Breathe.

I have really noticed since Christmas past that 'things' have gotten very expensive. We have always managed fairly well on one income, but between then and now some invisible bubble has burst and we are straining to make ends meet. This is not just in our family, but other homemakers like myself  are feeling the pinch as well.  Things are still extremely tight. Frugal websites and blogs are popping up all over the web. Families doing things leaner and many suffering genuine hardship.
Victorian images embellish pages, prettily displaying faithful homemakers demonstrating the domestic arts. Making things by hand, or from scratch, the return to simple living again is much on the mind of many women fighting for the home and the family. Many women are 'rising while it is yet night' to prepare the bread or some other meal for the next day despite the fact that modern appliances take all the hard work out of doing everything.
As pretty as those Victorian images are and as romantic as the domestic engineer is represented we most certainly do not live in that era, nor would I have wanted to. We have come to have a certain view of what a Christian homemaker looks like, who she is, who she isn't, and like everything else, we have turned it into a fashion statement and aspire to meet the criteria adhered to by some who have 'got it all together'. To cover or not? What style of  modest clothing is acceptable? Will I be accepted?
I have found many of these blogs to be very encouraging and helpful in my call as the keeper of our home here in Toowoomba. They have not been afraid to address difficult topics and have approached those topics with a scholarly and biblical approach, but with some I would ere on the side of caution and others would not even consider.
If you are heavy burdened, weighed down or feel suffocated reading some of the information on web sites, close the page, open your Bible and read what the Creator tells you about how to live your life. Read its words, love your husband, laugh with your kids, please, just don't get stitched up trying to have the perfect house and the best behaved kids. LOVE THEM, HAVE FUN WITH THEM, LIVE WITH THEM. Mess up sometimes. Then you can all do the family thing and clean the place up.
Economic trends peak and ebb, but Our Lord is ever faithful to those that love Him and are called according to His purpose. The Christian life simply put should be about Christ. He encouraged us every step of the way to trust in Him, to follow Him, to worship Him. See, I don't really identify frugality with Jesus Christ. He talks about things being pressed down and overflowing, has gone to prepare a mansion for us, so I don't think God is stingy. Just take a look at His creation, and it is beautiful and bountiful, except if you're in the desert, but even then there is an oasis. You just have to find it.
I urge you, please, check today, examine yourself, follow your Creator, the Lord Jesus Christ. Let Him be your guide in raising your family. Don't march to somebody else's drum, when it comes to your family.
As the Last Days rush in, I believe it is going to be more difficult to follow the Lord, and for those who listen to the Spirit concerning home and family, it will become more difficult to finance a one income situation for the lie that more money is mightier. Nothing can replace a peaceful atmosphere in the home, Nothing, no after school programs, vacation care, day care, can replace a committed, prayerful mother dedicated to raising a loving, godly family.