Declutter Your Heart and Home: Making Room for Christ Beyond Christmas

The holiday season often inspires us to create spaces filled with warmth, light, and love. We rearrange, clean, and decorate to welcome family, friends, and most importantly, the Savior into our lives. But as the twinkling lights are packed away and the Christmas season fades, how can we ensure that Christ remains central in our hearts and homes?

Decluttering, both physically and spiritually, offers a meaningful way to carry the spirit of Christmas throughout the year. By letting go of what no longer serves us, we create room for the Savior’s influence to grow.

As you prepare to evaluate the changes you might make for the upcoming year, consider this quote from President Russell M. Nelson: “You are establishing priorities and patterns that will dramatically affect not just your mortal life but also your eternal life.”

This insight reminds us that the effort to declutter our hearts and homes is not merely about organization or self-improvement—it’s a spiritual work with eternal significance. As we thoughtfully evaluate our priorities, we can align our lives more closely with the Savior’s teachings, creating an environment where His Spirit can dwell.

This process of refining what truly matters prepares us to embrace lasting joy and peace, not just during the Christmas season but every day of the year. Let’s explore practical ways to make these meaningful changes.

Declutter Your Home

Consider starting with your physical surroundings. Donate unused items, simplify your living space, and focus on creating an environment that reflects your values.

A tidy home can foster peace and invite the Spirit. President Nelson once said, “I urge you to continue to make your home a truly holy place and ‘be not moved’ from that essential goal.”

Including children in the process of decluttering can be a meaningful teaching opportunity. Start by involving them in sorting their toys or clothes, encouraging them to choose items to donate to those in need.

Make it fun by turning it into a game, like timing how quickly they can organize a drawer or seeing who can find the most items to share. Teach them to ask, “Do I use this? Does it bring me joy? Can someone else benefit from it?”

These questions help children develop a sense of gratitude and generosity. As you work together, explain how creating a tidy, organized home can invite the Spirit and make room for more love and service as a family.

Declutter Your Heart

Christ invites us to cast off burdens that weigh us down. Examine what may be cluttering your heart—grudges, distractions, or feelings of inadequacy.

Psalm 51:10 perfectly captures this yearning that many of us feel for renewal and a change of heart: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.”

This plea is answered with a promise from the Lord: “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:26)

To apply these principles, consider taking time to prayerfully reflect on what may be holding you back from experiencing true peace and spiritual renewal. Begin by identifying specific burdens you may be carrying, whether they are negative thoughts, unresolved conflicts, or past mistakes.

Once you’ve recognized these areas, seek to release them through heartfelt prayer, asking for help in letting go and inviting the Savior’s healing power into your life. As you engage in this process, make an effort to replace those burdens with positive actions—such as showing kindness, seeking forgiveness, and focusing on gratitude.

Over time, you will find that your heart becomes more open to the transformative power of the Lord’s love.

Make Room for Christ Daily

Decluttering is only the first step; the next is filling that space with Christ-centered habits. As President Nelson reminds us, “The joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives.”

By intentionally integrating Christ into our daily routines, we create lasting changes that allow His influence to guide us each day. Consider choosing some of these practical habits to help you make room for Christ daily:

• Start your day with prayer: Set a reminder or place a sticky note on your bathroom mirror or phone screen to prompt you to pray each morning. Make it part of your routine, like brushing your teeth. Even if it’s just a simple prayer, it sets the tone for the day and invites Christ’s guidance.
• Scripture study: Integrate scripture study into moments of your day that are already established habits. For example, read a verse or two while having breakfast or before bed. Start with just five minutes a day, and gradually increase it as the habit becomes a natural part of your day.

• Daily journaling: Create a journaling habit by connecting it to another routine. For instance, journal after your prayer or scripture study. Keep it simple at first by writing one sentence or bullet points that capture how you saw Christ in your day or what you are grateful for.
• Serve others: Make service a small, intentional part of your routine. Set a daily intention to serve one person, even in a small way, like sending a text or offering a compliment. These simple acts of service can be built into your daily flow, as you go about your work or run errands.
• Use uplifting media: Curate your media choices by replacing mindless scrolling with uplifting content. Set a goal to listen to a podcast or watch a short video that inspires you while you’re doing tasks like cooking, folding laundry, or driving. This way, you’re integrating positive influences during natural moments of your day.

• Foster gratitude: Begin and end each day with a gratitude practice. Before bed, write down three things you’re thankful for, which can include moments when you felt Christ’s influence. This habit can help shift your mindset and naturally invite more Christlike thoughts throughout the day.
• Attend church meetings regularly: If it’s hard to attend church due to scheduling or other barriers, make it a priority by preparing the night before. Lay out your clothes, set an alarm, and remind yourself of the spiritual nourishment you gain from attending. If you miss a Sunday, make it a goal to attend the next week, rather than putting it off further.
• Remember Christ in moments of stress: In stressful situations, pause for 30 seconds to breathe deeply and silently ask for Christ’s help. Place visual reminders of Christ around your home or workspace, such as an image of the Savior or a scripture on your desk. These prompts can remind you to invite Him into those challenging moments.

As we declutter our hearts and homes, we make room for Christ to dwell with us beyond the Christmas season. By welcoming Him into our lives, we can experience His light, love, and guidance all year long.

What steps will you take today to make room for Him?

Holly Wallace

Holly Wallace is a writer and storyteller drawn to meaningful questions and overlooked details. Her work explores Latter-day Saint life and culture through faithful inquiry, inviting readers to pause, consider, and engage more deeply with what matters most.