I apologize for the lack of posting the last few weeks {my site was hacked} but I am up and running again {except that you may still see a warning in Firefox, does not happen in IE} so I will try to sum up my final thoughts on the book today and briefly touch on the chapters I wasn’t able to post about {how was that for a run-on sentence?}
We have been reading Passionate Housewives, Desperate for God for the past few weeks. Here are my thoughts on the last chapters and then a summary at the end =) 
Chapter 5 talks about freedom from perfectionism.
- For those of you that follow my organizing blog or listen to my podcast, you know that I am all about letting go of the pressure of perfectionism. My sweet friend at Pleasing to You and I think quite similarly about this subject and she has started a new focus on Mondays called Lopsided Living {be sure to check it out!} The author talks about a moment where had she insisted on living up to self imposed perfectionistic expectations, she would have ultimately taken a blessing away from someone else (page 80). This is so important to remember! If we do something just because we can we may be preventing the person that God had in mind for the task from fulfilling their calling.
Chapter Six
- I agree with the authors that the consumerism of our society and the culture of materialism we live in contributes to the demise of families. I also believe that it contributes to our need to strive to be something we weren’t created to be. The amount of debt that the average household carries saddles the family with undue stress and obligation. Only when we stop being of the world and just live in it, will this cycle stop. And that is only going to happen one family at a time.
- This quote from page 87 struck me as well: Would we still praise God if we had to keep dirt floors clean, children healthy, and gardens growing in a strange new environment far from family and friends? The author was referring to women from previous centuries but it made me think of the women who are selflessly following their husbands into the mission field abroad. Serving God when it is not convenient and comfortable. Those are true heroes to me!
- This was also a thought provoking statement “Homes that are emptied of their meaning and purpose make up the culture in which we live. When homes do not have creative, happy, intelligent mothers keeping them, their occupants go elsewhere to learn how to behave, to learn what music to love, to learn what art to imitate…Being keepers at home is about focusing upon the Lord in all the everydayness so that our houses become centers of hospitality, forgiveness, training, business, welfare, charity, shared mourning and celebration, and-oh, yes- lots of tracked in mud, crumbs under the chairs and everything else that goes with human beings“ The reason this statement struck me is that the teens I work with are missing this element in their lives. One young girl mentioned that my husband and I were only the second couple she had met in her life that had been married for more than 10 years. Another had never experienced a sit down family style dinner until she dined with her mentor and family. Being a stay at home mom is a witness to these girls and I never looked at it that way before.
Skipping to Chapter ten:
- Maybe it is because I have health issues that require me to take care of myself {so that I can take care of my family} but my fur goes up when the authors start saying that a mom putting herself on her own to do list is selfish. Do I think that taking care of yourself can be taken too far…become an idol in your life? Absolutely. But, the Bible also tells us that we are to love others as we love ourselves. To me, loving myself is not burning the candle on both ends in the name of service. Believe me, I have tried it…not pretty at all!
Final thoughts:
This book definitely made me think and challenged some beliefs that I have held for a long time. While I do NOT agree with everything it says, I do agree with the premise that societal norms and biblical truth do not always match when it comes to being a Godly wife and mother.
Did you read the book? Please share your thoughts in the comments!
