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Simplified Organization: Learn to Love What Must Be Done
Yes, you can love keeping—even cleaning—your home.
Let’s be real. Homemaking is harder than we thought it’d be. Others make it look easy, but we end the day exhausted with so much left to do. We feel unprepared.
This book will shift your perspective on homemaking and guide you through six steps to competently and cheerfully manage your home.
Our homes matter because people matter, and homes are where people are built. Being overwhelmed and paralyzed by perfectionism is optional. We can do better.
If you are a Christian woman who wants to honor God in the way you keep house, this book is for you, no matter how much clutter or chaos currently surrounds you.
Let’s be real. Homemaking is harder than we thought it’d be. Others make it look easy, but we end the day exhausted with so much left to do. We feel unprepared.
This book will shift your perspective on homemaking and guide you through six steps to competently and cheerfully manage your home.
Our homes matter because people matter, and homes are where people are built. Being overwhelmed and paralyzed by perfectionism is optional. We can do better.
If you are a Christian woman who wants to honor God in the way you keep house, this book is for you, no matter how much clutter or chaos currently surrounds you.
259 pages, Paperback
Published November 16, 2023
287 people are currently reading
1258 people want to read
About the author
Mystie Winckler
11 books745 followersMystie Winckler married her high school sweetheart, Matt, at nineteen; together they have five children, two of whom are now grown men, but all of whom have been homeschooled from the beginning.
When she’s not teaching, cleaning, cooking, or reading, Mystie publishes articles, podcast episodes, and videos on homemaking cheerfully on her website, SimplyConvivial.com. Her community, Convivial Circle, is a treasure trove of mother-mentors engaged in the work at home to which they’ve been called.
Mystie is also a co-host of Scholé Sisters, a podcast for classical homeschooling moms who are educating themselves while educating their kids.
Whether we’re talking about personal lives, homemaking duties, or homeschooling days, Mystie seeks to return to and live out the motto, Repent. Rejoice. Repeat.
When she’s not teaching, cleaning, cooking, or reading, Mystie publishes articles, podcast episodes, and videos on homemaking cheerfully on her website, SimplyConvivial.com. Her community, Convivial Circle, is a treasure trove of mother-mentors engaged in the work at home to which they’ve been called.
Mystie is also a co-host of Scholé Sisters, a podcast for classical homeschooling moms who are educating themselves while educating their kids.
Whether we’re talking about personal lives, homemaking duties, or homeschooling days, Mystie seeks to return to and live out the motto, Repent. Rejoice. Repeat.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 144 reviews
January 31, 2025
One of the main points of this book is that homemaking is less of a task to get through, and more a task that is never done, but where you can find joy in serving God and in noticing small successes throughout the day. Just taking 15 minutes to work on something that needs to be done is an exercise in faithfulness and self-control (even when it isn't completed or perfect), and it honors God more than avoiding the task does.
January 4, 2025
Great book! I found such helpful principles and paradigms for approaching my work at home, even though I wouldn't have considered my life unorganized to begin with! Highly recommend!
July 11, 2025
So good. Definitely will listen to this one again. Very practical and helpful for my personality (and probably all personalities, as my mom and sisters and I keep calling each other to discuss it, haha).
February 2, 2024
This main content of this book is excellent, paradigm shifting even. It has challenged the way I think about myself as a homemaker and the work God has given me to do. I was convicted and starting implementing changes even within the intro. This book has been a true help to me, I believe, for the rest of my life. For this reason, I would happily recommend it.
The reason for the 4 stars is that it is not the most well written book. It is choppy and quite repetitive. I think most of it could have been communicated in half the length of the book. I knocked down a whole star because it took away from the enjoyment of reading it.
The reason for the 4 stars is that it is not the most well written book. It is choppy and quite repetitive. I think most of it could have been communicated in half the length of the book. I knocked down a whole star because it took away from the enjoyment of reading it.
July 19, 2025
Found this book to be a practical “field guide” in many respects. Winckler includes tangible practices, habits, routines that she does on a regular basis to help her keep her home.
However, my favorite part about the book is the philosophy behind it. Her main thesis is to: love the work that you’ve been given and cultivate a mindset of gratitude in everything. This isn’t new news to me (or even necessarily a new practice), but Winckler did have much wisdom of how this can practically look in our day-to-day lives. (Or how discontentment can sneakily disguise itself and creep into our hearts.)
One of my favorite takeaways: just because a job has to be done multiple times a day (or just every day), doesn’t mean that it doesn’t need to be done and isn’t worth doing. I.e., just because the kitchen will get dirty again doesn’t mean you still don’t need to clean it. Or just because the pantry will get disheveled again, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t organize it once in a blue moon. It’s a blessing to our family for us to “reset” things, even if the tasks seem menial or that it will just get undone.
Another helpful takeaway: the dangers of to-do lists to make you feel like you’ve actually “done something.” To-do lists can be addictively helpful; however, they can also be dangerous if they’re overdone (too much is put on it), and if you only focus on what wasn’t done that day.
Throughout the book, Winckler encourages her readers to have a kingdom-perspective. I enjoyed her writing and her ideas. It’d probably be good for me to review the practices she recommends; listening to them audibly (as opposed to reading) makes it more difficult for me to internalize them.
However, my favorite part about the book is the philosophy behind it. Her main thesis is to: love the work that you’ve been given and cultivate a mindset of gratitude in everything. This isn’t new news to me (or even necessarily a new practice), but Winckler did have much wisdom of how this can practically look in our day-to-day lives. (Or how discontentment can sneakily disguise itself and creep into our hearts.)
One of my favorite takeaways: just because a job has to be done multiple times a day (or just every day), doesn’t mean that it doesn’t need to be done and isn’t worth doing. I.e., just because the kitchen will get dirty again doesn’t mean you still don’t need to clean it. Or just because the pantry will get disheveled again, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t organize it once in a blue moon. It’s a blessing to our family for us to “reset” things, even if the tasks seem menial or that it will just get undone.
Another helpful takeaway: the dangers of to-do lists to make you feel like you’ve actually “done something.” To-do lists can be addictively helpful; however, they can also be dangerous if they’re overdone (too much is put on it), and if you only focus on what wasn’t done that day.
Throughout the book, Winckler encourages her readers to have a kingdom-perspective. I enjoyed her writing and her ideas. It’d probably be good for me to review the practices she recommends; listening to them audibly (as opposed to reading) makes it more difficult for me to internalize them.
October 18, 2025
I have been searching for a homemaking/cleaning/decluttering book to help get my life in order as a SAHM, and I finally found the holy grail book right here 🙌🏼 I already feel a mindset shift happening for me that I haven't been able to get from other books. I think this would be good to read once a year just to refresh, but absolutely everyone running a home in any capacity should read this at least once.
January 23, 2024
Tips and tricks and methods and systems are great! But the secret to successful homemaking has much less to do with your organizational hacks and instead is found in your attitude. Mystie does a wonderful job of bringing to light that perspective and gratitude are the real game changers when it comes to homemaking. And of course the right perspective is found in God’s word and our gratitude is to God for His many blessings
February 29, 2024
Lots of great nuggets of wisdom on organizing attitudes in the realm of motherhood and homemaking. We disagree on some theology, and I bristle at the idea that productivity correlates to personal sanctity. We also disagree about black and white divisions of labor for husband and wife.
August 30, 2024
This is the perfect book for any new or seasoned homemaker. I enjoyed it thoroughly! It is full of genuine, down to earth, and biblical insight for how to be most effective and glorify God in my roles as a wife, mom, and homemaker. Every chapter left me feeling invigorated and equipped to serve my family better.
A few takeaways for me:
-We should not strive to be organized for the sake of being organized and feeling in control. Organization should have the end goal of allowing us the flexibility to be obedient and meet needs the Lord brings into our life each day. If I’m constantly disorganized, I have very little capacity to bless and serve others as needs arise.
-I should never make my goal as a homemaker to be “done” because that’s never going to happen. The nature of being a homemaker is completing tasks repetitiously and faithfully. And we should aim to rejoice in the repetition. Hence the subtitle of this book, “learn to love what must be done.” As Mystie says, “The reality is that everything is never done. My job isn’t to do everything on my list, but to take the next step of faithfulness where I am.”
-The home is for the people, not the people for the home. If I get that twisted and make the people a slave to the the home, there is something wrong. My home is a resource, a place to bless others, not a museum.
-A constant theme throughout the book that I will be adopting is, “organize your attitude.” It’s more important that I organize my own attitude than that my home is organized. Proverbs 17:1, “Better a dry morsel in quietness than a house full of feasting with strife.” What will bless my family more… to have an elaborate meal that I serve with a bitter heart, or quesadillas for dinner with a joyful heart that is right before God? We all know that answer.
-Momentum and progress come with baby steps. There is no substitute for simply doing the work. No amount of research or brainstorming new systems will eliminate the need for me to simply roll up my sleeves and work hard. The goal is that we are continually making things better, although they will never be perfect or require no effort from us, they can improve.
-Do not take yourself so seriously! Smile at your people generously, and create an environment of lightness and good humor in your home. Being a human is about more than getting things done. We CAN choose to smile on demand, and that will make all the difference in our home.
I do think this book needs a different title! The title seemed very generic, but the book is not any old productivity book. Part 3 of the book was quite repetitive of the information she had covered previously as well. Still giving it 5 stars though!
A few takeaways for me:
-We should not strive to be organized for the sake of being organized and feeling in control. Organization should have the end goal of allowing us the flexibility to be obedient and meet needs the Lord brings into our life each day. If I’m constantly disorganized, I have very little capacity to bless and serve others as needs arise.
-I should never make my goal as a homemaker to be “done” because that’s never going to happen. The nature of being a homemaker is completing tasks repetitiously and faithfully. And we should aim to rejoice in the repetition. Hence the subtitle of this book, “learn to love what must be done.” As Mystie says, “The reality is that everything is never done. My job isn’t to do everything on my list, but to take the next step of faithfulness where I am.”
-The home is for the people, not the people for the home. If I get that twisted and make the people a slave to the the home, there is something wrong. My home is a resource, a place to bless others, not a museum.
-A constant theme throughout the book that I will be adopting is, “organize your attitude.” It’s more important that I organize my own attitude than that my home is organized. Proverbs 17:1, “Better a dry morsel in quietness than a house full of feasting with strife.” What will bless my family more… to have an elaborate meal that I serve with a bitter heart, or quesadillas for dinner with a joyful heart that is right before God? We all know that answer.
-Momentum and progress come with baby steps. There is no substitute for simply doing the work. No amount of research or brainstorming new systems will eliminate the need for me to simply roll up my sleeves and work hard. The goal is that we are continually making things better, although they will never be perfect or require no effort from us, they can improve.
-Do not take yourself so seriously! Smile at your people generously, and create an environment of lightness and good humor in your home. Being a human is about more than getting things done. We CAN choose to smile on demand, and that will make all the difference in our home.
I do think this book needs a different title! The title seemed very generic, but the book is not any old productivity book. Part 3 of the book was quite repetitive of the information she had covered previously as well. Still giving it 5 stars though!
August 6, 2024
It’s not very surprising that I enjoyed this book since the author is heavily influenced by Rachel Jankovic’s writing. The book has both really practical counsel concerning housework and solid spiritual counsel concerning one’s mind and heart.
The second to last chapter might have been my favorite; ‘Gratitude is the Best Motivation’ being the chapter title. It sums up the needed perspective shift when it comes to daily challenges and trials. As Winckler says, “Gratitude is not simply about feeling good feelings or listing things we enjoy, but about paying attention to Gods hand in each situation and walking in faith.”
I also looked up her podcast/youtube channel while I was reading the book. I (and the state of my home) have been very helped by the practical tips she gives on how to create a weekly “dashboard” as she calls it and “zone routines.” Moving from an apartment I could clean in an afternoon to a house that seemed like it would never get clean was daunting. But these last few weeks of using and adapting her “method” have been a blessing to our family.
The second to last chapter might have been my favorite; ‘Gratitude is the Best Motivation’ being the chapter title. It sums up the needed perspective shift when it comes to daily challenges and trials. As Winckler says, “Gratitude is not simply about feeling good feelings or listing things we enjoy, but about paying attention to Gods hand in each situation and walking in faith.”
I also looked up her podcast/youtube channel while I was reading the book. I (and the state of my home) have been very helped by the practical tips she gives on how to create a weekly “dashboard” as she calls it and “zone routines.” Moving from an apartment I could clean in an afternoon to a house that seemed like it would never get clean was daunting. But these last few weeks of using and adapting her “method” have been a blessing to our family.
November 9, 2024
Do you have a home? Read this book. Are you a wife? Read this book. Are you a mom? Definitely, read this book. Mystie untangles the struggles of working at home, explaining how our sin taints our perspective and attitude toward it, and provides gospel hope and practical advice for homemakers seeking to do this well for the glory of God. There are so many bits of wisdom I am taking away, but here are a few of my favorites:
- Persistence is more important than consistency in the work of the home. The outcome looks different every day.
- Faithfulness in this work is not the same as perfection.
- Your husband and children are the most important recipients of your hospitality. What is your attitude like toward them before guests walk through the door?
- Tame your inner two year old and repent of internal complaining about the good work God has given you.
There are so many more. I will come back to this one often!
- Persistence is more important than consistency in the work of the home. The outcome looks different every day.
- Faithfulness in this work is not the same as perfection.
- Your husband and children are the most important recipients of your hospitality. What is your attitude like toward them before guests walk through the door?
- Tame your inner two year old and repent of internal complaining about the good work God has given you.
There are so many more. I will come back to this one often!
January 24, 2025
If there was a way to give this more than 5 stars, I would. It absolutely changed my life.
(My only con is there are a few sections that feel a bit more like an advertisement for her online community - that costs money to join - than anything else. Basically testimonials. But even those are written in such a way that I had tidbits to take away from them.)
(My only con is there are a few sections that feel a bit more like an advertisement for her online community - that costs money to join - than anything else. Basically testimonials. But even those are written in such a way that I had tidbits to take away from them.)
September 23, 2025
Absolutely loved this book. As someone who has felt stuck because I’m not an instinctual organizer, this book has left me feeling encouraged. It has also given me a fresh perspective on my family and how I should treat and show hospitality to them now. Highly recommend!
January 15, 2024
Wonderful book! This was so encouraging, helpful, and has made a difference already in both my attitude and actually getting things done. I plan to read it again soon with a small group of women.
March 13, 2025
This is a good one. Very helpful practically but also getting to the heart of several common difficulties in the Christian life for women.
July 16, 2025
What a beautiful book! By no means another self-help collection of -isms. Mystie expertly balances calling her audience to a higher standard of home-making while still giving a thoroughly gospel-entrenched vision for the "why" of it all. We do not home-make for perfection's sake; we home-make because we are made in the image of THE Maker, and we home-make for the people we are called to love.
November 11, 2025
I feel so seen. Has Mystie been spying on me?
December 26, 2023
this has been an EXCELLENT book to read & focus on before a new year. mamas, our work is important and it takes skill… but it also takes a heart lifted up to Christ. Mystie helps you focus on both! the work, people & especially our Savior are worthy of learning to love what must be done!
January 26, 2025
Read this book first. Then you are ready to read the other books on home organization.
Honestly, I felt like the title of this book is a little bit of a bait and switch. There was very little content concerning organization tips and tricks (and what it did have, I've read other books which cover these ideas more thoroughly and inspiringly). What this book is really about is getting your heart in order so that you can manage your home. And on that note, this book was SO helpful that I think it should be your foundational, Step One read before diving into any other homemaking book. I will definitely be reading it again.
Honestly, I felt like the title of this book is a little bit of a bait and switch. There was very little content concerning organization tips and tricks (and what it did have, I've read other books which cover these ideas more thoroughly and inspiringly). What this book is really about is getting your heart in order so that you can manage your home. And on that note, this book was SO helpful that I think it should be your foundational, Step One read before diving into any other homemaking book. I will definitely be reading it again.
May 18, 2024
If you are new to Mystie's ideas, or if you feel like your home duties are currently frustrating you, this book is a great summary to get you started (and encouraged). If you, like me, have listened to Mystie's podcast, read her blogs and done a few courses, this book is a lovely review of principles and attitudes you might have been neglecting.
Specifically, I love the idea that our home's work will never fully be completed (so that's an expectation to kill), because our homes are places of people and action. That's a good thing and doesn't need to be a frustrating thing.
Here is a sample fave quote, though I underlined approximately 50 such quotes. :)
"Too often, we look for solutions that will make the work go away when what we actually need are solutions that will keep us consistently, repetitively doing the work needed."
The things I have learned and kept up with most from Mystie's ideas are daily EHAPS (well, week days, anyway), setting up morning routines and the idea of prayerfully organizing my attitude first.
Her theology is solid, her principles motivating and her practical tips truly helpful. She can't take away that we have real work to do, and that takes discipline and focus, but supports you as you strive to do things things with a peaceful heart, day after day.
Specifically, I love the idea that our home's work will never fully be completed (so that's an expectation to kill), because our homes are places of people and action. That's a good thing and doesn't need to be a frustrating thing.
Here is a sample fave quote, though I underlined approximately 50 such quotes. :)
"Too often, we look for solutions that will make the work go away when what we actually need are solutions that will keep us consistently, repetitively doing the work needed."
The things I have learned and kept up with most from Mystie's ideas are daily EHAPS (well, week days, anyway), setting up morning routines and the idea of prayerfully organizing my attitude first.
Her theology is solid, her principles motivating and her practical tips truly helpful. She can't take away that we have real work to do, and that takes discipline and focus, but supports you as you strive to do things things with a peaceful heart, day after day.
January 9, 2024
Such a great book! I love that this book talks directly to heart (aka sin) issues of organization. I was convicted about something that has nagged at me since moving into this house almost 3 years ago. I’ve yearned to have a clean kitchen daily. This house in particular has the kitchen on full display. There’s no hiding the mess if someone stops by. My mom had our kitchen totally clean every single night before bed, and I only recently realized what a feat that was!
So this past week, I’ve had the kitchen totally clean before I go to bed. It’s been such a peace in my heart. I plan to keep it up all year long as a New Year’s resolution so that it becomes a habit.
My only critique: ever story revolved around homemaking moms with 5,6,7, even 8 kids. I don’t relate to the women at all as a working mom of 2 kids.
So this past week, I’ve had the kitchen totally clean before I go to bed. It’s been such a peace in my heart. I plan to keep it up all year long as a New Year’s resolution so that it becomes a habit.
My only critique: ever story revolved around homemaking moms with 5,6,7, even 8 kids. I don’t relate to the women at all as a working mom of 2 kids.
February 17, 2024
When I first got "Simplified Organization", I honestly didn't expect much. I have gone through productivity bootcamps online, organizational books, videos, tried multiple systems, planners, and schedules...like, was there really more I hadn't heard or tried?
I was pleasantly surprised, however! This book is so good and just what I needed. It starts with getting to the root of why we struggle to get things done as moms, how perfectionism can be your worst enemy, the purpose of the home, and has a more realistic and life-giving approach to organization and home management than anything I've ever read. She explains why minimalism or having the perfect system are NOT the answer and provides helpful, doable tips for making the most of your time and blessing those in and outside your home with how you manage it...and yourself.
I definitely recommend to all my fellow homemakers!
I was pleasantly surprised, however! This book is so good and just what I needed. It starts with getting to the root of why we struggle to get things done as moms, how perfectionism can be your worst enemy, the purpose of the home, and has a more realistic and life-giving approach to organization and home management than anything I've ever read. She explains why minimalism or having the perfect system are NOT the answer and provides helpful, doable tips for making the most of your time and blessing those in and outside your home with how you manage it...and yourself.
I definitely recommend to all my fellow homemakers!
April 13, 2024
I found this encouraging and helpful. And I love the subtitle.
Some favorite quotes:
“To glorify God is an all-encompassing purpose that gives significance to even the most mundane bits of life as well as its worst trials and sufferings.”
“A clean house exists for the good of people.”
“Worry is best handled by prayer….Noticing a worry means noticing a thing to pray about. A worry should not be a prompt to fret, but a prompt to pray.”
Some favorite quotes:
“To glorify God is an all-encompassing purpose that gives significance to even the most mundane bits of life as well as its worst trials and sufferings.”
“A clean house exists for the good of people.”
“Worry is best handled by prayer….Noticing a worry means noticing a thing to pray about. A worry should not be a prompt to fret, but a prompt to pray.”
November 25, 2023
Managing a home is important and critical. The work of it is obvious and still elusive in some ways. It marches on. It is always undone. And it always demands more than you actually have the ability to assault at a given moment.
Simplified Organization is about learning how to read your home in a way that enables you to do the work that serves your people best for that time. Then, it turns to work through time to iterate and expand the capacity of your home.
Mystie is not the most interested in vacuumed carpets, but ordered loves— which work themselves out in vacuumed carpets.
So wherever you are at in the skills of home making or the seasons of life, this book will have an approach that will help you take the tasks apart and handle them with good cheer and steadier approach.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1737451735?...
Simplified Organization is about learning how to read your home in a way that enables you to do the work that serves your people best for that time. Then, it turns to work through time to iterate and expand the capacity of your home.
Mystie is not the most interested in vacuumed carpets, but ordered loves— which work themselves out in vacuumed carpets.
So wherever you are at in the skills of home making or the seasons of life, this book will have an approach that will help you take the tasks apart and handle them with good cheer and steadier approach.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1737451735?...
January 29, 2024
I loved this book! Practical and encouraging! It also speaks to hospitality a lot! There is not another book (that I know of) out there that speaks to hospitality in this way and I’ve been saying for years that it’s needed. I’ll definitely be recommending it to many!
January 16, 2025
I really enjoyed this book on the whole and it spoke directly to some of my own struggles and had very practical advice. (I do think it needs a huge caveat that it is specifically aimed at stay-at-home mothers.)
June 23, 2025
I find it easy to slip into a status quo mindset when it comes to the tasks of the home, doing chores simply because they have to be done (which is true), but often without the joy or purpose behind them. But that’s not the vision God has for homemakers. This book encouraged me in the areas where I’ve been lacking and stirred my heart toward a more intentional, joyful approach. Her stories were often painfully relatable, which made the truths she shared all the more meaningful and impactful.
April 4, 2025
“The goal isn’t a perfectly clean and put-together home. The goal is making our resources useful and available for building up people.”
Housekeeping meets faithful walk with Christ and cheerful parenting. This book is the real deal.
Housekeeping meets faithful walk with Christ and cheerful parenting. This book is the real deal.
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May 17, 2025Highly recommend. A game changer for me and how I approach and understand my work. Very encouraging!
May 22, 2025
Extremely thought provoking and so helpful in starting to shift your mindset. Highly recommend!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 144 reviews