What does homemaking have to do with health and wellness?  I am so glad you asked.  It has everything to do with it.  A pleasant home atmosphere, healthy food cooked at home, and cleanliness will go far in keeping the family members well in body and spirit.

In this book written in 1897 we can learn so much about the work aspect of homemaking as well as the spiritual aspect (prayer).

You can learn more about Grace Livingston Hill in this well-researched website.

Ruth was an orphan who had been raised by her aunt and uncle who had recently passed away.  Since God sent Ruth back to her brothers, she wanted to do all she could for them.  Having found the home in a sad condition, she set about to make her brothers’ lives better by cleaning up the home, decorating it beautifully, and reading to her brothers, to name just a few of her accomplishments.

Here are a few homemaking tips I gleaned from reading this book!

1.  A homemaker washes the dishes. 

“In the sink were piled the dishes of the entire day, still unwashed. They were not many to be sure, but they added to the general air of desolation.” (from chapter 1)

Today many homes have dishwashers.  Whether you wash the dishes by hand or put them in the dishwasher, keeping the dishes washed adds to the order and cleanliness of your home.  What I have learned is that it’s easier to wash the dishes after every meal.  First, this practice means that there will be clean dishes for the next meal.  Second, the sooner the dishes are washed, the less scrubbing needs to occur.  Third, if dishes are washed after every meal, there are fewer dishes to wash, and the task is not as overwhelming.

Even a few dirty dishes can make a kitchen look disorderly.

2.  A homemaker focuses on one task or room at a time.

“She had resolutely refrained from looking about her much as she went through a portion of the rest of the house. The kitchen was enough to deal with at first, and too much dreariness would take away her self-control.”

It can be overwhelming and even discouraging to look at all that needs to be done in a house.  This can be from prolonged illness, from an overly busy schedule, or from falling behind in our cleaning.  By focusing on one room at a time, we can make a huge difference in the house.

I also find it interesting that she began in the kitchen.  The kitchen is the heart of the home.  Also, it would be discouraging, distracting and unsanitary to cook meals in a kitchen that needed desperately to be cleaned.

3.  A homemaker realizes that everything needs to be cleaned; nothing just “cleans itself.”

“They [Ruth’s brothers] had supposed a table was an article of furniture that would clean itself in some way.”

Windows, doors, tables, dishes, furniture–everything in a house needs to be cleaned on a regular basis.  Furthermore, when it is cleaned on a regular basis, it does not descend to a state into which rigorous scrubbing and much soaking are required for cleaning it.

Let’s take responsibility for the state of our homes and put effort into having a clean home. 🙂

4.  A homemaker realizes that she gains motivation and momentum by working. 

“When that cupboard was cleaned and the dishes in shining order, her excitement had reached such a point that she felt she could not rest till the mantel and clock shelf were also cleaned of their rubbish.”

Once something is cleaned, there is motivation to keep cleaning.  We can sit around and wait for motivation, but it comes from doing one small task.  Then when we see the fruit of our labor, we are motivated to do more!

5.  A homemaker realizes it does not always take weeks and months to make a change in a room.

“Given nerves, a quick brain, and a pair of deft and willing hands, great changes can be wrought in the course of an afternoon.”

Have you ever set the timer for fifteen minutes and noticed how much work you were able to accomplish?  Imagine taking an afternoon and having a mind to work?  Often if we are willing to do a task, it doesn’t need to stretch out into weeks and months if we are willing to work with our hands.

6.  A homemaker does well what she undertakes to accomplish.  

“Everything was immaculately clean. The lamp chimney shone with cleanliness, and the light glowed through a rose-colored crape paper shade she had hastily improvised from a roll of paper in her trunk. The table was set decently and in order … “

Notice that the entire house was not cleaned in one afternoon, but the entire kitchen was. With two men living in the home, the kitchen probably did not have all the utensils, dishes, pots and pans that ours may have.  But suppose it took you two or three afternoons to clean the kitchen or any room in your home.  Would that not be worth the effort?

In addition, when Ruth cooked the meals, they were not done in a spirit of “Well, I have to do this; let’s get it over with as soon as possible.”  Yes, she worked quickly, yet she did it skillfully and well.  Her cooking for her family was not a task she did with resentment but one she did out of love for those for whom she was cooking.

7.  A homemaker prays for wisdom and God’s help as she serves.

“She dropped upon her knees and asked for strength to dwell in that sweet secret place, and then again for guidance in this her much-hedged-about path.”

” ..she knelt beside the one wooden chair the room contained and asked the Holy Spirit to guide her in her selection and furnishing of this room. What! ask the Holy Spirit of God to stoop to the selection of a chair or picture, to trouble himself with the texture of a carpet or the pattern of a curtain? And yet these things have more to do than we think with the influencing of human lives.”

Ruth was a homemaker who knew how to sew, clean, cook, bake, and decorate; however, she knew that she could not do any of it without God’s help.

Have you read In the Way by Grace Livingston Hill?  What homemaking tips stood out to you?  

If you would like accountability in the area of homemaking or caring for your health, I invite you to take a look at my accountability group. We have an excellent group so far, and I have been personally helped by it.  What I do is post my goals for the week; then in the evenings I check in to let others know how I did with those goals.

In order to take proper care of our homes, we homemakers need to take care of our health.  It’s much more challenging to clean when we are under the weather.  Here are three products that I take daily to feel better:

Aloe – taken internally, it helps to maintain natural energy levels, to boost your immunity, and to support your digestion [various flavors of aloe available]

This fish oil is also an excellent immunity booster and supports eye, brain, and heart health.

This supplement is to be chewed and helps to boost your immunity!

 

If you enjoyed this blog post, you may enjoy these as well:

10 Homemaking Tips from Cloudy Jewel 

10 Homemaking Tips from Not under the Law

10 Homemaking Tips from A Daily Rate