Finding joy in household chores

 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might  ~ Ecclesiastes 9:10

Whether you live in a house, unit, apartment, condo, tent, caravan, cabin, houseboat or tree house — you will have chores that need to be done. You can't avoid them — well you can, but it will make your environment pretty unpleasant in no time flat. Whether we like it or not, household chores need to be done and we can't escape the drudgery of it. 

Even today in 2016, most chores falls to the lady of the house even though women around the world  are in constant battle to get their menfolk to help (it can be one of the major points of tension in a marriage).  Some say that housework is solely a woman job and we shouldn't even be asking men to assist. I look at it slightly differently, whilst women are managers of their homes — everyone in the household contributes to the mess, therefore it would be nice if everyone helped in some small way.  It is a great way of training up the children (or rather a necessary training as they, once adults, will have their own homes to care for) and there are a many jobs around the house that men can do and their contribution helps towards the overall running of the house and home and in turns creates a lovely environment to live in. Its all about team work and a husband and wife are a team.

Just remember HYGGE, the Danish concept of home that I wrote about in a previous post!!

Some women outsource — my mother had an ironing lady for many years, others have a cleaning lady  who comes weekly or fortnightly — but most of us do it ourselves.  Interestedly, with more women in the workforce, the standard of cleanilness has declined in the last 30 years. Women no longer iron the sheets and vacuum the drapes like they use to (I don't even iron my tea towels). Ovens and fridges are no longer cleaned as often and houses are far more dusty. Overall, less housework is done now compared to the 1950s or before.

My motto for housework is simple — do a little each day and stay on top of it, otherwise it doesn't take very long before you start to drown in the amount of the work that needs doing. If a little is done each day, no one needs to spend very long doing housework. And if the load is shared among the family (my husband vacuums which is such a great help), including the children—the workload is no longer daunting. 

Regardless of how I do my chores, there will always be chores I strongly dislike doing — cleaning the shower and bathtub, cleaning the fridge and ironing. Whether we like these jobs or not, we still need to do them and as Christian women we need to have the right attitude towards our chores . . .


. . .  a godly attitude of service: doing each chore joyful and hopeful with a smile on one's face! And remember, that once done, the pleasure of a sparkly clean house is very rewarding for all.


* Lets be thankful that we have a home of our own to clean and take joy in what God has provided for us. We need to thank the Lord for the beds that give us a good nights rest (even if we have to make them in the morning), for the washing we have to do (as it means we have clothes to wear) and for the crumbs on the floors as it means we have food to eat (even if we have to sweep and mop afterwards).


* Look at our chores as a blessing and find the positive in this work — that we have a home to clean, that we are able to clean our homes and that we have a family that will appreciate all our hard work (even if they don't say so).


* Remember, our chores keep us busy and active and that in turn keeps us out of mischief (too much time on the internet or watching TV) and that is also a good thing — "She watches over the ways of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness." (Proverbs 31:27)

* And no matter what we do — including the yucky chores and keeping our homes in order we need keep this firmly in our minds: "do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men" (Colossians 3:23)

* Focus on why we are doing these chores — its not about pats on the back or rewards for having the cleanest house in the street: "Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others." (Philippians 2:3-5)

So whilst we grumble and avoid doing chores and for some women, happy to live in messy homes (saying its more important to spend time with the children) — we do have a responsibility to keep our homes clean, tidy, hygienic and in order and in turn, all our hard work will create a wonderful environment for all to enjoy.  We aren't doing this for ourselves, we do all things for the Lord, including a clean home.

PS focus on the end product - whilst you might make a mess cleaning up the bathroom cabinet — what a great feeling once it is all done and the room is neat and tidy. 

One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries. —A.A. Milne