A Woman of Simplicity

I am the type of person who enjoys having a lot of different things going on. It's like putting a puzzle together - how can I get each piece fit into its proper place. The trouble is that becomes a high stress way of living and I can't get the day to day things done not to mention my job as wife and mom gets neglected. So the idea of moving to Fayetteville and having no job outside our home gave me a sense of relief. It also scared me to death!

Last fall my Ladies' Bible study - what's up my sisters in JC - did a book called "Becoming a Woman of Simplicity" by Cynthia Heald. It challenged me to not settle for doing good things, but focus on doing God things - the best that He has for me as a part of His Will (not mine). I began to realize as good as the part time jobs were and as much as I loved doing them, I was needed at home more than I was able to give. And right about that time we began to look at this job at UA for Tyrone.

Sometimes I need an extreme "shove" from God to get me going in the right direction and I see this move as just that. It has been very challenging to JUST be a wife and stay at home mom. It has also been very rewarding and I won't trade it for anything right now. I have been able to take the kids to the park and the library, keep the laundry done, make the beds, make lunch for Tyrone everyday, and the list could go on and on.

This summer Tyrone and I watched a video series by Andy Stanley called "Guardrails". He had his wife help on the discussion about marriage/family and she said something very profound that I use as my foundation for this new job I have. It comes from Nehemiah 6:3-4 - "so I sent messengers to them with this reply: “I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and go down to you?” ⁴ Four times they sent me the same message, and each time I gave them the same answer." Nehemiah was given permission by King Artaxerxes to go to Jerusalem to rebuild the wall around the city. He met great opposition from his own people and his enemies.

I meet great opposition every day about only being a wife and mom. Some of it comes from "good" things. Some is in my own mind. Some is from the enemy himself. I meet all of it with the response from Nehemiah. The job I am doing as a wife and mom is a great project and this is where God wants me to be right now. I know some day he will provide an opportunity for other things outside our home, but for now I must follow His lead and stay on my "wall".

This is easy to say and difficult to do so pray for me when God brings me to mind.