Listen to this Podcast Episode 47 here
PART 1: WORKING TOGETHER AS ONE FAMILY
It’s summertime and your kids are home out of school and out of normal routines. Summer can be so much fun with day camps, vacations and more time outside soaking up the sun, but summer can also be chaotic for a momma!
You know what I am talking about…
The playroom is a mess. Laundry is piled up from more traveling and changing clothes from playing outside. More cooking, so more groceries needed. More messes in the kitchen, living room and everywhere else in the house!
Sometimes at the end of the day, it’s just easier to pick up after everyone when it’s quiet with the kids in bed, and you can go at your own pace. However this does your children no favors in learning how to be a part of a family and carry their weight in the chores around the house. This is something I was struggling with and asking myself:
How can I explain to my kids in a way they can understand, that they must help out around the house as part of this family?
As I was pondering this question above for my own family, I came to a passage in my time with the Lord and a light bulb went off. God is so good to do this when we take things to Him!
In 1 Corinthians 12, it explains how we as Christians are a part of the body of Christ, and we must all know our role so that we do our part and function as one body to be able to take Jesus to a lost and dying world. This is the way Jesus set up the church to function and the same is true in the home. Let’s look at this passage:
“12 There is one body, but it has many parts. But all its many parts make up one body. It is the same with Christ. 13 We were all baptized by one Holy Spirit. And so we are formed into one body. It didn’t matter whether we were Jews or Gentiles, slaves or free people. We were all given the same Spirit to drink. 14 So the body is not made up of just one part. It has many parts. 15 Suppose the foot says, “I am not a hand. So I don’t belong to the body.” By saying this, it cannot stop being part of the body. 16 And suppose the ear says, “I am not an eye. So I don’t belong to the body.” By saying this, it cannot stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, how could it hear? If the whole body were an ear, how could it smell? 18 God has placed each part in the body just as he wanted it to be. 19 If all the parts were the same, how could there be a body? 20 As it is, there are many parts. But there is only one body. 21 The eye can’t say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” The head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 In fact, it is just the opposite. The parts of the body that seem to be weaker are the ones we can’t do without. 23 The parts that we think are less important we treat with special honor. The private parts aren’t shown. But they are treated with special care. 24 The parts that can be shown don’t need special care. But God has put together all the parts of the body. And he has given more honor to the parts that didn’t have any. 25 In that way, the parts of the body will not take sides. All of them will take care of one another. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it. If one part is honored, every part shares in its joy. 27 You are the body of Christ. Each one of you is a part of it.” -1 CORINTHIANS 12:12-27
Explain to your children, in order for a Sunday morning at church to happen you definitely need leaders like the pastors, but you also need people behind the scenes too. People to hold babies in the nursery, greet at the door, security to keep you safe and special event teams to help set-up and tear down when nobody else it there to see. There are many roles or “parts” in the church, and they are ALL necessary to reach others for Christ!
This part of 1 Corinthians 12 is a great definition of the family:
25 In that way, the parts of the body will not take sides. All of them will take care of one another. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it. If one part is honored, every part shares in its joy. 27 You are the body of Christ. Each one of you is a part of it.”
Your family is a team! If one of you hurts, then you all hurt. If one of you wins, then we you all take part in the joy! Each one of you is a part of the family and need to do your part.
Sports examples can also be good to demonstrate this same family concept:
Just like a baseball team needs teammates to play the infield and the outfield—Each player has a different job or position to play, but they know their roles to get the job done and function as one team. In the same sports theme, if someone drops the ball on the team, then someone else has to pick it up. (That’s usually us moms in the home scenario.) So we must ALL play our best and work hard to do our part as part of a team and as part of a family!
Knowing this brought a lot of peace to the summer chaos in our home, so I hope it will in yours as well! And this isn’t just a summer participation thing, but a great time to get a handle on it while everyone is home more together.
A few action point takeaways from here:
- Get on the same page with your husband on this subject.
- Take the time to read this passage to your kids and really explain it to them.
- Institute a “Chore Chart” on the fridge or a designated “Cleaning Hour” each day, so everyone can know the plan in how they are expected to help out.
- Join us back for a Summer Survival Part #2 on the importance of REST! (Podcast Episode 48.)
Listen to this Podcast Episode 47 here
I’m so thankful for this study. The ladies of our church and I have a Bible Study every Tuesday through Facebook. And I was praying for a lesson that will help our ladies survive not only the summer time but during this pandemic, because it has changed all our activities. We live in Rio Bravo, Tamaulipas, Mexico (border with the U.S.) and because of the pandemic everybody is studying from home, and that has changed all our chores as moms. Thank you so much! Lord Bless you all!