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Redeeming the Time With Routines

5/4/2015

3 Comments

 

How can we redeem our time?

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See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,
Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

Ephesians 5:15,16

These verses are favourites of mine! In their context, their primary application doesn't apply to housework, but I believe that we can make application to our homes.

The word circumspectly means "cautious." We're to live carefully; maybe you could even say on purpose.

Live purposefully.

Buy back your time.

To apply this to our homemaking . . .

  • Household routines help us to walk carefully, on purpose, through our days. When we get up in the morning, a routine means we have a plan in place to start our day, and at night we have a plan to wrap up our day and prepare for the next. Afternoon routines can help transition from the morning to afternoon and dinner time.

Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Proverbs 4:25, 26

  • Cleaning routines also help us to redeem (buy back) our time. Following a routine each day for cleaning up the kitchen after meals helps me to clean up in 15 minutes right after a meal, rather than taking 2 hours the next day because I've let it pile up for 3 meals. Let's see . . . that's 45 minutes today, in 15-minute increments (after each meal), compared to 120 minutes (and a lot of stress) tomorrow. Just one routine - cleaning up after each meal - saves me an hour and 15 minutes to do something else, playing the piano, visiting with a friend, reading, studying, sewing, blogging . . . any number of things that I'd rather be doing than cleaning my kitchen! That one routine redeems 75 minutes of my time!          I've also learned that having a routine for larger cleaning tasks can save time. For example, doing all the dusting on one day, the mopping on another day, and the bathrooms on another can save having to do them all at once. 


She looketh well to the ways of her household, and earth not the bread of idleness. Proverbs 31:27 

What kind of routines do you have around your home? Please share them with us in the comments. I love to read about how others implement routines!




3 Comments
Barbara H. link
5/4/2015 04:23:51 am

When we were first married, we had a trunk in our bedroom that ended up being where we'd lay our clothes when we changed to get ready for bed. They'd pile up for a week, and then it would be a chore to put them away, plus they'd be all wrinkled. I finally learned to deal with my clothes immediately after taking them off, either putting them in the hamper or hanging them up if they could be worn again. That seems so elementary now, but it was a big change for me at the time! I also hang clothes up or fold them directly out of the dryer or toss them on my bed and fold them right away most of the time. I am not a fan of ironing, and dealing with the clothes right out of the dryer eliminates most of the need for ironing. Exceptions are whites - tee shirts and undies don't suffer from sitting there for a while, though I still like to get them taken care of fairly soon - and towels. I wash towels last because I'm fine with leaving them in the dryer for a few hours or overnight. I know some people like to get all the laundry done and then do all the folding, but I like breaking it up into shorter bursts of folding after each load rather than having a mountain to deal with at the end of the day.

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Susan link
5/13/2015 08:58:43 am

I'd say that laundry is one of my areas where routine helps a lot, too! I'm like you: I'd rather put away each load as it finishes than put away all of them at once. One load only takes a few minutes to fold and put away. I'm a great fan of little bits of work!

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Black Girls in Massachusetts link
1/5/2023 09:24:55 pm

Verry thoughtful blog

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    I'm the wife of an independent Baptist pastor, mom of three adult children, Grammy to one little girl and another girl due in the spring of 2018. I love to read and sew. And laugh. A lot.

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