A Mother's Work...
By Cindy McDermott

"How do you get everything done?" A lot of people ask me that question when they find out that I have eleven children, homeschool, and work outside of the home. In our last issue of SALT, I began to answer that question. I believe that the most important thing we can do is to be wise in setting priorities. We can't do everything, and we certainly can't do everything well. It would be better for us to concentrate on fewer things and thus enjoy more favorable results. But there are so many good things that we can spend our time doing. That's where we need to evaluate our choices in light of eternity. How does God want us to spend our time? How can we accomplish the most for Him?

I know, though, that once we focus our priorities, we still have limited time. Not only are there many usual and scheduled things we need to do, but as mothers our days fill up with those things that are unplanned and not scheduled - from sick babies to unexpected phone calls to naughty toddlers and discouraged teens. So how do we get everything done that we had planned, plus take care of the things we hadn't planned? The best tip I have for getting things done is to enlist the help of your children. No, this won't work if you have a house filled with babies and toddlers. At one time, we did too, so we certainly know how that is.

When our fifth child was born, our oldest was only five-and-a-half. At that stage, you really have to make use of all the other ideas I mention, because this one won't work for you! But the time will come when the kids will be big enough to help, and their contribution will grow as they do. Even children at five years of age (or younger) can help. In the past we have written articles in SALT about the value of having children help in the home. Their participation not only adds to the efficiency and productivity of the household as a whole, but it also prepares them for running their own household, and helps instill in them the values of hard work, responsibility, family, and community.

We also need to be efficient. This can take several forms. For example, if we homeschool we can teach children who are similar in age or in ability as a group rather than individually. We can spend less time with crafts and labs and field trips. We can have our children do more self-study. Maybe this isn't your first choice of how to homeschool, but, again, we only have so much time and we need to find ways to achieve the best results in the most efficient matter. Outside of the home classroom we can be efficient by cooking simple meals, paying a couple cents more to avoid a trip to a second store or to one farther away, or writing all of our bills and cards for the month at one sitting.

We will also be more efficient if we accept results that are less than perfect. I don't have time to scrub and polish the outside and bottoms of my pots and pans. I can't get the dirt out of every nook and cranny in the house. A couple of streaks on the mirror will be all right. I don't have to iron to make sure every clothes article is wrinkle free. A couple of less Christmas decorations or a few less cookies won't ruin the holiday. And the thing about perfection is that in most cases it really isn't necessary; it really doesn't matter. Maybe it is good for our surgeon to be a perfectionist, but I don't think it's necessary for most of us in our daily lives.

It's ok if people don't understand why or what we do. It is by necessity that our standards must be different than theirs. Often I will catch myself saying, "It's not perfect, but it's good enough." Flexibility is also important! I alluded to this at the beginning of this article. It is quite likely that as parents our days will not go according to plan. There are too many events that we can't control. The children may fight. A needy neighbor may call. A child may want your attention. We may not be getting this day's planned work done; yet, this is our work. Through these things we are accomplishing our bigger purposes. We are raising godly, loving children. We are taking opportunities to teach them and show them we love them. We are keeping them safe and providing for them. We are reaching out to those outside of our family with the love of Christ. We are being flexible to achieve God's purposes for today. And there is certainly something to be said for working hard!

Being focused and efficient alone will not help us to get everything done. Sometimes when people ask me how I get everything done I tell them, "You decide what's important, and then you keep moving!" I'm certainly not advocating working ourselves sick or never having fun, but often we do not work as hard as we could or we should. Often we spend time doing things we don't need to be doing - like watching TV or being on the internet. This may involve some self-sacrifice. People ask me, "Do you have any time for yourself?" I tell them, "Well, I take a shower everyday!" Personal time is over rated. There will be another season in my life when I will have more time for hobbies or doing things for "me". I am making sacrifices now in order to achieve a higher goal and purpose.

If I work hard until the day I die, it really is ok. Eternity will be pretty awesome. And surely not least of the methods to getting things done is prayer and trust. God can give me strength when I feel I have none. God can fill in all of the gaps that I leave behind. God can see the things that I am blind to. God can bring clarity out of the haze. God can bring wisdom out of confusion. God can make it all make sense. God loves my family more than I can possibly know. I am convinced that I don't spend enough time in prayer. And finally, I believe we need to let ourselves fail and get over it - with a renewed determination to do better. Maybe I stayed up too late. Maybe my conversation to my friend on the phone was unnecessarily long. Maybe I puttered around all day without any real focus or plan. I can't change that now. I can ask God's forgiveness and then start over again - and keep going! We may still feel unable to get everything done. But thank God that He has given us such great and meaningful work to do! By His grace and according to His leading He will accomplish His purposes for and through us. "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." (Colossians 3:23-24)

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