Homemaking: The Highest Calling of A Woman Can Have

Careers. When you think of careers, lots of thoughts probably pop into your mind. Firefighter. Policeman. Doctor. But you may not have heard of the most prestigious career for women available. No, it's not being a CEO or an executive or president of a booming corporation. No, in fact, it's more of an unsung career, a career rarely spoken of, even amongst many churches today. It's a career that when many young ladies hear it they either roll their eyes or cringe. Have you ever heard of "homemaking"? You may have heard it in terms such as "a job for the weaker woman" or "a wasted life of a woman" or even "a woman's totally unfulfilled life." But in reality, homemaking is nothing like these things. In fact, homemaking is the highest calling a woman can have.

What is truly the definition of homemaking? It is just like it sounds - it's making a home. It's managing and running a household. It's being a stay at home wife and mother. We read about the greatest homemaker in Proverbs 31. Throughout the chapter we learn of the Proverbs 31 woman's virtues involved in the home ("providing food for her household" and not being lazy and caring for her kids and husband and running her home). Homemaking is one of the busiest, yet most fulfilling, careers out there.

Let me quickly clarify that running a household does not mean that you're the head of it. God makes it very clear that the husband is the head of the household and the wife is to submit to him (Ephesians 5:22-24, 33; Colossians 3:18; 1 Corinthians 11:3; Titus 2:5).

But practically, what is homemaking? What does it involve?  Homemaking means that home is your job. You work hard to make it a fun, safe, God-honouring place for your family.

I realize that to many young women (and older women) this may not sound like a "real" job. I mean, homemakers are "just" stay-at-home wives and mothers. But you may not realize that this career actually involves many other careers within it. The world thinks of homemaking as a wasted life, a boring, unfulfilled job for women who are too lazy to go get a "real" job. But before you adopt the world's thinking, let me share a list of careers that my mom and I made, each one a large part of a homemaker's job:

-chef/baker   -florist   -interior decorator   -accountant/bookkeeper   -artist   -cleaning woman   -party planner   -nutritionist   -secretary   -handywoman   -vet   -librarian   -media critic   -manicurist   -shopping specialist   -gardener   -life guard   -counsellor   -park warden   -preacher   -shoe saleswoman   -mail woman   -banker   -nurse/doctor/pharmacist   -lawyer   -bus driver and (if late) race car driver   -dentist   -tailor/seamstress   -dry cleaner    -hairdresser   -psychologist/psychiatrist   -journalist   -writer   -theologian   -musician   -athlete   -teacher   -policewoman/warden   -judge   -driving instructor   -travel agent -researcher   -computer technician

Tell me, is that a boring, wasted life? Truly, homemaking is the highest calling a woman can receive.