As a Christian mom, it’s important to remember that running a successful business at home often requires making some hard choices. Money isn’t everything and should not necessarily be the primary factor in determining what sort of business to run from home. Moms who want more than anything to stay home, but feel they must contribute to household income sometimes get desperate as they search for viable work to do from home.
Identify Priorities to Help in Decision Making
It’s important, however, to identify priorities and lay out some principles to help in decision making. Otherwise, Christian moms can become side-tracked and can end up making poor decisions about the type of business best suited to their families. Remember that Jesus said, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Matthew 6:33
Before even beginning to consider a home-based business, it may be helpful to look at the most important resource a mother has – her time. If she is willing to acknowledge that all that she has has been given to her by God and that she is a steward for him of all her resources, including time, she will budget her time in line with God’s will for her as His children.
Prioritizing Time Expenditures
A Christian mother might prioritize her necessary time expenditures something like this.
- Spiritual: Setting aside regular times for Bible study and prayer.
- Spouse: Don’t neglect the nurture of the marriage relationship. A family’s well-being and happiness is dependent upon a strong bond between husband and wife.
- Children: Christian moms often look for work to do at home so that they can be there for their children. The job must fit the “family first” priority.
- Rest: It can be easy to forget that without health, nothing else matters. Moms need to make time for self-care, too.
- Recreation: So important for maintaining health and a positive outlook on life, mom’s need to find time for fun.
- Paid Work: In reality, a Christian stay-at-home mom really doesn’t have a lot of time for paid work. But, just as Jesus multiplied the loaves and fishes and fed a multitude, He can multiply a mom’s efforts when she does her best to honour Him in her life.
God Makes Up The Difference
While things may be uncomfortable for a period of time as a mom restructures her life and sets her priorities in order, remember that God will bless the outcome.
What’s Real Success?
Real success is more than money in a bank account. Author Ernie Zelinski in his book, Real Success Without a Real Job (Ten Speed Press, 2007) asserts, “The less money you need to be happy, the freer you become.”
Counting One’s Blessings
What’s most important is to practice an attitude of gratitude. A pastor once asked his congregation, “How many of you have met a happy sick person? How many of you have met happy poor person?” The point is, happiness and a feeling of success do not come from many of the things that many people in society seem to equate with success and happiness. Living at peace with God, one’s family and humanity in general is true happiness and success.
See also A Mom's Guide to Work-At-Home Success.
Tammie Burak - A former elementary school teacher, Tammie Burak traded in her daily commute for a classroom at home where she now homeschools her own ...
