"If I live in a house of spotless beauty with everything in its place, but I have not love, I am a housekeeper - not a homemaker."
from 1 Corinthians 13 for Mothers
adapted by Jim Fowler
Just reading the above quotes sets up a tension in my soul. What I wouldn't give somedays for a spotless house!! It all boils down to love, doesn't it? God looks at the intentions of our hearts. I struggle to have love be my main motivation for wanting a tidy house. I have 3 kids. They are home all day, every day. They make messes. I've dealt with this for 12 plus years. I desire to have a home that doesn't embarrass me if someone dropped by. No one ever does, but, what if they did? They would see life happening all around, piles of it. And that's really OK. Because if I tried to have a spotless home with everything in its place, I would go crazy, probably scream a lot and basically make my family miserable. Not to say that order is not a good goal. It is a very worthy one. But, there is a balance to achieve. The balance is internal in my case. I must love my family enough to allow them freedoms in their own home and I must love them enough to give them an orderly place in which to grow and learn. Oh LORD, give me wisdom and strength to do this well!
I think this is something all us homeschool moms deal with, at least I know I do. My nephew is truly the only one who sees my house 'as is', because he drops in unannounced all the time. He gets a kick out of seeing his Aunt 'normal' and not keeping a perfect house. I think that is so funny. :)
ReplyDeleteJoAnn