Note to Self: Stop Complaining

I’ve been working on applying two Scriptures this week.

First, I’ve been working on being a good steward of the time God has given me. We’ve been talking about money, and how important it is to be a good steward of it. But I’ve also been given a great deal of time. Am I being a good steward of what God has given me? That thought has been driving my decisions this week, and it’s been helpful.

Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. Matthew 25:24-28Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ^[a] depart from iniquity.”
²⁰ But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. ²¹ Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work. II Timothy 2:19-21

I’ve also been working on complaining. Today I started singing with Laurel the Steve Green Scripture song: “Do everything without complaining” and I realized how important it was that I don’t complain about my children in particular. It seems for a stay at home mom that the difficulties of motherhood are great, and the only happiness we have is when they’re quiet or sleeping. But I’ve listened to mothers who don’t stay at home and don’t intend to, and part of the problem is that the message they hear from many stay at home moms is how wonderful life would be if only our children didn’t bother us.

I think we don’t intend to communicate this attitude, but it bears thinking about the blessing of staying home with children. Having my children at home is a privilege that not every woman is able to enjoy.

• I make my own schedule.
• I have time to make dinners that I like to eat (and I’m not always shooing children out to get it done fast).
• I get to comfort my children when they trip over things and skin their knees.
• We talk in the car about how glad mommy is when she prays with daddy. That leads to a long conversation about their own future spouses. I’ve learned that those kinds of conversations don’t happen on demand. (“Tell me what you’ve been thinking about today” doesn’t always work for some of my children.)
• I’m free to stop at the park on a whim. I have time to make cookies for potlucks.
• I have time to attend a ladies’ Bible study without taking away from the time I have with my husband.
• As I think through the challenges I have to solve my children’s spiritual problems, I learn about myself. Many are the times God has used something I want to teach my children, to remind me that I am deficient in the same way.
• And God uses my children to teach me about my husband and how I can love and follow him better. As I run my household, I realize that I have a sphere of authority that is God-given. I learn to appreciate the challenges my husband has as a leader, and I am humbled when I realize how often I fall short of being a good follower.

Yes, I have challenges.

• Scheduling my own day means that I have to work at not wasting time.
• Being in the house all day means I have to work more at keeping it clean.
• I have to work at keeping my mind busy and challenged.
• At times, the whining and crying can be annoying
• Fatigue is sometimes constant enough to feel like I’m slightly losing my sanity.
• Changing diapers gets old.
• So does solving arguments about whose turn it is to play with some toy. The same toy. The same children. The same argument. Over. and Over.
• My children sometimes cause me to cry out to God because I’m helpless and don’t know what to do. Wait. That’s not a liability, is it? Sometimes I forget.

These are all small things when placed next to all the good stuff. How thankful I am for the ability to stay home. Let me never forget that all jobs have tedium, but not all jobs have the same advantages.

God’s Word is good. How are you applying God’s Word to your life this week? How is it changing you as a mother, wife, or Christian?