Why Cleaning our Physical Space is Biblical and How Clutter Affects us

It might seem a little odd, but cleaning up our physical space is Biblical. It’s actually true. If we think about it from the perspective that everything we do is spiritual and we are to serve our heavenly Father with everything that we are – heart, soul, mind, being.

Think about it for a moment. We’ve been blessed with a space to live, clothes to wear, things to enhance our lives. So what does it say if we just let our house get overrun with stuff and dust?

Have you ever just stopped, looked around, and just couldn’t feel like you could think all that clearly? Or took an extra 20 minutes to get out of the house because you misplaced your keys or your purse or your hat? Ever feel like you just can’t get anything done and just feel overpowered by your to-do list? Have you ever felt overwhelmed with mental clutter, emotional clutter, heck even digital clutter?

That’s what can happen when our physical space is full of “stuff,” disorganized, and generally unkept. When we just keeping adding instead of appropriately subtracting.

Every Part of our Lives is Affected When our Physical Space is Overrun by Clutter

So yep, cleaning up our physical space is actually Biblical.

These days we’re so inundated with messages about how we need this that and the next thing. As a result, our houses get filled up pretty quickly. And if you’ve got kids it’s easy to add to the pile of things you’ve already got. Plus, people actually hoard things for emotional reasons, like losing a loved one and/or a thing, or for subconscious self-protection. So there’s actually a bit of science when it comes to our physical space and how it affects the rest of our lives.

Not too mention, that in some ways many of us have become so incredibly busy and our spaces are too large that we just can’t seem to ever keep up with the cleaning.

If we’re trying to live a Biblically holistic life, yet we’re not seeing how cleaning up our physical space is Biblical, then we’ve got a bit of a disconnect happening.

Knowing the negatives of how the clutter affects us can help us see the other side.

5 Negative Finds About a Messy & Cluttered Space

1. It Creates higher stress levels
   The more cluttered of a space we have, the greater our cortisol levels become. Cortisol just so happens to be our stress hormone. Higher cortisol levels = higher stress levels. Higher stress levels = worse health. There was a study done that indicated women who described their homes using words that described cluttered and/or unfinished homes were actually more depressed overall. Ya’ll, it’s stressful to live in a depressed mood!
   
2. We’re less focused
   Our visual cortex is negatively effected when our space is cluttered and overrun. Multiple stimuli are basically competing to be seen which overloads us. We’ve got to take care of the things that need to be cleaned, moved, gotten rid of, given away, or what have you, in order to feel relaxed and focused.
   
3. Unhealthier eating habits surface
   For so many people, when their space is cluttered, messy or chaotic we tend to reach for more unhealthy food choices. It’s a form of stress-eating. Which isn’t healthy for numerous reasons.
   
4. We’re unhealthier physically
   Perhaps because we’re eating more of an unhealthy diet? Also though, a study done via Indiana University left one professor asking, ” Are the types of people who take care of their bodies the same types of people who take care of their homes?” The study found the condition of people’s homes had a direct relationship with their physical activity. If someone’s physical activity was good and healthy, then the condition of their home tended to be cleaner as well. One could argue that this is in part because when you’re cleaning your house up, you’re getting some physical activity in. It’s kind of a win-win.
   
5. We’re actually less happy
   It’s true. While we’ve been taught to buy into the lie that things = happiness, this equation just doesn’t line up. Yes, I completely agree that certain “things” do enhance my life, and I am happy to have them. However, the more stuff we have actually sucks our happiness. Why? Because it’s more stuff to care for, more stuff to clean, more stuff to move from one place to the other, more stuff that gets in our way of actually living the lives we were created to live. I have yet to find anyone who says they cleaned up their space, de-cluttered all their stuff, re-organized their living space to be more functional and clear and actually felt worse. Netflix actually has a series on this: Marie Kondo goes in and helps them clear their space, and they all feel so much better once it’s done. They feel like they have their life back.

Cleaning up our Physical Space is Part of Living a Biblically Holistic Life

Everything is interconnected. As we just read, physical clutter affects numerous aspects of our lives. It can leave us overwhelmed and depressed. Which is why cleaning up our physical space is actually Biblical.

6 Reasons Cleaning up our Physical Space is Biblical

1.  “For YAH is not the author of confusion, but of shalom {peace}.” 1 Corinthians 14:33a
   Our heavenly Father is the Creator of order, not chaos. Despite what some may think. So if He’s all about order, then why should we be any different? No, I’m not calling for perfection, however, we are called to honour Him in all that we do, and to imitate Him as well, so being orderly in our lives is one way we do that.
   
2. Read Matthew 25:14-30. We’re called to be good stewards; not only does this apply to our finances it also applies to our possessions. By decluttering and cleaning up, it honours this and it shows we respect our space and the things we own.
   
3. “Anxiety in a person’s heart weighs him down, but a kind word cheers him up.” Proverbs 12:25
   Our environments either create or reduce stress. The keywords in the verse here are: anxiety in a person’s heart weighs him down. Living in a cluttered house/space is stressful, even if we’re not fully conscious of it. So by clearing the clutter and organizing our spaces, it helps to reduce unnecessary stress from our lives. We’ll be happier and more joyful, which is also something we’re called to be as Believers in Messiah.
   
4. “Or don’t you know that your body is a temple for the Ruach HaKodesh {Holy Spirit} who lives inside you, whom you received from YHVH? The fact is, you don’t belong to yourselves;” 1 Corinthians 6:19
   As I shared above, those who live in a more cluttered and chaotic home are actually not as physically healthy as those who do. And since we don’t belong to ourselves, we need to do what we can to take care of ourself. We are actually a gift which we’ve been blessed with. And gifts need to be taken care of. By leaving the clutter (and adding to it) we cause more stress, which is incredibly harmful to our body, in various ways. Therefore, cleaning up, decluttering and keeping things orderly creates a sense of peace & calm, which is beneficial to our body.
   
5. “For YHVH has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7
   Physical clutter adds to mental clutter as well can negatively impact our memory and decision making. This leaves us feeling foggy and unclear. Which is the opposite of what we’re called to be. We’re told to focus our thoughts and attention to things above, and that can’t happen if we’re weighed down by our clutter.
   
6. “She looks well to the ways of her household, and eats not the bread of idleness,” Proverbs 31:27
   As women of faith in the Bible, we are called to take care of our homes. Now I understand that many will interpret this differently, and that’s O.K.. I believe if you’re truly seeking our Creator and His ways, He will reveal to you what this means and how He wants this to play out in your life. But regardless of how different it might look for each of us, if we want to be righteous women then we will take care of our space and that which we’ve been given.

What I Know From Personal Experience

I try to live my life as Biblically holistic as possible, so it’s easy for me to relate how cleaning up my physical space is Biblical. It makes sense to me.

And, personally, I know how much physical clutter affects me in aaallll the ways. When I look around and just see things left everywhere I literally cannot function. My brain stops and my body tightens up. As much as my brain tries, it cannot organize all of the chaos, and my cortisol goes through the roof.

That’s why I choose to {the best I can} have a home for everything and everything in its home {when not in use of course}. And for things to stay in sections, if you will. This means, my office space is my office space. It’s not a home for toys or kids’ books or anyone’s clothes or anything else I deem unnecessary for my office. It means my bedroom isn’t a home for anything but my husband’s and my things. The kids have their own rooms, which is where their stuff belongs. Socks don’t go on the counters and toys don’t belong in my pot cupboard. And yes, for me, my clothes are colour-coordinated, my essential oils are alphabetical, my books are categorized and alphabetical, and only spices go in the spice cupboard.

When things are in their homes, the house is tidied up and relatively clean {yes I understand things aren’t going to be spotless all the time..}, it’s then that I am able to breathe well, focus properly and give my children & husband the attention they need and deserve. I have more peace, I can think more clearly, and I can do more of things my heavenly Father is calling me to do, and do them well.

What I’m NOT Saying

To be clear on a few things:

1. I am not saying that messy, cluttered and dirty are synonymous. They do not mean the same thing. Cluttered isn’t necessarily dirty. I clean my house extremely regularly, so it’s not dirty, but I did allow it to become cluttered. Big difference. Also, I have children, who play and live in my house and they leave things in places, so my house gets messy. However, I am teaching them to clean up once they are done with whatever it is they are using and to clean up their messes. It’s called responsibility and being courteous to others living in the same space.
   
2. I am not saying you have to have a spotless house all the time. As I said, I have children; I homeschool said children, make all of our meals from scratch {if I could find a frozen pizza that fit our food criteria & our budget, I’m not gonna lie, I’d be all over that…}, try to exercise daily, build my relationship with my husband and work from home. I’m not saying this to brag at all. I am saying it to make it clear that my house is not spotless. I’m trying to teach my kids how to clean up and take care of their things and spaces and be a part of a family. They do chores, so that alone means my floors are not as clean as I would do them if I washed them myself…but they gotta learn, and I gotta let it go.

Make a Wise Choice & Clean up Your Physical Space

Now that I’ve shared why cleaning up our physical space is Biblical, I encourage you to look around your home and see what could be weighing you down, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. I encourage you to pray about the things our heavenly Father wants you to clear out. And then do it! Honour Him by getting rid of what’s holding you down. Begin to see taking care of your space and things as a Biblical act; you won’t regret it.

Let me know in the comments below, how has decluttering and really cleaning up your space enhanced your life? And if you want to know how you can get the KonMari Method to work for you as a Believer in Messiah, you’ll want to check this post 😊