Home About 5:16 Club Forum Contact

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Guest Post - Being A Keeper Of The Home

Hi, I'm Lisa from Stop and Smell the Chocolates. I'm happy to be helping Sarah Mae with a guest post today. Will you send some prayers her way for her to be feeling great very soon? I'm sure she would appreciate it.

In her 31 Days To Clean posts, Sarah Mae has talked about self-discipline and why we need to keep working at the daily drudgery. I agree with her and wanted to share some of my thoughts on the subject.

Being a good keeper of the home is a big struggle with me, so I'm really talking to myself here! Before I was pregnant with my son, I was Miss Career Woman and a terrible Keeper of the Home. God started helping me to realize that I needed to make a shift at that time. Eventually, I found myself an inexperienced Stay At Home Mom.

Domesticity did not come naturally to me. I did the bare, and I mean bare minimum of cleaning and I let my husband do the cooking. I was doing good at taking care of my baby boy, at least! At some point, I realized that Keeper of the Home was a most important job and I hadn't been treating it that way. If I was working for "pay" outside the home, I did a great job and took pride in my work. Why wouldn't I do the same for my more important job? That way of thinking about it helped me - I created some routines, did a little better with cleaning, and took over all the cooking duties.

Later on, it all became a struggle again and it still is. I understand the concept of taking pride in my home and keeping up with things because it's the job that I was called to do. But that isn't enough. I realize that there is more to it. This is what God has called me to do. It's not an employer who gives me a job description and will give me money and recognition for a job well done. It's God. If God somehow spoke to me and told me my job description for Keeper of the Home - would I say, "You know, I'm kind of tired. Maybe I could do the dishes just when they pile up and start the dusting next month?" I think not.

Maybe knowing that God calls us to do ALL of it, not just the parts that we like, can help us with our perspective and motivation. And there is a reward - a heavenly home with our Savior. There is even recognition. It will come when we hear, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

I'm not saying that we won't struggle. We're sinners after all. But maybe we can do a little better and ask God to help us grow as home makers and keepers. I pray that the Lord blesses your home keeping endeavors this week.

13 comments:

Kim @ Homesteader's Heart said...

The shock of working full time outside the home then coming home full time was hard for me as well. I had no idea what I was doing lol. But with God's nudging along the way I came about after a few years lol.Thank the Lord for a patient husband lol. Now I love it and wouldn't change "careers" for anything.
Blessings,
Kim

Heathahlee said...

Thank you, Lisa...I needed to hear this today! And thanks for subbing for our sweet Sarah!

miriam said...

thank you! i really needed to hear that! i'm a young bride and i always felt bad for being domestically challenged... i feel better i am not the only one struggling and that it doesn't come easy to everyone..

Christy said...

Being a stay at home mom and the Keeper of the Home is a job where I often feel unappreciated and unrecognized. I do have to remember that this is what God has called me to and it is a privilege to serve Him and my family. It really is an opportunity to display His love to those around me. Don't get me wrong, I have days of complaining and not having the best of attitudes. Don't we all? This is a wonderful reminder to do my job with joy and to be a reflection of Him.

Katharyn said...

Thank you for your Guest Post.

My struggle is differentiating between "I'm a little tired" and "I'm starting to wear myself out". I have multiple little health issues that together at times have me really unwell, and I get caught in this loop of “if the house is clean I will be healthier, but expending the energy to clean the house will make me sick…” So I guess my prayer is to help me know when it’s just a little tired and should keep going, and when I actually need to rest.

Thank you for getting me thinking down that path.

Trixi said...

I think we all in some way struggle in this area, as we are all sinners. Our flesh wants to rise up and go against what God has clearly called us to be and do. However, it is up to us whether or not we are going to choose God's perfect plan or not. I like how you said doing the things we like. That is a sticking point for me as well. I love to do the laundry so I have no problem with that but bathrooms are a different story. One thing I would love to encourage is that we need to be training our daughters in the art of homekeeping. It is a truly lost art in today's world.

Thank you for sharing, this is a great topic.

Sarah Mae, I hope you feel better very soon!!!

Empty Nest Full Life said...

Thanks for those encouraging words. I needed that today. Jackie

Kathy C. said...

Thank you for your honest post Lisa. I have always had the desire to be a keeper of my home, so it comes easily to me to want to do it. However, oftentimes, doing the same thing over and over can feel a bit mundane and I have to remind myself who I am working for and get myself out of my "slump". Sometimes great upbeat music does the trick - I am a pro at dancing with my broom, lol!

Unknown said...

Thank you all for the great comments! I'm glad you felt encouraged and am enjoying the discussions! :)

Kimba said...

Lisa,

Thank you for posting these thoughts. I've follwed a similar path and I've really struggled with embracing my role as keep of the home.

Thank you for the reminder and the encouragement.

Jen - Balancing Beauty and Bedlam said...

I LOVE being the keeper of my home. I brainstorm ideas, read books, daydream about all the discipline that I am going to establish....tomorrow. Yep, constant struggle for many of us.

Janell said...

GREAT post!!! Thank you so much, I am totally there right now! I just started my FlyLady routine this week & it has helped me SO MUCH!!! It's nice to see the improvement...there is light at the end of the tunnel! I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

Love, Janell

katylinvw said...

Lisa, thank you so much for your encouragement! I'm so there, and it was great to get some perspective on it! :)