Wednesday, April 14, 2010

On Stay-at-Home Motherhood

"O dear mothers, you have a very sacred trust reposed in you by God! He hath in effect said to you, “Take this child and nurse it for Me, and I will give thee thy wages.” You are called to equip the future man of God, that he may be thoroughly furnished unto every good work. If God spares you, you may live to hear that pretty boy speak to thousands, and you will have the sweet reflection in your heart that the quiet teachings of the nursery led the man to love his God and serve Him. Those who think that a woman detained at home by her little family is doing nothing, think the reverse of what is true. Scarcely can the godly mother quit her home for a place of worship; but dream not that she is lost to the work of the church; far from it, she is doing the best possible service for her Lord. Mothers, the godly training of your offspring is your first and most pressing duty."
-- C.H. Spurgeon

What Enslaves Us?

This week my dear friend Crystal at Serving God and Family shared a paper with me she wrote for a history class about the Amistad trials. Reading about how the actions of the slaves on Amistad and the trials that followed began to pave the way for the abolition of slavery started to spark some thoughts in my head.

There are many different forms of slavery that have existed throughout history. In the case of the Amistad slaves, they were forced into slavery. People also used to work as indentured servants, where they would work for an appointed amount of time. It seems the oldest form of slavery, and the worst, is our own to sin. We are born into a sinful world, and our hearts are wicked from youth (Genesis 8). The Bible tells us we are slaves to our sinful nature (Galatians 4), and it is God who pulls us off the path of death (Psalm 68:20).

We are all slaves to something, because we are all sinners (Romans 3:23). One thing that I keep somewhat up to date on is feminism in society today. I'm what you would call an anti-feminist, and pro-biblical womanhood. I believe in traditional family hierarchy and values, and I feel some righteous anger when people take what God has created and twist it until it's unrecognizable.

For many women, they are slaves to feminism and what the secular humanistic culture tells them to be. We see everywhere images of what the "perfect" woman is- successful career, beautiful, educated, independent. It seems as if women are set on career tracks as soon as they can walk these days. We are told that to be worth something we must get out and fend for ourselves, do what makes us happy- often at the expense of others.

The ideal our society holds for women is not the biblical ideal. The Bible holds the woman in very high esteem as a creation of God- not because of where she went to school or what job she holds. The biblical ideal is a family in harmony, where the father is the primary provider and the mother cares for the home and children. Today, we are so focused on ourselves that we throw what the Bible says out, and instead replace it with egalitarian and feminist views. Suddenly the authors of the Bible are viewed as oppressive males, and what they write is unreliable because it doesn't fit into what feels good for us.

We fall on our knees and worship the god of self, without a second thought about forsaking the one true God who created us. We gladly run into the bondage of sin, and we enjoy it. We justify the lack of dedication to our families with the need to provide for them. We justify the lack of affection for our husbands by their lack of provision that requires us to help out, or the fatigue that is a result of putting time in outside the home. We justify the lack of time we spend in Bible study, prayer, and worship with similar excuses.

Maybe we daughters of God Most High should take a lesson from the slaves who were so passionate about their freedom and break free from the chains of feminism that hold us back from true biblical womanhood. We need to give our worries to the Lord and realize that He is sovereign and the only one we should strive to glorify is Him.

Friday, April 9, 2010

Fun with kids Easter 2010

Sela laying on her new lamb
Grandma Ruth with Meredith and Sela
Weslee climbing into the rocking chair
Quinn and Weslee playing with Weslee's new duck
Quinn and the duck

Easter 2010

Ken with Quinn and Weslee
My Dad, Mom and Grandma with Weslee, Quinn, and Sela
With Grandma
Family Picture Easter 2010

Wooden Shoe Farm Tulip Festival





March Pictures





Work v. Play

"I have nothing to say against recreation in its proper place. Certain forms of
recreation are needful and useful; but it is a wretched thing when amusement
becomes a vocation. Amusement should be used to do us good “like a medicine”: it
must never be used as the food of the man. From early morning till late at night some
spend their time in a round of frivolities, or else their very work is simply carried on
to furnish them funds for their pleasures. This is vicious. Many have had all holy
thoughts and gracious resolutions stamped out by perpetual trifling. Pleasure so
called is the murderer of thought. This is the age of excessive amusement:
everybody craves for it, like a babe for its rattle."
-- C.H. Spurgeon

I came across this quote this morning, and I must say I was convicted by it. I started to think about the times when I only do "enough" of my household work so I can go and do something else that's more fun. I wonder how many others fall into this trap?

It's not surprising, after all, that we would stumble in this way, considering all that the secular world tells us we deserve. The mantra is "take care of yourself", "me, me, me", "do what feels good" and we as Christians too often fall into that category. I know that I've in the past written something along these lines, but I figure if I fail at it again and again, others probably do as well.

I may step on some toes here, but if you find yourself feeling offended, go first to scripture and base your refutation there instead of on emotional reactions. I think the Church is failing at keeping biblical instructions. Not that we are under the Law, but that in our freedom in Christ we are not following the instruction we are given. Nowhere do I see the Bible telling us to do "just enough" so the job is done, but not so much that it robs us of our "free time" or "recreation. In fact, we are to set an example in the things we do, and I'm fairly certain that we don't want others to think Christianity is only about "doing just enough" for Jesus. We want others to see that we are so grateful that God would choose us, so depraved and sinful and undeserving, and save us from damnation that we may have hope in eternity with Him that we would do anything He asks of us with a joyful heart and not one that is seemingly burdened by "rules".

I often see people who act like the work they do in their lives is such a burden, and they will suffer through it because God instructs them to. I am that person at times, and more often than I would like to admit. I think God placed the above quote in my path today to bring my heart back to where it should always be- focused on God and His glory.

Do you need to re-focus your attitude and actions? What steps will you take to find joy in everything you do, even in work, that Christ might show in your life? Today I will meditate and pray on what God has brought to light. I will be thankful for the grace that God has so graciously bestowed on this worthless sinner, and will do my best to find joy in even the most mundane tasks. I will look anew on the time I spend with my husband and son, such blessings in my life. I will realize that pleasure is good, but I am also to take pleasure and rejoice in whatever situation God brings into my life, whether it be work or play.

May I be held accountable for my actions and by God's grace succeed in being a light for Him, an example for others, and may I continually be growing in holiness and love for my King.