Finding joy in your homekeeping ministry

[PurpleButterfly]

I wrote and posted this on the old GCM board - thought it was lost forever but just found it again. :O


Our daily lives as wives and mothers is so challenging. To think that most of us dreamed of a very different lifestyle when we envisioned our SAHM roles...how little we knew! I imagined myself with a perfectly organized home, simmering scrumptious homecooked meals each evening, neatly organized and folded laundry, sparkling floors and tidy closets. What I ended up with was a high-need baby, a dh who works 70 hours a week (I feel too guilty to ask for his help), a mountain of dirty laundry that has recycled on my closet floor for about two years now, and stuff sticking to the bottom of my feet whenever I walk through the kitchen. And my house is neat compared to many others I've visited! ;)

Lately I've been discovering the amazing power of prayer as a homemaker. I learned from the wise mamas on this board that my life role is now a loving ministry - I am raising a family, loving and supporting a hard working husband, and demonstrating a lifestyle to my son who will someday subconsiously seek these qualities in his mate. What do I want to convey to my family? That the floor will always need to be swept, laundry will always be there to be washed, and dishes accumulate each day. That while I do keep up with these things to the best of my ability, I do not place a higher importance on a clean home than I do on spending time with my family. After all, dirty dishes will always be here...my son will not. There are days that I do spend more time cleaning, but I have also learned that we can survive with less sparkle and shine than I used to determine necessary.

My home is still a welcoming haven, but one that also says, "A family lives and loves here." :heart :grouphug :heart

There is a wonderful Christian mother on the Internet named Laine who sends out a semi-regular newsletter. She has helped to change my heart-attitude as a homemaker. Because of Laine, I rise before the family several mornings each week to spend time sipping a cup of tea with the Lord and His Word. He fills me with a caring attitude and deisre to make my home a nurturing place as part of my ministry as a homemaker. I leave little love notes at place settings. I pray over each family member while folding laundry (a lesson I learned from a dear friend and pastor's wife). I thank the Lord for blessing our family with such abundance as I go from room to room cleaning. I remember those without any fresh water or basics as I scrub our toilets and appliances. The Lord will fill you with an attitude of gratitude, too, if only you ask Him.

:pray

Here are some of Layne's Letters that I would like to share with you, and I pray they will inspire and comfort you the way they have affected me.

Wearing Aprons?
http://lainesletters.com/letters/aprons.html

Why I love Homemaking:
http://lainesletters.com/letters/whyilovehomemaking.html

Blessed Discipline - about homemaking and more...
http://lainesletters.com/letters/blesseddiscipline.html

The Light in my house:
http://lainesletters.com/letters/thelightinmyhouse.html

Ministering to little ones:
http://lainesletters.com/letters/ministry2littleones.html

Overwhelmed?
http://lainesletters.com/letters/overwhelmed.html

Wake up Time:
http://lainesletters.com/letters/wakeuptime.html

Well stocked pantry:
http://lainesletters.com/letters/awellstockedpantry.html

Willing hands:
http://lainesletters.com/letters/willinghands.html

Working with what you've got:
http://lainesletters.com/letters/workingwwhatyougot.html

More Laine's Letters:
http://lainesletters.com/letters.html

[Jennifer]

Thanks for posting this! The letters from her are very inspiring :)

[OnlyBelieve]

Thank you for posting that again.
We all need a little encouraging every now and then. I would suggest to anyone who does not get Laine's Letters to sign up. They are irregular (you will want more than she sends out - trust me) but they are so full of wisdom and encouragement.
Thaks again Kym.

[Mothering by Heart]

Thanks Kym :hug I loved this on the last board :heart

[tree_hugger]

Thanks Kym for posting these.

My favourite is Ministering to the Little Ones. :heart

[bostonsmama]

beautiful! laines letters are always so great to read! thanks so much for sharing.....now if you would only share that piece on homeschooling you had on the old board! kym rocks! :highfive

[mummy2boys]

Thanks for that :tu

[AngelBee]

Thanks for posting this! The letters from her are very inspiring :)


Yes...thank you! :heart

[mom2princesses]

Those letters are just what I needed today :) :heart Thank you for sharing the inspiring wisdom. . . how I wish I had a mentor like that. :cup

I want an apron now ;)

[threecubs]

Thank-you! I loved reading this. It's something I really need to work on.

[Beyond Blessed]

Thanks! Just the encouragement I needed :tu

[scottishthistle]

Thankyou so much for posting this. I'm setting my alarm early tomorrow

[larsonwoman]

Thank you Kim.. I went to the site and read the I love Homemaking Letter. I printed it out even so I could read it whenever the mood stuck me. I've read it 3 times in one day! I now also rise earlier so I can get that morning time with God. Although I don't do the coffee or tea, I do the hot cocoa!!! YUM! I actually got more done today than I usually do when I sleep in and I had more energy! Imagine that.

[larsonwoman]

I'm sorry I misspelled your name. I see now that it's Kym. I should pay more attention.

[Garnet]

I loved being a sahm. I loved the minsitry of making my home a welcome haven to my family and friends. Thats why now that dh stays at home and I work, I'm having such a problem. So please ladies get up and thank God everyday for the ability to keep you home a haven to your family. :heart

[chelsea]

I'm on my way to read the letters...but your words, Kym, have already inspired me! Thanks!! :hug

[chelsea]

Fabulous letters!! I especially needed "Blessed Discipline"!! :O Now I am off to do some homekeeping! And I'm actually excited about it! :clap

[PurpleButterfly]

:hug :heart :rockon

[Close2MyHeart]

Thanks Kym. :heart

[messiahsmisfit]

these letters are too cool :tu thanks for posting them :hug

[Michelle-Lea]

That is a wonderful post and thank you for the link to Laine. :)

[lfane]

What an inspiring post. It was just what I needed to read today.

[Singingmom]

Thank you Kym. I needed this today.

[PurpleButterfly]

:heart :grouphug :heart :pray

[3PeasInAPod]

I want an apron now ;)


I need to actually wear the aprons I have! They just hang as a decoration in my kitchen! :giggle

[SamsMama]

:popcorn

Want to come back to this when I have more time!

[Unique]

Thanks Kym :kiss

I really needed to see this now :O What an inspiration you are to me and no doubt Laine will be also :heart

Blessings to you dear sister :hug

[Rabbit]

I want to sew an apron that puts my personality into it. I'm not into the typical type of flowery.

[GotMyHeartFull]

I want to sew an apron that puts my personality into it. I'm not into the typical type of flowery.

one of myold neighbors sewed an apron out of an old uniforn of her husbands, it was really cool :rockon

[mambug]

the apron letter has made me want one so much, just like some other posts have said, my question is, does anyone know of a good, easy pattern? I don't know how to use my mom's sewing machine, so I'll have to do it my hand and I want a soft, nice flowery one, not like ones you see in the stores. I have the fabric, but am a little stuck. Any suggestions out there?
I want to be like Laine when I grow up :yes
What a blessing....

[Joyful Melissa]

I thought I had posted on this thread several months ago when I first read it but just realized I hadn't. I just wanted to say how thankful I am that you posted this thread and the links to Laine's letters. Over the last several months; if I was having a hard time getting motivated I just read some of Laine's lettersor thik about what you posted. Every once in awhile I will receive one in my email inbox and am all excited to read it. Thanks again :heart

[Blue Savannah]

Thank you!

[PurpleButterfly]

:hug Thank you, mamas. :hearts :grouphug I'm so glad others have found encouragement, too. I need to go read some of Laine's Letters again, myself! :heart

[Barefoot Bookworm]

Cool, thanks for posting this. I really enjoy being a SAHM right now.

[Teacher Mom]

ditto!

[blessed]

Thank you so much for posting this - I really needed to read it today!

[FaithfilledGranolaChick]

Thank you for posting! :heart

[Emerald Orchid]

Thank you for posting this! :hug

[PurpleButterfly]

:grouphug :heart

[Elleanne]

Thank you for this post. I tend to be a perfectionist when it comes to keeping my home clean. I admit it is a struggle for me to find the proper balance between play time with my step son and cleaning time. Now that I am expecting I am thinking even more about this. I'm not sure how to find the "right" balance... but thank you for the reminder to try. :)

[MarineWifeRet]

subbing!

[mamaroland]

I wonder, does Laine still send out these emails? When I try to click on the subscribe link on her site, nothing pops up and I noticed that the archives go back to 2007. These letters are SO inspiring, just what I needed to keep me moving on my way today, er well tomorrow after my little babe falls asleep and I get some decent sleep!

[mom-n-training]

I wonder, does Laine still send out these emails? When I try to click on the subscribe link on her site, nothing pops up and I noticed that the archives go back to 2007. These letters are SO inspiring, just what I needed to keep me moving on my way today, er well tomorrow after my little babe falls asleep and I get some decent sleep!

The email list is still active. When I clicked on the link to join, my outlook automatically opened and it prompted me to send an email to a specific address to auto-enroll in the list <laines_letters-subscribe@welovegod.org subject line: Just click SEND>.

Once I enrolled, I got my first "letter" yesterday. Just wanted to let you know in case you were still wondering.

[amyjoy]

Thank you for the needed encouragement!

[rebecca]

These letters have been a God-send to me, literally. I can't get enough of them. I've been reading them over the past 1-2 weeks and I am in awe of this woman! I can't even begin to aspire to be anything close to the wife and mother she is, but she has definitely inspired me to try!

[littlerainbow]

I have really been enjoying reading these today, what a fresh approach!

[Andrea]

I love this. Thanks.

[KLin]

wow, have not seen these in years. Great timing to see them today as I am in need of a gentle reminder.:heart

[Grace78]

Such a good reminder. **LOVE THIS**

[Anna3:16]

Wow- what nice resources!!!! Thanks!!

[Autumnmama]

Thank you for sharing this! This is my dream and I cannot wait to read all the letters! I love idea of praying as you fold the clothes and there is a huge pile sitting right across from me! I think I'll get to it!:)

[BarefootGal]

Thanks for posting this! Very encouraging!!

[Fallin2Grace]

Thank you for sharing this.
It's the inspiration i need.
I am a young fairly new mother and so im having difficulty being good at housekeeping and loving on my family...well i have no trouble loving on my family, but doing both is quite the challenge :scratch Anyways, this is such a beautiful example of a mother to strive to be and i need that! especially coming from a home where that was greatly different. So thank you for you sharing this :heart

[OrangeHope]

Thank you so much! This is so encouraging! I printed some of the letters out and have been thinking for a while now getting up while it's still dark, I find it a bit hard but I'm sure I'll find a way :shifty

[lmd0137]

:heart thanks

[Mandy<3]

I really like this! I've bookmarked the site and subscribed to the newsletter. I'm excited to go to bed early and get up early.:)

[momyshaver]

:cup

[Wishing Well]

Thank you for sharing! I've just joined the e-mail list. :)

[LovelyMorning]

Thanks! I needed this. I've been struggling with this in a big way lately.

[orthodoxmama]

Thanks for posting these letters. They are so inspiring and make me feel like being an organized homemaker isn't an out of reach goal.

[natural_mama]

:love These are awesome!! Thankyou for posting them, they're such an encouragement!

[Pearl In Oyster]

Glad I looked here today. Subscribed to the email, thanks!

[angel_uk]

Those are amazing!

I want to print them all out and put them in a pretty folder!!

[GamGam007]

I really appreciate your post. I also greatly appreciate you sharing Laine's Letters with all of us, as I, too found them inspiring! I bookmarked her website so I could go back to it, and read more of her letters when I have time.
Thanks again!!

[dollydaydream]

Just stumbled across these letters-they are wonderfully inspiring :)

[Calitillman]

Thank you Kim.. I went to the site and read the I love Homemaking Letter. I printed it out even so I could read it whenever the mood stuck me. I've read it 3 times in one day! I now also rise earlier so I can get that morning time with God. Although I don't do the coffee or tea, I do the hot cocoa!!! YUM! I actually got more done today than I usually do when I sleep in and I had more energy! Imagine that.

Yes, I've found too that getting up earlier helps you to get more done in the day.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

[Calitillman]

Thank you for sharing your post. Prayer is an awesome, encouraging thing for every household. :)

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

[princessrhani]

What a beautiful thread! I think I need to also pray about this ministry and work on my ''home keeping!''

[mrskellyray]

Following so I can go back and read those letters :)

[MamaNata]

Thank you for this post! It's lovely and very encouraging. I think I needed that today :heart