deal with relational baggage (five minutes). Are you so overwhelmed that you are out of touch with each other’s emotional needs? Plan together for a special date night – one of you can arrange a babysitter and the other can choose a restaurant for dinner. Decide on a weekend getaway. Go for a walk together. Whatever it is, plan for progress in essential areas of your marriage. Don’t leave this to chance. Growing your relationship requires some focused time. It won’t just happen.

Carving out fifteen minutes a day might help clear some of the clutter around your house, and it might also help clear some of the clutter from your marriage.

Which things cause clutter in your marriage? What piles up? How can you declutter your marriage today?