Are you being productive with your time?
Merriam-Webster defines productivity as
having the quality or power of producing especially in abundance
Does being a productive mom mean that we get a lot of things done? Does busy equal productive? Does it mean that we cross many items off of our list each day? That we go to bed exhausted? Or perhaps that we do it all – raise well adjusted children, keep a beautiful, clean home, and earn significant income in the marketplace. Where do we get our standards for productivity?
Proverbs 9:10 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.”
I would suggest that we not look to the world for our definition of productivity, which is chasing after the wind. Instead we should look to God’s standard in His Word.
And what better place to study an example of the ultimate productive mom that in Proverbs 31?
The Woman Who Fears the Lord
10 [d] An excellent wife who can find?
She is far more precious than jewels.
11 The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will have no lack of gain.
12 She does him good, and not harm,
all the days of her life.
13 She seeks wool and flax,
and works with willing hands.
14 She is like the ships of the merchant;
she brings her food from afar.
15 She rises while it is yet night
and provides food for her household
and portions for her maidens.
16 She considers a field and buys it;
with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
17 She dresses herself[e] with strength
and makes her arms strong.
18 She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.
Her lamp does not go out at night.
19 She puts her hands to the distaff,
and her hands hold the spindle.
20 She opens her hand to the poor
and reaches out her hands to the needy.
21 She is not afraid of snow for her household,
for all her household are clothed in scarlet.[f]
22 She makes bed coverings for herself;
her clothing is fine linen and purple.
23 Her husband is known in the gates
when he sits among the elders of the land.
24 She makes linen garments and sells them;
she delivers sashes to the merchant.
25 Strength and dignity are her clothing,
and she laughs at the time to come.
26 She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
27 She looks well to the ways of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
29 “Many women have done excellently,
but you surpass them all.”
30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,
but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
31 Give her of the fruit of her hands,
and let her works praise her in the gates.
How does this description make you feel? It overwhelms me and can make me feel inadequate, until I realize that this woman didn’t necessarily do this all at once. This description of her would be over the many seasons of her life. She takes care of her home, her family, and her body! And, with God’s grace, in the right seasons, she finds time to earn in the marketplace. She has focus on the right thing at the right time.
She has wisdom.
That’s what we need, ladies! We need God’s wisdom to guide us and help to keep us focused on what is important.
In God’s economy, being a productive mom would mean that we obey God’s call for our lives and follow Him. So, how do we do that in our modern world?
Check my next post where I challenge you to take time and space to discern what God is calling you to do NOW, in THIS season of your life.
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