Journal: Journal for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood
Volume: JBMW 11:2 (Fall 2006)
Article: Future Homemakers
Author: Nicole Whitacre

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JBMW 11:2 (Fall 2006) p. 76

Future Homemakers1

Nicole Whitacre

Homemaker, Author
Fairfax, Virginia

As a young woman, I often lay in bed at night and wondered about my future. I stared hard into the darkness, as if God had put the answers there. I had a longing to do great things for God. I imagined myself as a missionary in another country, maybe even a nurse. (I assumed my tendency to faint at the sight of blood would not be a problem.) I had visions of speaking to crowds of women, leading many to the gospel.

What I didn’t yet understand was that God’s plan for me was greater than what my imagination could conjure up. It was also very different than what I thought.

How about you? What are your dreams and aspirations for your future? How do you answer the well-meaning adults who ask about your plans after high school?

It may surprise you to learn that God in the Bible has already given you a sneak peek into your future. As women, we are all appointed to be keepers of the home (Prov 31:10–31; 1 Tim 5:14; Titus 2:5). Someday you may be called to love a husband and bring up children and make a home for them. Or as a single woman, you may be entrusted with a home from which you extend hospitality and vital service to your church and community. While you may pursue many other God-honoring tasks or occupations throughout your lifetime, you are also called to be a homemaker.

This is our purpose in life, what John Angell James calls a “woman’s mission”—to “affect society through the medium of family influence.”2 You see, being feminine isn’t just who we are; it’s also what we do. Our feminine identity comes with a unique task: to change the world by devoting ourselves to home life.

Now this does not mean that the Bible confines girls and women to their homes. The Proverbs 31 woman—the ideal homemaker—pursued endeavors outside of the home for the good of her family. And, of course, single women will have careers that require them to work beyond the home. But Scripture unapologetically

JBMW 11:2 (Fall 2006) p. 77

sets forth the high priority of the home for each and every woman.

Although this is our clear mission from God, not many young women aspire to be homemakers these days. While there are many other worthy careers they may consider, homemaking isn’t usually on the list of desirable options.

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