Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Are You a Good Steward of Your Time?


It seems that many women have a very difficult time keeping their homes clean and tidy today. In the "olden days" before all the new technology, everyone in the family had to pitch in and help run the farm to even put food on the table. Those who did not work, literally did not eat. 

Our society today lends itself to laziness. When the mass exodus of women left their homes for careers, the husbands, children and homes were forgotten. There was no one home to raise and train the children. One of the many things I hear from women is that their mothers did not train them to keep a clean and tidy home. Most of their mothers had careers and were gone from their home all day or they were too busy watching television shows or talking on the telephone to teach them.

Life is so much easier as an adult if you are trained as a child many things: how to clean and keep things tidy, how to cook, NOT to be lazy, spend time in God's Word, not overeat, exercise, be kind and loving to others, etc. It's much more difficult as an adult to train yourself in these things. If your were trained by your parents in all these good ways, thank them, will you?

With the advent of mothers leaving their homes, fast food became popular; food with little nutrition and very fattening. It was filling but had empty calories so it promotes eating too much. With the dishwasher, dryer, washer, etc., it leaves too much time in many woman's hands so they waste their time on meaningless things.

We need to spend our days in keeping our homes clean and tidy, cooking nourishing foods, training our children in the ways of the Lord, and productive things that please the Lord. Do your children a huge favor and train them how to be good stewards of their time. I love what Erin said about pouring your life into something other than your family in this post ~

For some of the other young mothers that just do not heed the still small voice, they will one day wake up, even after they made their big walk of fame and glory, after they have helped a million mothers, and they made a fortune along the way, they will also wonder what I have wondered these past months. We wonder these things because God puts a desire in our hearts to minister to our families. And when they notice that their kids are all grown, moved far away, don't need them anymore, they will mourn for that loss. For when they gained the whole world but they lost the souls of their children, which is a risk they are taking, they will regret not listening to that still small voice when it was whispering in their ears to pour into those that He had given and entrusted to their care alone.

These words will make some of you weep; those whose children are already all grown and you wasted those precious years pursuing your own interests instead of those the Lord has given you. Young mothers, spend the short years raising your children WITH them. They need and want you. It is a decision you will NEVER regret.

Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
Ephesians 5:16

Comments (19)

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This is encouraging especially for those days when you really think about all you are sacrificing to pour yourself out into your family. it's so rewarding though! I wouldn't want to be anywhere but with my children all day and here when my husband arrives with dinner ready!
1 reply · active 503 weeks ago
We are called to encourage one another daily since the daily grind of life can easily cause us to forget all we have to be thankful for! You've got your priorities right, Cori.
As a young mother who stays home with her toddler and infant, your daily posts are a HUGE encouragement to me! Thank you for being an encouraging voice in the midst of the worlds chaos, and for speaking the truth in such a straightforward way. I really appreciate it.
1 reply · active 503 weeks ago
You're welcome, Caitlin. I am so thankful to the Lord for giving me this platform to teach others since I've always love learning and teaching!
Hi Lori,
First and foremost, thank you for your blog. I visit you every day, and your words have had a profoundly positive influence on my life and marriage and family.
I am a stay at home mother to my two children (13 and 15 years old). My fifteen year old daughter is a wonderful, respectful, kind and loving daughter in almost every possible way. I am very proud of her. But I need your guidance in one area that I cannot seem to fix - the state of her bedroom. Over the years, I have tried many different ways to get her to truly care about her room, about her personal space.
-Ignore it completely and let it go to rack and ruin.
-Force her hand and tell her exactly what needs to be done, and when she needs to do it.
-Somewhere in between the above two.

I would really appreciate your direct guidance on what I can do, that will change how she treats this space.

Yours Sincerely,
Mara.
2 replies · active 503 weeks ago
Since she is still living under your roof, Mara, I think you need to force her to keep it clean. It will eventually become a habit for her and she will thank you one day. Make a list of how you want her to keep her room and do a daily check. If she hasn't done her list, take away a privilege such as going out that weekend. Be creative in rewarding and punishing her since she is close to being an adult and you don't want to humiliate or discourage her in the process.
Thank you Lori. As you mentioned it is a little bit delicate because of her age. I wish I'd been more disciplined with her in this area when she was much younger. I did try, but wasn't consistent enough for long enough. Better late than never! I'll let you know how it's all going in a few months. Thank you.
Thank you for your straightforward honest approach to writing.
Its not that parents work, its because they are lazy about teaching their children to looking after a home. I worked full-time and still found the time i.e. to teach my sons to cooking healthy meals, how to bake, to clean the home via Saturday morning chores (whilst they didn’t enjoy the dusting or cleaning the bathroom, they are thankful I taught them these skills). If you want to teach your children, you will always find a way.

Likewise parents themselves prefer to open a jar of pasta sauce than learn how to make it. My husband gets home cooked meals every night, it isn’t difficult and nor is it very time consuming. My fridge is full of fresh vegetables and I have a suite of recipes that are simple to make. It isn’t rocket science. We live in a society where people don’t like doing the mundane and prefer to outsource it.
1 reply · active 503 weeks ago
This is wonderful for you, Joluise, but most women don't have this kind of energy and God commands that I teach young women to be keepers at home regardless of whether or not some women have been able to juggle family, home, marriage and a career successfully. I would never have been able to do it all and am so thankful I never had to.
Thank you for the encouragement. Sometimes my daughter asks me to play with her. I usually do not but tell her that God gave her her brother as a playmate. Should I be playing with her?
2 replies · active 503 weeks ago
I didn't play with my children much but I know many women do. I don't think it's an issue of whether to play with them or not, it's more of any issue of using our time wisely. Is your home clean and tidy? Do you fix nourishing food? Are you disciplining and training them? Are you teaching them to work? Are to speaking to them often about the Lord and His ways? Do you read to them? Are you loving their daddy? These are way more important for a mother to be doing than to play with her children. If she has time and enjoys playing with them it's great but if she doesn't, that's fine also. I didn't and my children grew up to be wonderful adults!
Thank you Lori for your wisdom. I recently heard a sermon and the preacher mentioned playing with your children and it got me wondering if I was doing my daughter a disservice. I do try to do all the other things you mentioned and I enjoy them all, except cooking. :)
Hi Lori,
Thankyou for yet another great post. I have an addictive tendancy to things. passed on by my mother. and so internet quickly became my addiction and escape. my husband bought me an I pad mini, at my nagging. And I think it had been a HUGE problem. Thankfully, I had set it on my kitchen bench one night, and inexplicably it dropped to the floor, the cover flew off and it hit the tile floor with an almighty crack! the screen was badly cracked. But surprisingly, it still worked. and them my charger cord started playing up. I couldn't get it to charge. finally, my ipad went dead from lack of battery. I told my husband not to replace it. it was a waste of time and a stumbling block for me. so he is happy with that. I also delieberately bought a dinosaur of a cell phone that basically only sends text and makes calls. No internet. This has really given my back some time! im so glad I made that choice. I definitely was NOT redeeming the time. and then I wondered why my children were lazy or naughty. They were copying me! Thankyou for these wise words!
1 reply · active 503 weeks ago
You're welcome! At least you recognized it and did something about it. I have a dinosaur of a cell phone also and am fine with it. When I'm out, I can look up and enjoy what's happening around me instead of being glued to my phone!
Dear Lori

Oh so true!, when growing up my Mum would never allow us to be lazy and also, constantly reminded us how blessed we were to have beds to sleep in, food to eat, things that NEEDED cleaning etc and a daddy who worked hard to provide things for us. We were what alot of people would have considered quite poor money wise and certainly didn't have expensive toys but Mum would never allow any moaning about that and trained us well to be thankful for what we did have!. We felt very loved and blessed regardless of lack of material things.
Blessings
Helen UK
3 replies · active 503 weeks ago
Wow, Helen! What an incredible mother you had. I'd love for you to write an entire post for me about her, if you'd like. I think she'd be a great inspiration to many other mothers! If you do, simply email it to me. Thank you!
Hi Lori
I will try over the coming weeks to do that, I am not much of a writer but will do my best :)
Blessings
Helen UK
I disagree! You are a beautiful writer!

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