Finding Rest When You’re a Busy Homemaker

When you’re a busy homemaker, finding rest can be such a challenge. But it’s still so very important!

Rest. It’s something so hard to find – especially when you’re a busy homemaker.

Work has a way of piling up. As part of everyday life, dishes get dirtied, laundry needs washed … and even if they didn’t, dust would still eventually accumulate.

When it comes to keeping a home, work will always need to be done. Always. And if you’re a particularly finicky homemaker, a lot of work will need to be done.

Yet even with lengthy to-do lists and never-ending chores, you still need to find rest.

I’ll admit that I’m not so great when it comes to enforcing my own rest. (I know what to do – but I don’t always do it.) But it’s vital to find ways to rest and then follow through.

I’ve discovered that as a homemaker I find rest in 4 different ways:

1. Sleep.

Oh, sweet sleep. A good night of sleep can seemingly make everything better in the morning.

It’s vitally important that our bodies get enough sleep – too little sleep and you don’t function well. If you’re depriving yourself of a good night of restful sleep, you won’t be able to think as clearly, your emotions and moods are less likely to be controlled, and you may even start to feel physically ill.

To care for your home and family well, make sure you’re getting enough sleep.

2. Daily rest.

You may be a homemaker like me and depend on to-do lists to guide you through your day.

Some miraculous days, I actually get all of my to-do lists done before bedtime. (I’ve learned to scale back on my plans and try to realistically figure out what I should do in a day – instead of creating a long list I can never achieve.) When this happens, I stop and rest.

Even though I know there are plenty of other things I could add to my to-do list and my evening, I congratulate myself for getting everything done in the day – and I take a break.

When this kind of daily rest happens, I use it like an unexpected gift to read books or watch a movie with my husband.

Even if your to-do list isn’t to-done, you still can – and should – build in some quiet time to relax in each day.

3. Weekly rest.

God – the Lord of the universe – created everything in six days and rested on one. As God, He probably didn’t need rest. But He took rest, and in doing so He gave us a very clear example that we need rest, too.

Yet not many people keep a Sabbath rest anymore. Because stores, restaurants and gas stations are open on Sundays (I remember when not many were!) people can keep going every day of the week.

And with so much work done virtually, there’s no escaping it – you can push yourself to keep working every single day of the week.

You need a break, though.

For fun, just for a month, start taking a Sabbath rest. Unplug one day a week, decide to not go to stores, and just take one day a week off:

• Let your mind rest.
• Let your body rest.
• Let your schedule rest.

I am certain that you’ll enjoy the change. Whenever I take a Sabbath rest, I end up wishing every day could be the Sabbath.

Although it can be difficult to get into a Sabbath habit at first, you’ll quickly begin to look forward to it each week.

4. Yearly rest.

The older I get – and the older my kids get – the more I notice that time truly flies. I think it picks up speed with every passing year. Because of this, I’m always surprised when a season comes and goes. I’d love to take a seasonal rest, but it just never seems to happen.

I do plan a yearly rest, though. And every year, we plan a summer vacation.

I make sure to take an entire week off:

• No cleaning.
• No work.
• No duties or responsibilities.

For that one week, I want to be completely unplugged – and completely focused on enjoying my family and myself.

That means when my kids want to play with me, I can say yes and play for as long as they’d like, because I don’t have to stop and tend to the chores in my house. When my husband wants to take me out on a date night, I can say yes because I don’t have any responsibilities that desperately need to get finished.

When I took my yearly week off this summer, I actually stopped thinking about everything except the plans we made for the day and our plans for meals. All of the details of life that consume my thoughts every other day left my mind. And it was glorious.

I’ll admit that it takes an awful lot of planning and preparation to get an entire week of rest each year. But it’s completely and totally worth it. I love how fun and free I feel during the week – and how rested and refreshed I am when it’s over.

Even if rest is so hard to find – especially when you’re a busy homemaker – find it. And make it a priority so you can set aside time for it.

How are you finding rest when you’re a busy homemaker?

Feeling too busy as a homemaker? Check out these other posts, too:

• Caring For Your Home When You’re Overwhelmed
• When You Don’t Feel Like Cleaning

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Hilary

Hilary Bernstein is a Christ follower, wife, homeschooling mama, and writer who believes every Christian woman can transform her home into a haven. She's happiest when she's hosting friends and family for dinner, going on date nights with her husband, singing along to the radio while driving her kids around, enjoying live performances, relaxing on family vacations at the beach, and spending cozy family nights at home.The author of several books, Hilary loves to encourage her e-mail subscribers!

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