Last night’s worship was so good for me. One song we sang had the line, “Be a servant of all, that’s right. Be a servant of all, uh huh. Be a servant of all!” This children’s song is really speaking to me today as I wrestle with the repetitiveness of my job as a wife and mother. I’m quickly learning that this job is so much harder than being a teacher.
As a teacher, I have clearly defined goals that are met, at the latest, in 16 weeks. Then I asses that semester’s outcome and revise for the next. Though the job is fairly repetitious between each semester, I’m constantly changing and, hopefully, improving for the next group of students.
As a wife and mother, I may repeat the same task bi-weekly, weekly, daily, and often hourly. Just getting the laundry done, house straitened, kitchen cleaned, food cooked, and bills paid, not to mention caring for Ethan, is a 24/7 job. Trying to progress in other areas like deep cleaning, filing, and decorating, takes a lot of organization. So lately I’ve been feeling like I’m getting nothing accomplished. I’m progressing nowhere.
Then this song, “Be the servant of all,” sticks in my head. It and my reading in Luke 4:38-39, reminded me how important seemingly small and repetitive acts of service are to God. Without the laundry getting done, Jeremy and Ethan would have nothing to wear. Without me cooking healthy meals, they would be eating fast food all the time. Without the house being kept clean, they would live in an unsafe mess. Without me caring for Ethan, he would not be a healthy well rounded baby.
Though these tasks seem to be leading nowhere, they are very important here as well as in eternity. As each day I build this foundation, Jeremy and Ethan are able to do their jobs and grow in their relationships with God and physically without the stress of wondering where the clothes, food, and clean place to rest will come from. Though this may seem a small gift, in the end it is priceless.
What a great post Tara! This is a reminder that I needed today, as well as every other stay at home mom that wonders what in the world we accomplish every day! You worded it so well too! Thanks and I hope to see you before too long!
Great post, Tara! Don’t ever forget that being a mom is the most important job in the world and also the hardest, but most rewarding. You have an eternal soul in your charge who depends on you (and Dad) to train him up in the way he should go so that he can be a devoted servant to God and to others. And you said it well…the cooking, cleaning, laundry, and other never-ending tasks are necessary and important to your family as well! You’re a good mom with a beautiful family!