The Ministry of Homemaking
You can find the rest of the posts in this series here: The Ministry of Homemaking Series.
Our culture has conditioned people to value less the domestic arts than productivity outside the home. And while people love to criticize women who enjoy homemaking, who doesn’t love to come home to the smell of fresh baked bread or a tidy house. Who doesn’t love to open their drawers to find clean socks and underwear on a daily basis?
Before I go on, I want to make this point. If you work outside the home, for whatever reason, this is a safe place because I don’t know your situation and I am not about to assume that any woman loves her family less because she works outside the home. And while I’ve always been blessed to stay home, I know there are many women who aren’t able to do that. Plus, there are many women from nurses to doctors to speech therapists to music teachers to figure skating coaches {and more} who have blessed my family in so many ways and I love them all very much.
Homemaking Matters
Generally, people think of a “homemaker” as a woman who stays home full-time. And, while that may be true, I want to suggest that all women – whether they work outside the home or not – are called to be homemakers.
You see, families need women who make home a special place to live, learn, and grow. There is no other job that presents as many opportunities for shaping {for the good or the bad} the future of our country – of our world – than that of a homemaker.
Studies have shown that the environment at home directly impacts how well children adapt to their world and are able to learn at school. Children’s emotional well being is directly related to the home and how relationships are formed there. Families who sit together on a regular basis and share a meal are less likely t0 have children who smoke, drink alcohol, and turn to drug abuse.
Homemaking is a noble work. It’s the work of hands in tender care when her husband needs her. It’s the work of a kind mother tending to scraped knee. It’s the work of a home cook, preparing a family favorite meal. It’s the work of a wife who knows just how her husband likes his socks folded. It’s the work of a thoughtful woman as she goes about planning for the holidays.
The homemakers chores are abundant – never failing to provide something more to do each day. Laundry is always dirty. Dishes always need cleaning. Floors frequently need mopped.
I was recently complaining about how my kitchen seems to always be in a state of needing to be cleaned. How can it possibly get messy so fast? My daughter-in-law, Winnie, said to me, “Dirty dishes are evidence of you cooking good meals.” {She’s Korean and I love how she puts things.}
I laughed, realizing how true her words were.
But how often do I look at the piles of dishes, dreading the clean up? Proverbs 14:4 says,
“Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, but abundant crops come by the strength of oxen.”
In other words, if you have a family like I do, especially if they are home all day everyday, they are going to need to eat. Which basically means lots of dirty dishes.
We could say the above verse this way: Where there are no children, the house is clean, but oh, how much joy children bring!
This life is messy. Homemaking is messy. It’s easy for the homemaker to feel discouraged by the necessity of cleaning the same things over and over again on an almost daily basis. But it’s in the small acts of faith that we find God. God sees the unnoticed work of a wife and mother, of a homemaker.
His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ Matthew 25:21
We can find peace and even joy in the ordinary tasks when we have an attitude of thankfulness. When we are able to praise God for the many blessings He has given to us – from the fact that we have indoor plumbing {toilets that need cleaning} to food on the table {dishes that need washing}. A grateful life is never wasted.
As a homemaker you have the honor of caring well for your family. No one else can do that but you! Sure you can hire a maid. You could hire a chef. But no one can replace you.
Home Work
Answers these questions below in a journal or notebook. Or, download my journaling page here.
- Look up these verses and write them down: Romans 12:11, Colassians 3:23, Psalm 90:17
- How do you see your role as a homemaker?
- Have you felt undervalued by other people? How does God see your role as homemaker?
- What are you most thankful for at home?
P.S.Be sure to follow my popular board, The Homemaker’s Notebook, on Pinterest!
Follow Melissa Ringstaff {AVirtuousWoman.org}’s board The Homemaker’s Notebook on Pinterest.
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