Decluttering journals, books + spiritual things!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- Today we’ll cover what to do with journals, sermon notes, old bible studies and other spiritual things. It may not be as emotionally charged and hard as it sounds!
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I struggle with wanting to keep the journals but NOT wanting my private thoughts reviewed by anyone. If I thought they would be read by someone I wouldn't journal authentically.
I struggle with this too. I’ve bought so many journals.
Glad I watched this because it literally gave me permission to get rid of the spiritual books I'm not reading or haven't returned too. Thank you Dawn and Diana
I love the comment that we need less input and more space for what we are receiving to settle in our soul and take root. So true and beautifully stated!!!!!!
Yes! "how much are we actually reading our bible" - that's the focal point! Thanks for this video Diana & Dawn!
I DO revisit them!!!! Especially my spiritual journals. So helpful for refocusing when I am in a desert season of faith.
Dawn, I loved your comment about manna - a light bulb moment for me. thank you!
I am in process of writing my memoir from the years of being a widow. I kept about 9 journals through the process. I would have been lost without them!! The death happened 30 years ago.
When we moved last year, I went through a BUNCH of notebooks of sermon notes. I tore out sermons my husband preached (I plan another book from them) and shredded the rest. I still have lots of notebooks from writing classes and conferences but I even made them smaller by tearing out the blank pages left at the end of the notebooks. It was a lot of work and still an ongoing process but worth the time spent.
I am THE world’s worst information hoarder! I honestly have hand-outs, notebooks, & books from college. I taught English in college for a million years & still have so much from my files & so many books-though I’ve made progress. I like your analogy of manna! And, Dawn, your “Time Will Tell” concept has helped me tremendously in dealing with mail & paper in general. Thanks!
We need quiet for the Holy Spirit to speak to us. Enjoyed this ladies.
I put books in my “saved for later” on Amazon. I occasionally peruse it and think, “No, I don’t really need that.” Or, “Yes, now I’m going to get it.” Just a little time and perspective helps a lot!
Our family has our Great Grandmother ‘s journal. Have learned so much about her life and the times she lived. Grateful that it was saved by other family members
That sounds like an amazing treasure! 💛
The library lets you check out e-books too so don’t forget to check there for the books you’d like to read digitally.
I have seven folders with the year on them, and I put my journals (and taxes and any other papers) in those folders and let them compost for seven years. Seven years from now, whatever I was struggling with will have already turned into soil and new plants in my life, and it will be much easier to look at it and select a few pages to keep and let go of the rest.
One thing that helped me when I felt overwhelmed with how many journals I had, was to give myself permission to let go of them. I actually asked my therapist for permission, and she didn't tell me what I should do, but I took that to mean that there's no wrong answer.
Another thing that helped me was that as I heal I'm able to trust more and more that I have a future... graduating from school, I was curious about what the next life stage would be like, and then I found out it was a depressive episode followed by anxiety and powerlessness. So I was hanging on really tightly to things from the past, as a way to salvage what I could of my life. Now I'm going back to school, studying something that interests me, and I can see a future again.
Another thing that helped me, was the idea that Anne Frank edited her journals... what she was doing was more like "journalism" than "journaling". She rewrote things, and she wrote her journal with the thought that they could be published one day. That is not the purpose of my journals, and I don't really have any plans to write a memoir.
My husband has his grandmother's diary from when she was a teen and young adult. She was born around 1910. Such a sweet thing to read, nothing inappropriate, just sweet. She wrote in it daily. Summer camps, college classes, courtship with my husband's grandfather, etc. I would've loved to have truly known her. The only journals I have are sermon notes. But I want to think about using my Bible to write in and pass it down to my kids. I want them to see my joy on reading God's Word. I totally understand so much of what y'all shared today, especially about the fear of missing out. Do y'all want a triplet sister? Lol, me! I suppose as believers, we are sisters in Christ! Thanks for the great videos!
I had a shelf worth of books and studies, and journals full of lessons, prayers, Bible verses etc.. and in a rage purge I de-cluttered them. I regret doing that because I could have still used them. However, I don't do lessons frequently anymore, my Bible is always handy, and prayers can be from the heart. I think its mostly the studies I regret tossing, with the notes i took from them. The only books i own now are the Bible, Luther's small catechism, and 2 hymnals.
Love those pretty cardboard magnetic lid boxes at Michaels. It's a good idea to use those types of boxes/bins to store memory/reference related things like journals.
Someone once told me to only keep original artwork my kids have made. A coloring page; pre-printed art sheets, pasting cut outs or stickers on pages do not count. I think keeping handwritten journals is priceless if you have room for them. They are precious history books from loved ones.
Ohhhh, thinking of it like manna! So good.
Thank you for doing this! I have a box overflowing with journals that I didn’t know what I was gonna do with it so this helps a lot.
Diana, I appreciate your comment about this not being a “book reading season”. I feel guilty about the lack of reading that I’ve been doing but I have 3 little ones at home right now! If I do MAKE the time to read, I want it to be the Bible or specifically a Bible Study (social) otherwise, I have laundry to do and noses to wipe, LOL
Doesn’t mean we have to ditch our very favorites, but I can let go of the others without guilt knowing that I can read them in a different season. Sometimes I just need permission, hah
You are glowing Diana🌺
Yes, I need help with this! Thank you, ladies 💗
Thank you Dawn! Your Truth Truth Lie was an eye opener!! It's so clear now as I am dealing with high volumes on note-taking journals from my past!!! Freedom.....Dawn, maybe you would do an episode on this on your own channel??? Just a thought
Consolidated in to one master journal
Great, great video. So much to love about it. I loved the timely reminder to have the Bible as our main source of inspiration. Well done girls.
I have that book “Grasping God’s Word” from when I was in college sitting next to my chair right now, bc I want to read it again! Too funny!
I always look forward to your all’s videos (separately or together). I always learn something & in the most enjoyable way. Blessings my dearest utube friends♥️🙏
I want to keep my journals for two reasons. I sometimes go back through them and see how far I've come in my spiritual journey. That encourages me. Plus I want to leave a legacy for my children. However, I think it's time to get rid of all the Bible study and conference notes because it's unlikely I'll ever reference them again.
How many personal journals do you have? I think I’m past the 100 mark (7 Rubbermaid’s full) and I’m running out of room! 😬
@@RefreshwithDawn I also have many Rubbermaid totes full of them. I don't have an exact number because many of them I wrote on looseleaf pages. But they fill a couple dozen notebooks.
I had a stack of prayer journals that I decided to toss. That is one of the few things that I regret decluttering, especially after discovering some deceptions were happening at those times of my life. I have even looked for them, hoping that I only quarantined them since my natural tendency is to be indecisive. They are gone forever, not able to be replaced.
This conversation has cleared up a lot !! Thank you both so very much !!!
Thank you so much for this video. I am clearing out my office and I needed this. When someone recommends a book, I’ve started looking for the e book and checking it the library has it first.
"What do I need for today?" So good!
A note from the other end of the dilemma. I felt that I had to journal every day especially when my son was younger. I wanted to keep all those little moments thinking that someday I would want to look back on them or he would. That became a burden in time and also on my bookshelf. A couple years ago I came to the decision that I would only write down truly important or memorable events or moments. I may go two or three weeks now without writing anything down but I think that's actually better - in the sense of recording for history, time savings and space savings!
Great perspective, Robin, thank you for sharing ☺️💛
This is wonderful, and how my mom journaled. I write way too much and now have a stack of journals that will be too overwhelming for my adult kids to deal with some day. I've started pulling a page or 2 from each one to keep and this week I will start limiting how much I actually write. Thanks for sharing!
I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one who only journals about the important stuff. Trying to journal every day was just a burden. Who makes up these rules about how we should journal? It's just between each individual and God.
This is exactly where I am in my decluttering journey and it was super helpful! Thank you 😊
Would love to see a video on how you do Bible study and worship with your toddlers! I have a 4yo and a 2yo.
Needed to hear this! Thanks ❤️❤️❤️
Love you both. Such wonderful information always.
So nice to watch sisters.
Marie Kondo said she used to keep a file with favorite info from books and conferences, but realized she already had the key info in her head/heart.
I got my grandmothers bible with some notes. I have a Bible with Beth Moore notes. Love you ladies.
Such great tips, thanks ladies! I am not a big journaler, but I have some sermon notes that will be fine to let go of!
What are why but I think it's just got back from all of its....yust hope... God blessed... Amen...,,🙏🙏🙏.....❤️. thank you Lord...
I am starting to purge, we are in the process of buying a house, I have told myself that for right now I'll purge "My Stuff". I have tons of sermon notes on paper in my Bible case, I am working on transitioning them into one binder. You 2 are Amazing. Much Love from Florida
This EXCELLENT advice. LOVE IT!!! Thank you, ladies!
I like your idea about using your Amazon wish list when you hear about a good book. I also use Goodreads and add a book to my Want to Read list. Then I look up the books on my library website and request when I'm ready to read. They might be available as ebook or audiobook. I save a lot of money and space getting books from the library and then if I don't finish them I don't feel bad. If I think a book is something I want to gift to someone or read again, then I can buy it with confidence.
I declutter often and habitually, but this particular area is a rough one for me. Thank-you for your insights.
It is funny that you place this video up since I threw out two boxes of journeys that I have notes on. I decided that if I don't go back to them they need to go. It opened an option for me to go back to the scriptures and make new notes to learn more and these notes are more meanful because I am add my experiences and how I have seen the hand of God in my life. These journeys I wil save for my family. But I will make sure that they are a small amount that fixes in a small box.
So well said! How much are we reading the Bible vs. old sermin notes or books from Bible studies five years ago?!
When someone recommends a book, my first and only reaction is to check the free platforms offered through my library-- Hoopla, Libby, & Axis 360. I always filter for the audio book options first because at this point in my life with a 10yr old and 4yr old, it's so much easier to listen to books while I'm exercising, cooking, or doing housework. The last hardback book I read was gifted to me this past Christmas and I truly had to be intentional about reading it by setting aside uninterrupted time for it (it was a really good book which made it easy to read though). Now, I'm listening to Essentialism by Greg McKeown and I LOVE it (can't remember if it was recommended by Dawn or Cas)!😊
Your willingness to support each other is so encouraging! I loved the manna part.
Again I love you ladies! ❣️
I have been journaling since i was something like 12 years old. HOWEVER, when i got married and my spouse (now ex) found them he got all stupid and a bit abusive so i burned them all. Did still do journaling during my 20 years of marriage but during the divorce i burned all those. Then still journaling from 99-2021 i decided my adult kids arent gonna wanna read that stuff so i had a fire and now i have no journals expect from bible classes or from sermons.
I've actually been pushing myself to start writing LESS notes during sermons or conferences, and focus more on just listening and soaking up the experience. I remember and enjoy it so much more.
Then, when the event is over, I write down a few words or phrases to summarize what I learned. It's been a game changer for sure.
In First Nations circles in British Columbia it's disrespectful to make notes when an elder is speaking. They say what you take away with you is what you were meant to take away. So beautiful....from someone who tries to write down everything a leader/teacher/worship leader/ professor is saying.
I, too, have BOXES of books, but I am a pastor, so I just might need them some day....Have I used more than 2 in the last 15 years? NO ....because I keep getting more; some I bought myself or received as gifts. Why, oh why are there so many books, journals, bookmarks, sacred jewelry, etc at these conferences? Jeesh.
Pray for me. Lol
I forgot fridge magnets, tote bags and t-shirts! Ha
Very good!!! Thank you- super helpful!!!:)
If something sticks out to that much, I wrote down the quote in my scriptures in the front or back. Or I write it on a piece of paper and stick it in my scriptures as a bookmark. It's easier keeping track of things that way. I've stopped taking notes at conferences, though. Just easier. I think it's nice to keep a daily journal/planner. I forget so much, and I do look back occasionally. You can make your journal entries more specific like gratitude or how have I seen the Lord in my life today? Things like that help. Journaling is therapeutic and I love it. I've kept all of my journals as an adult.
Such great advise!!! Thank you!
Exactly. I watch TH-cam videos from a number of posters and they all seem to have favorite items from Amazon. If I see something I know will be of immediate benefit for me, I buy it (doesn't happen that often). If I see an interesting item but don't have an immediate need for it, I put it on my Amazon wishlist. Every once in a while, I review that list. Sometimes the item is no longer available, which is fine...I didn't miss it. When I find myself repeatedly passing by that item on my list, I delete it.
Conference notes on a large index card instead of the notebook provided.
Mana - SO GOOD!
You 2 are so stinkin cute!!!! So much fun always getting to hang out with you both!!!!
Great video! I have such FOMO with health books! And I have the stack of $4 used books that I feel guilty about! I’m committing to getting rid of 3 books this weekend!
Oh wow! I love you so much, and now I find out there's 2 of you! Stop it! 🎉
I heard from Terri savelle foy recently that writing something down helps us retain it 60,000 times more than if we didn't. So now I'm thinking that, it's not a matter of keeping the journals as much as it is doing the physical writing process to retain it. Does that make sense?
I normally just have fiction books and cookbooks on my bookshelf or my bible or a journal if I want to keep it I do not keep every journal. I go back and read them to see so far just one journal have I kept
Well done. Good advice. Thanks. :-)
I put most of my old journals in my Memory Box.
Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts was used by my Christian college in an extra counseling course we could take. I honestly think it was one of the reasons I was able to fight so hard for good communication habits with my husband when we were newlyweds straight out of college and a deployment. Not like they teach Marines how to communicate well 😂
This video is so good. I’ve struggled with getting rid of books that had an impact on me at some point. I had so many relationship books from Christian authors that aren’t easily found in libraries. All our Christian stores are out of business. My husband finally helped me realize these books don’t have much info for this stage of our life, so even if they were helpful in the past, get rid of them so they will help someone else in that stage.
I love books!! And I do just as you said about recommendations and go to my app and buy it used. I just paused the video before you said this and bought Grasping God's Word lol!! Not enough time in the day to read them all but I'm glad I have some for reference when teaching etc.
♡
This is so helpful!
Taking notes on Sunday or when I'm doing a study helps me remember. But a couple of times a year I go through them and if I haven't been referring to it I toss them. If it's a book, I donate it.
I was jus as myself this question. What about Bible study books that I’ve filled out (too personal to give away but maybe o know I won’t revisit it so I want to declutter)
This is my favorite video of your so far! Really needed this clarity! thank you so much! 😇
I make a point to transfer “nuggets” from a conference to my prayer journal. Even sermon notes-I just pull out the “gems” and write them down. Either in my Bible or prayer journal. Then toss the notes. I’ve kept Beth Moore Bible study notes forever. Never once going back to look at them!
This is a great tip! 🙏💛
We have some Bibles from past relatives we havenever known. Half of a page is English & half is German. They are from middle 1800's. Just found them going through a book shelf. I suspect my husband brought them home after cleaning out his parents home. Any suggestions?
Diana, sometimes I think the Holy Spirit has whispered in your ear about what to post for me personally…. And you know what… I believe he does do just that! This is so timely for me thank you to Dawn too!🥰🥰
I used to take abundant notes at homeschool conferences and read them in August, October, January and May, but once I was done homeschooling those quickly went. So there are seasons 😊
💛
What about bibles? I have a number of Bibles but I feel bad giving them away?
😉
The commercial before you began the video was a SILK AND SONDER. Thought it was funny
One way to cur down on journal clutter and bible study notes clutter is to have a minimal organised system for keeping Bible Study notes
such as two 2 ring binders that you put genesis to revelation bible tab dividers to file notes in per book of the bible and the other folder you
have a - z dividers to file bible study notes alphabetically according to topic or a word concordance study etc
This takes minimal space on my desk and encourages you to only keep what you may want to refer to and it is easily edited as yo can add and
take-away pages easily
I have a cheap exercise book I use as a brain dump journal & during quiet time and I review it about once a week and only write into a nice journal
to keep what I would really want to look back on and is general in nature and once I have filled up that cheap exercise book and reviewed it I
throw it away, this means I have less good journals kep't at any given time that in the past
I've kept journals since I was 15 and have not kept them all but have never thrown one out without reviewing it and it can be so encouraging and build your faith to see how God answered prayers, especially meaningful verses etc before letting go of it
There may be one or two things in it you would like to keep which you can do by writing it in your current journal or somewhere else that works for you - maybe where you will see it and then you can throw the book out - It can strengthen your faith and cheer you on reviewing an old journal &
help put things into perspective with being able to see where yo were then and how far you have come
I've learned and am still learning even this year more minimal, time-effective and organised ways to journal, bible study and other note keeping
It's a work in progress - though with most things Less is more 😀 I really liked Dawn how you in a positive strong way apply honesty, containers and limits which is applicable in many areas of life that we struggle with. Thanks
Where is a good place to send Christian books/Bibles?
Are you guys twins or just sisters who look a lot alike??? Enjoying both your channels! ❤️
Haha, identical twins 😉 Thank you!! 💛
They are twins :)
They are identical twins
And they are not guys!
@@Rebecca-creates Good to know! I'm sure that cleared up a lot of confusion. 😉
Would you like me to will you my journals?
Haha, just the best one! 😉 Much love aunt Leggy!
@@DianaKokku they are all great reads I'm sure!! Love you, listen to you Everytime your on. 🤗
I do not listen to ANY BOOK that isn’t an audio book! I do not EVER have time to sit and read a book. No one I know reads real books. If it’s not audio people under 40 aren’t reading it 🤷♀️
Dawn, I loved that you said you are wanting the Bible to be your main source of inspiration. I need to remember that. Thank you. Always fun to see you two together. 😊
I curated a “master journal”. At the end of the year, I go through my “daily journal” and highlight the wisdom and make a list of the takeaways. I record the “best of” in my master journal. It is cool to see the resolutions and growth of years in just a few pages.
wow thats decluttering and actually deeply revisiting things in one swoop. i will try that to review my year. thank you
Wow Dawn, your mention of the concept of "manna" hit me right in the heart. I hold on to so much that I don't need, forgetting that God will meet my needs daily. Thank you.
I felt the same way!
@@MillieVF Same!!
I have a journal that my Grandma wrote that I treasure. When I read it, it is like she's telling me stories she told me when I was a child again.
We moved last summer and as I was going through our bookshelf I came across about 15 Beth Moore workbooks from Bible studies that I attended which was from at least 10 yrs ago. I had not once went back and looked at any of them. Yep! I threw them all away! 👍🏼
About a month or so ago I came across a milk crate where I had been keeping notes from past sermons journals all these type of things study guides and I sat down and I went through them in I picked out maybe two or three items that really had meaning and everything else I pitched and it felt so good to get rid of all that clutter. So I just want to thank both of you for what you're teaching this old woman to do. I enjoy watching both of you I have Dawn's channel on too.
Haha, sounds like you’re one step ahead of us! 😉 Love and blessings 💛🙏
I take notes during every sermon. But not because I plan to go back & study them later. It's to keep me focused during the sermon. I'm very easily distractible 😁 I used to hang on to the notes, but then I realized that I didn't need them, because I've got the Bible 🙂 I have kept a few over the years to use the ideas to write a lesson to present at a ladies' Bible study. But that's about it. In the past, I had a hard time decluttering some religious books & old Bibles. I'm getting better at it. All the info I might possibly need is on the internet!
I'm the same way! It helps me focus, that said with a new baby I haven't been doing it lately, but now I know I can just toss those old journals. Thanks ladies!
Good, good thoughts ladies!! I liked the " manna" comparison. You two are so encouraging...thanks so much💞
I realized recently, through ruthless decluttering ala Dawn, that I never ever reread my journals. Or notes from Bible studies. I journal daily as part of my Bible reading, but it's for that moment, not for posterity. So I tossed everything, with no regret. I buy cheap journals from Ross also, so I don't feel like I am "wasting" money. It was really great to realize.
I am like this too, the notes I take at church or during Bible reading are my way of processing what I'm hearing/reading, but I don't really need to go back and look at them.
I needed to hear this
I love this for everything spiritual. Sometimes too much input confuses me
I found a box of my old journals when we were moving last year. I skimmed through a couple and PROMPTLY destroyed them! 😂 I did not want anyone stumbling on my rambling thoughts. 😬
Also, I have a pastor friend who has several friends committed to destroy her journals without reading anything when she dies. She mostly journals when distressed or in difficult times and she doesn't want to be remembered for any of that.
You gals are such gems💖💖💖 Took the words oit of my mouth about digital weeklong conferences, the amount they share befote, during and after... one does not have the time to carve out of one's life & take in that much info!!!! Also my digital clutter of notes I saved about a health condition... and have rarely gone back & looked. When I do think of checking them out, feel overwhelmed & walk away. Precious... thanks... love your advice🙏
I like going back and reading my journals, but the other day I was reading one from a very difficult time. I had fallen hard. So I don't want to read it. Thankfully, I used to write a child’s name in the upper corner if I was recording something about them, so I can just flip to those pages, pull them out and add them to albums, then deal with that journal. But it’s a lot of work to shred or burn journals, and books I’ve written in. And I’m not just tossing them, so it’s a bit daunting. They are neatly stored in their own drawers in my office, in the meantime.
Dawn your comment about manna truly got me! It was exactly what I needed to hear! Thanks so much for all you do!❤️