Are you a stay-at-home mom like me? Do you get a little tired of emptying the dishwasher for the 3rd time today? And cleaning up spilled milk for the 11th time? And telling that one kid to do his homework AGAIN! The thought of folding the mountain of laundry on your kitchen table is enough to make you call it quits and pull the covers back over your head.
It is so easy for me to get weighed down by the monotony of the daily tasks that I forget something very important, to do it for the Lord. I forget that this is my ministry and a really important one.
And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father. Col. 3:17
1. Being a wife
Being a wife isn’t just a venue to play fairy tale love. It is a hard-core job to support your husband and give him refuge from the battles he is fighting. It goes back to our created purpose.
Then the Lord God said, “It’s not good for man to be alone. I will make him a helper that is perfect for him.” Gen. 2:18
I used to think that word “helper” meant I was personal assistant. But it’s not! The word is ezer kenegdo, a sustainer beside him. You know who else is referred to as a sustainer beside- Yahweh in relation to the children of Israel. We imitate GOD when we support and nurture our husbands. I don’t know about you but that invigorates to serve him with a little more gusto because it’s what God does.
Her husband can trust her, and she will greatly enrich his life. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life. Prov. 31:11-12
2. Being a mom
And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Deut. 6:6-7
When you are driving in your mini-van, cooking supper and potty training, put the sacred word of God on their mind and in their heart. While you are doing all those menial tasks, do it with eternity in your focus.
Her children stand and bless her. Prov. 31:28
3. Being a servant
There was a believer in Joppa named Tabitha (which in Greek is Dorcas). She was always doing kind things for others and helping the poor. Acts 9:36
Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. Gal. 6:10
I am bound to nap schedules and school schedules, but I am still able to serve others. Even from home there are lots of things I can do to serve my church and community. Some things I squeeze in between home stuff:
- Send cards- from church visitors to prison inmates
- Hospitality- I’m cooking anyways I might as well invite someone over
- Social media- use email, Facebook and texting to keep in touch and encourage
- Food- if someone needs a meal make extra of the family meal and deliver
- Pray- some of my best prayer time is while I’m rocking babies to sleep
- Bible Study-whether its in my home or my weekly study at the homeless shelter I make time to open the word with others
If you are a mom getting sucked in by the doldrums or struggling to see your importantance pray this with me today:
Lord God, Our Creator,
Refresh me today. Give me eyes to see your purpose for my day. Help me to accomplish all the tasks that you have set before me. Help me to sustain my husband in his relationship with you. Help me to offer my heart, body and soul to him. Show me how teach my children and graft them into your vine. Please help me see beyond the job and into the eternal honor of motherhood. Let me be a willing servant to my family, to my church and to my community. Give me a heart for those who are lost. I want to be Jesus to them. Show me how to serve them and love them. Please give me courage to bring them the message of salvation. Let me be a vessel where you receive the most glory possible.
Amen
*During the writing of this post I cleaned pee off the play room floor, poured two bowls of cereal, got two kids off the kitchen counter, snagged a naked, dripping toddler up in the living room and returned her to her bath and put groceries away.
