Tending to projects around the house this summer has given me an abundance of time to think. As a mother, I have found that my mind tends to be in this constant state of wandering quickly from one topic to another: remember to add this to our grocery list, don’t forget to do this, call this person, research this, etc. It is truly amazing how fast our minds can wander from one topic to another, especially when you are doing something mindless like finishing up a 2nd layer of paint.
Yet, there is a recurring theme that my mind is constantly gravitating toward. It has been a persistent theme this summer; coming and going over and over again, offering encouragement. I think it will be encouraging to you, as well, so I am sharing it here.
Mothers, do you know how important your job is? I’m not talking about your job outside of the home (if you work outside of the home) nor am I talking about your job as a home-educator (if you are a homeschool mom). I am talking about your job as a mother. Whether you are the mom of a 21 year old or a 2 year old, who you are to them and what you do for them is important. Nothing you do throughout the day, no matter how seemingly insignificant it may seem to you, is meaningless. That pile of dishes you just put away, the bed you made, and the meal you just prepared: they may seem small, but these small gestures are meant to help prepare something much larger. They are meant to be the foundation that points our children to Christ.
Does this mean we should love these tasks or that we will never get weary in doing them? Honestly, I don’t believe that is even possible within the scope of our own perspective, but maybe a new perspective would help! After all, have you even considered to whom you, as a Christian mother, are really doing these things for? Do you remember that your obedience is an act of worship to the King?
I ran across this perspective while listening to an Elisabeth Elliot commentary the other morning when she referenced a quote from Frances Ridley Havergal.
This is the secret of steady and unruffled gladness in “the business of the Lord, and the service of the King,” whether we are “over the treasures of the house of God,” or, “for the outward business over Israel.” It makes all the difference! If we are really, and always, and equally ready to do whatsoever the King appoints, all the trials and vexations arising from any change in His appointments, great or small, simply do not exist. If He appoints me to work there, shall I lament that I am not to work here? If He appoints me to wait indoors today, am I to be annoyed because I am not to work out-of-doors? If I meant to write His messages this morning, shall I grumble because He sends interrupting visitors, rich or poor, to whom I am to speak them, or “show kindness” for His sake, or at least obey His command, “Be courteous”? If all my members are really at His disposal, why should I be put out if today’s appointment is some simple work for my hands or errands for my feet, instead of some seemingly more important doing of head or tongue?
I loved that last part, “If all my members are really at His disposal why should I be put out if today’s appointment is some simple work for my hands or errands for my feet?” When I think of this in terms of a working kingdom, each person with their own task to do, it makes my job feel so much more important. I have been given the incredible responsibility of taking care of the King’s children, His most loved possession. I could be doing things that may appear more important to others, but to Him…this is it.
Sarah Mackenzie in Teaching From Rest shared the story of an artisan who worked tirelessly for many years to carve a beautiful bird into the wood portion of a cathedral that would be covered up. When someone asked why he was working so hard on something that no one would see, he replied, “Because God sees.” She goes on to say:
God sees your little wooden bird too. Just as the artisans and carpenters of old built beautiful cathedrals for the glory of God, so do you. Yes, you — you who work tirelessly day after day over a geography lesson, a math test, a laundry pile, a kitchen sink. Those are the moments wherein you build cathedrals for God.
I know…these days are wearisome sometimes. I also know, that in this world of position and status that it is easy to look at other’s with more prestigious titles than ourselves and feel small. I hope you see there is incredible value in motherhood. These days of small things are the building blocks to something greater.
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