I had never heard of the word Homemaker until my Husband and I were filing for our marriage license in 2015. We were each asked for our occupation and when it was my turn to answer, I simply said I don’t work. The woman we were working with wrote down the word homemaker. Back then, I had assumed it was just a nice way of saying I don’t have a job. Now, after 8 plus years of homemaking, that word means so much more.
This post may contain affiliate links which means I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link! You can find my full Disclaimer here.
When you think of homemaking, what comes to mind?
For me, the ideal picture of homemaking is linen aprons, long dresses and skirts, clothes hanging on the line, beautiful pottery vases with fresh picked flowers, luscious vegetable gardens, all the baked from scratch goodness, and simplicity.
Sounds like a Pinterest board, doesn’t it?
In reality, homemaking rarely has that beautiful, old fashioned, simplistic feel to it.
Many times, it can feel like a burden, a never ending to-do list, add children and it can sometimes feel like war raging inside of you. Not to mention, if you didn’t choose to be home, you may have a heavy heart about the subject in itself.
If you’re in the throws of finding your way in homemaking, you’re not alone. I was there for almost 6 years before I realized how truly joyful homemaking is.
A Wife of Noble Character
We live in a world where women are empowered. We are taught from a young age that we can do absolutely anything we put our minds to. That we can run companies, be leaders and change the world. And while these are all true, what if instead of giving our all to the world, we give our all to our homes?
If we look at Proverbs 31, The Wife of Noble Character, is an asset for her family. She runs her home, feeds, clothes, cares, provides, for her family and they call her blessed and praise her.
I’m ashamed to say I never really understood reading this just how noble this woman truly is. I mean, while the husband is the head of the family out in the world providing for the family, she is at home doing literally everything else. This didn’t sound very appealing to me, it honestly sounded like entirely too much work.
However, when I started looking at her life as my life, my entire outlook on homemaking changed. I realized that I was already doing all those things. I was already providing food, clothes, and comfort. I was planning for the days ahead, planting gardens, taking care of our affairs. The only thing I wasn’t doing, was doing all this with a joyful heart.
I was looking at this incredible blessing as if it were a burden in my life.
Homemaking as a Ministry
I read a blog post on Pinterest once talking about how to make homemaking a ministry. Instead of complaining and looking at your to-do list as a burden, start using it as a time to worship. I couldn’t get home that idea. I fell in love with it.
Titus 2:4-5 says women should “love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands”.
As women, we are the keepers of our homes. It is our responsibility to care, clean, and respect our homes. So by using it as a way to worship, even just while sweeping the floors, or folding laundry, we are fulfilling our duties as women in Christ.
I Get To
So, maybe you aren’t of faith and not sure how this should play into your life. Well, as cliché as it sounds, you just have to change your perspective.
Change your Ugh, I have to do this to I get to do this, I’m grateful.
I know, I know, it sounds cliché, but it really does make a world of difference.
I have a blog post I wrote sharing about How I Finally Accepted Being a Stay at Home Mom after six and a half years.
This post shares the obvious AH HA, my lightbulb moment of getting to be a stay at home mom and how I started to embrace it.
Start Doing These 3 Things
Along with changing your outlook on homemaking by turning what you feel is a negative into a positive, try implementing these 3 things into your daily routine.
- Bible Time I highly recommend setting aside time every single day to read your bible. For me, this looks like a 5 am alarm, hot coffee, and my bible before my children wake up. Actually taking time to read your bible and understand what it says make a world of difference in your life than casually skimming it every once in a while. It will 100% change your mind and heart in a positive way.
- Create a Daily/Weekly Rhythm Create a positive housekeeping habit that you can flow through each day/week in your home. This rhythm can be a strict daily routine with set times, or it can simply be a checklist that can be done at any time as long as it gets done. This way you can positively set expectations for yourself without becoming overwhelmed or feel run down.
- Do something that brings you joy everyday this could look like a hobby, it could be preserving food for your family, snuggling up with a book, going for a walk, talking with a friend, creating a blog. Whatever it is be sure that it is for you and that it brings you joy.
Once you change your perspective and start using your never ending to-do list as a way to worship and praise God, you will naturally start to find joy in homemaking and motherhood.
And while it’s not always fun remember as women, we were created for this, embrace it!
Until next time,
