Why do women feel as though they must always be doing something in their home and can’t take time for a break? The answer is simple, to find rest in God and not feel guilty about it!
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I find myself feeling frustrated some days when I realize my back is aching and legs are tired from puttering around. I haven’t done hard labour or anything incredibly difficult, but the stiffness of the day sets in and I realize I have barely sat down.
And yet, even through the discomfort, as long as my children are awake, I feel I cannot sit, I should not sit, there is too much to do!
In some ways I am afraid of idleness. I am afraid of wasting the precious little time I have on frivolous things like reading or doing something I enjoy. I need to be doing something productive, all day.
Then I stopped to ask myself why I feel this way.
Why are women afraid to take a break?
My first thought was Proverbs 31:27, “She looks well to the ways of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.” There it is right there, in reference to an “excellent wife” (Proverbs 31:10), an honourable woman does not eat the bread of idleness.
Idleness is laziness, that is the direct definition. The Bible is clear in many places that laziness is a sin. To neglect important duties or tasks, or to choose to lay about is not favourable in the eyes of God.
2 Thessalonians 3:6-15 speaks even more about the dangers of idleness, explaining that if you don’t work you shouldn’t eat.
So it is clear in the Bible that we are not supposed to be lazy, that our hands should keep busy and we should be able to manage all the household tasks day after day.
Society hasn’t helped either. Social media is a constant bombardment of videos and tutorials about the things you *should* be doing.
You should be exercising. You should be making your own laundry detergent. You should be baking your own bread. You should be playing with your children. You should be working. And then it tells you to follow the link, join the club or jump in and be part of what they are selling!
But what are they selling? Is it an antidote to idleness? Is this what the Bible was talking about when it said we need to work?
Find Rest In God
As many verses as there are about avoiding laziness, there are verses about enjoying life and the rest it has to offer.
God does not expect anyone to work themselves to death. We are not saved by works but by grace! And we need to spend time in God’s grace if we truly are to appreciate it.
This means spending time with God, finding rest in Him.
Exodus 33:14 says I find rest in your presence. It doesn’t continue to say that you must be working to enjoy this rest. It simply says there is rest in God.
It means taking time with Him, alone. Seeking solace and peace with Him so you can be renewed. You are not lazy or idle if you need to take 10 minutes alone with God!
Take time with God everyday with Ann Voskamp’s guided journal “Sacred Prayer” available on Amazon.
Rest on the Sabbath
God rested, on the seventh day after He made the earth and everything in it. He created a day specifically for us to rest, the sabbath.
We should have a day set aside when our heavy work, our difficult tasks take a side seat while we enjoy something different.
For young families this means there might still be laundry and there will be meals and cleanup but perhaps it also means sharing the day with other family or friends. Maybe it is time to reconnect together, to seek ways to love one another with more time than usual.
It is not a day to feel guilty about sitting and enjoying the good things in life. When we do these things and remember it is through God we can enjoy these things, then we do not do them idle.
Don’t Tear Your House Down With Your Hands
The Bible says a wise woman builds her house but a foolish one tears it down with her hands.
This isn’t to say that you are going to break your house apart brick by brick or that by taking a day of rest will make your household fall apart.
Instead it is saying that wisdom makes a house strong. It is God’s wisdom we need to be seeking, and that is why we need to take time with Him. We are more likely to do damage to our family if we haven’t taken time with God.
Our short temper and impatience is more likely to get the better of us if we haven’t spent time seeking God’s strength in those areas. When we rest in God, we give our bodies, minds and spirits the break it needs from the daily struggles. Take time today to rest in God’s presence and seek His restoration!
Take time to rest in God with this devotional/doodle/colouring book. With pages to encourage you, but also spaces to record prayers, to colour and to meditate on scriptures from God. It is the perfect place to spend time in God’s presence! Grab your copy today, available on Amazon.
Find rest in God and the share this post to encourage others to do the same!
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