God’s desires for our lives often come in quiet revelations and hushed tones, nestled between dirty dishes and early mornings. It’s an invitation hidden in not-yet-mopped floors and cluttered countertops. For as long as I can remember, I wanted three things in life: to get married, become a homemaker, and be a writer. Maybe these tiny handfuls of whimsical dreams seem a bit trivial and cliché to you.

Silly, foolish. So many women want that. What makes you so special? A nothing gal like you? Fit enough for a handful of brothers your own age, good enough for brothers younger, worth friendships with men, but nothing more. You're a funny girl. Stretching out your hands for over a decade praying to a King, asking Him for what you’re undeserving. A homemaker? A man? What’s your worth? You rise early in the morning, but for what purpose? 

The Enemy continues hurling crafty firecracker lies at me until I believe Him. They burn, pierce right through me, these lies. Not good enough, nothing to offer. Loud. Deafening. He’s correct. How can I possibly implore the King once more? What right do I have? I’m a beggar with nothing to offer even the poorest man. He can’t exist. The devil is a liar, John 8:44 calls him one, and if we’re not careful, we believe him more than the Miracle Worker, more than the Redeemer of time Himself. 

So we drop the only tiny flicker of belief we could muster. We lock it up tight in boxes, throwing away the key for a time. It’s just a dream. It’s stupid really. Heavy doubt seeps deep into our core. We were wrong, or at least, I was. Thirty two years is a long time to hold on to fruitless hopes. We took a bite of the forbidden fruit, just as Eve did, believing his lies. Believing life would be better, if we just had. . .  

“Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die.” -Genesis 3:1-4

But we die daily. Little deaths to our golden calf idols. Lied to just as Eve was. Can we ever trust again? We wander endlessly in the desert for years until we hear His voice calling, “Daughter. Stop. This isn’t what I have for you. Trade your rags for purple robes. Trade your tears for joy.” 

Enough about this liar. We won’t pay anymore attention to a thief of souls and a pauper of darkness. What can he ever offer us anyway? A pittance when God longs to give us a feast. A question I raise to you now: Is homemaking the dream God gently breathed into your bones long ago? Do you have a desire to nurse babies in the early five am hours just as I do? Well, what are you doing to prepare?

First, He calls. He then prepares the called. But can you trust Him? Though He may delay, there is always purpose. Just as Joseph was prepared in the prison, the Lord prepares us, until the time is right. 

Dear woman, can you trust Him through each storm, through each painful delay? Or will you panic just as the disciples did in the midst of the turbulence? 

 “And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep. And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. -Matthew 8:24-26 (KJV)

“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

What profit hath he that worketh in that wherein he laboureth? I have seen the travail, which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised in it. He hath made everything beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end. I know that there is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life. And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God.” -Ecclesiastes 3:1-13 (KJV) 

Just as we could never consider putting a baby behind the wheel of a Corvette, we must consider the “why” behind His gracious “No, not right now, woman,” or “No not ever.” He knows us better than we could ever know ourselves. His ways are matchless, unfathomable. To be blunt, we don’t know better than God. 

So trust Him, happy homemaker, as you shove that salted dough into the oven, and wash your flour-covered hands. He knows the heart better, for He fashioned it before we took our first breath, and He longs to nourish it with good things. Be blessed, homemaker as you stitch another quilt until you cannot stretch your eyes open one more minute. The work you do in marriage, in singleness, in the keeping of your home, does not go unnoticed. He sees you. He knows you by name.

Let not the world mock you for such a worthy calling. You might be a happy homemaker and happy wife for a season. Let’s rework the phrase: joyful homemaker, blessed be the wife and the single woman. Your worth is far more than rubies. He calls you by name. Blessed are the hands that knead the dough and bake the bread. Blessed are the arms that stretch to those in need.

May we continue to strive for the Proverbs 31 example. Not perfection by any means, but to be those who stand up when duty calls. He calls us daughter, woman, servant, and homemaker until the day He calls us home. We are blessed, indeed.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kelly Beth has been a connoisseur of coffee shops, since grade school, and a writer of words for the past twenty. When she's not writing devotionals or fiction, she enjoys video games, and spending time with friends and family. You can read more of her writing at kellydetzel.com.