Sunday, January 17, 2021

Keeper of the House

A Bedroom in Mrs. White's Vermont Home


I have not been able to do as much housework as I would like.  I want to keep the house and be a good homemaker.  But time and energy are limited.  The rooms are neat, but the vacuuming and the floor washing have been neglected.  I am grateful to at least accomplish one or two important matters each day.

In the midst of all the work, and worries from the world around us, I like to do a little neat decorating that brings happiness to us all. I try to do these no matter how tired I get.  Have you ever looked at the kitchen table and thought it would be nice to put out a fresh tablecloth? But that extra bit of energy takes a great deal of effort!  In most cases, I would do it anyway. It doesn't take long to make things look cheerful.  Perhaps it is only 10 minutes of effort, here and there, throughout the day, to add that extra touch of happiness in homemaking. 

Every house needs a keeper.  Someone has to do that little work to keep things clean and pleasant.  Someone has to do the shopping, plan the meals, do the laundry, make the beds, and keep things nice.  It is such an honor and a privilege to be the keeper of the house.

Whenever I have some especially difficult work to do, I find a nice old fashioned sermon to play on the kitchen radio. It is easier to work when hearing a precious message.  Today, I heard Dr. Harold Sightler preach, "What Are They Among So Many." I believe he was around 80 years old at the time of this sermon.  It is powerful and encouraging.  This helped strengthen me to do the work of making a homemade batch of pizza for the freezer.  I always keep out a few of the pizzas for the day's lunch when I make this.  I love to hear old fashioned sermons and old gospel music as I work. It brings me a sense of peace and joy.

We had a great deal of snow today.  The roads are quiet and peaceful.  There are no crowds in our rural, mountain village.  The wood pellet stove is keeping the parlour cozy.  One would not even imagine there is trouble in the world by just enjoying the happiness of home life.  This is what I hope to provide for all my family and guests - a place of refuge!

The little duties of keeping house are what keep our minds busy.  The morning work of making beds, sweeping the kitchen floor, and cleaning the breakfast dishes, can bring peace if we remember to do it all for God's glory.  We do our work for the dear Lord. We trust Him for all things.  Remembering this, as we work, creates a precious bond, in our hearts, to our Father in Heaven.   Nothing needs to be done in a hurry, for that would only cause stress and panic. Why should we worry?  It is better to schedule the chores throughout the day in order to do it calmly. We must not let the problems of the outside world affect our mood.  If mother is calm and cheerful in her work, the entire household will benefit.  

I have not been able to keep up with correspondence or blogging.  Our internet is not dependable. It has been limited for months.   But slowly I will get caught up, as time and energy allow.  I hope you are all healthy and well.  Thank you for being here.

Blessings

Mrs. White

 From the Archives -

Old Time Living - A Louisa May Alcott Winter

Financial Struggles - A New England Winter on a Small Income

A Mother's Greatest Use of Time - A Humble Parlour as a School of Theology.



 - To find out more about this blog, or Mrs. White, please visit our About page. -






Find Home-keeping Inspiration, in Mrs.White's book - For The Love of Christian Homemaking.  Paperback, 274 pages.

















29 comments:

LeighSabey said...

I always feel motivated and calmed by your posts, Mrs. White. Thank you.

Glenda said...

I just finished rereading one of your wonderful books last evening. Thank you for the lovely post today.

Kathy said...

Just want to thank you for sharing. It gives me peace.

Regina said...

I enjoyed today's post Mrs. White. I like old time sermons. I don't know if you are familiar with Dr. J. Vernon McGee but he was a wonderful Bible teacher and though he passed in 1988 his sermons are still on the radio.

becky said...

So happy to see a new post! Your words are so
calming and reassuring in this troubled world.

SIRVIENDO AL SEÑOR said...

QUE BUENO SABER DE USTED NUEVAMENTE SHARON, EXTRAÑABA SUS PUBLICACIONES. ME SIENTO MUY IDENTIFICADA CON SUS PALABRAS.GRACIAS POR COMPARTIR SUS PENSAMIENTOS CON NOSOTRAS, SON UN VERDADERO ESTIMULO. QUE DIOS LA PROTEJA DE TODO MAL,LE DE PAZ, SALUD Y SABIDURIA PARA ENFRENTAR LAS TINIEBLAS DE ESTE MUNDO. BENDICIONES.

Billie Jo said...

Oh, my friend,

I hope you know how very happy I am when I see a post from you! I find such inspiration, such comfort, such reassurance in your words. I love the knowledge that you are there in your cozy home tending and caring like I strive to do here. Please keep writing. Prayers from snowy Pennsylvania.

Unknown said...

It was so good to see this email this morning. Praying for all of us as we work to be the keepers of our homes. God bless you!

gracielynn's said...

Good morning to you from my little home on the prairie of Iowa. :-)

I was curious , as to where you listened to the preacher you mentioned ?
sounds like something I would enjoy also.

I so enjoy your videos & look forward to them everyday or so.

Many blessings ,
Lisa

Deanna said...

Dearest Mrs. White, I like very much what you say about all housework calmly being done for the glory of God. Speaks volumes. When the Keeper of the Home is calm and cheerful it does have an positive effect on others. Blessings to you!
d

Elizabethd said...

Thank you for your post today, I always feel inspired by your words.

happyathome said...

Good morning Mrs White. So lovely to hear from you
. You have a very large old house so you are doing well keeping it nice and tidy. When Summer comes and energy levels rise then chores like washing the floor and vacumming might not be so tiring.
I don't think people realise they can still have peace even in the light of the unrest currently in America. It is easy. Stay off media.
Don't get caught up in the hype and frenzy. People have voted the way they CHOSE to so let it lie and let the cards fall where they may. Don't be influenced by what others are saying that may be true or not.
Overall God is in charge. He has allowed Joe Biden to be the President.
My sincerest prayer is that things will calm down and other issues such as the virus will be dealt with.
Even though i live in NZ we still cannot be complacent as the new strains are coming over our borders ( that have now been tightened again) and who knows if the health people will miss something and it will be back in the community. If you are able-- stay home. I know a lady in Alabama who i don't think has been out of her property for 10 months. Her husband works and they are extremely careful to make sure he wears masks and changes them several times a day, changes his clothing in their outdoor bathroom area ( brrr in the Winter weather) and she takes the clothing in the basket and washes it immediately.
Let's keep our eyes on the Lord. With Love Karen NZ

Homemaker's Heart said...

A warm hello to you Mrs. White~ I was so tickled to see a post from you in my inbox today. As I read I was astounded, the Lord opened my heart to see I was doing my housework and managing our finances in a way that I was overcomplicated and straining my health. I made the decision yesterday to cut back and not do so many things in my day, but also limit how much time I can "piddle and diddle" while doing my housework. This brought such a peace in my heart.

As I read your words, my eyes grew bigger. It seemed the very thing God gave me the grace to see.

I am reworking how I do our finances, trying to find a balance and not overcomplicate things. I have all the books you've written on the matter and tried to make my own, but somehow have trouble seeing it so I complicate it. This year is a year for doing things simply for me.

{{Hugs}} to you and I wish you a warm cup of tea as a thank you. Welcome back! ~Mrs. Peterson

ladypinktulip said...

Dear Mrs. White, I am always delighted to see an email from Legacy of Home. I am disabled and unable to care for things the way I used to. However, I am learning there is profit in all labor even tiny things. I can still fold the whites. I can still cook a simple meal. I can still keep books for our family. I do research for my husband. For so many years I was in a hurry. I am trying to savor and enjoy calm peaceful moments whatever I am doing. No need to rush. REST is indeed better than RUSH. Home is our haven. We play sacred music and sermons much of the day here too. Thank you Lord for our homes. Mrs. Kelly T.

Linda said...

Hello Mrs.White, it was such a treat to see you posted today. You are so encouraging and peaceful sounding.
Thank you for taking the time to write.
Linda

Mrs. Laura Lane said...

Hello dear Mrs. White,
I do hope you are feeling better soon. You've given me a bit of peace and encouragement to go along in my home. There is much to do. I had some emergency surgery due to an infection in November, and I am still healing. I am growing stronger, and I am enjoying doing a bit every day to make my home more pleasant. I'm focusing a good deal on clearing out extra possessions that no longer suit our current stage of life.
I plan to include your post in my weekend reading list on January 23rd. I want other ladies to find you. You have much wisdom to share.
Be blessed, keep calm and keep praying!
Laura Lane
Harvest Lane Cottage

Mama Said No said...

I was so glad to see a new post from you. The Lord has given your writing the ability to slow my mind from its constant racing (I learned recently at age 63 that I have ADHD), and that allows me to order my thoughts and organize my days. Hope you are doing well.

Linda said...

Dear Mrs White, it was so wonderful to see you had written again as I had missed seeing a new post. It was good to read that the situation was caused by your internet not being reliable as I was concerned you were unwell. I do pray your energy will pick up, but I do understand as I have some days with little energy and so I just go slow, but other days I feel more energised. I agree completely that it is a joy to be a keeper of our homes. Thank you for your encouraging words. Blessings to you ~ Linda (NZ)

Amelia said...

So nice to hear from you. I too have started focusing just enjoying the everyday things...washing dishes, taking in a sweet fragrance of the dish soap and delighting in a clean bowl, it's nice.

It's a privilege and joy to be a keeper of our home here.

I can certainly understand the internet glitches, we have the same. Sometimes I wonder...Should I just forget the whole thing, but then God speaks just a little more to my heart something to share...

God bless you, ~Amelia

Katherine said...

It's always so lovely when I find you've taken the time from your home keeping and daily life to write encouragement for days such as these.

God Bless you Mrs. White.

CoalCityGirl said...

Mrs. White, your writing means so much to me. You always inspire me to get up and do something for our home. I have all your books, and truly hope you’ll be releasing another book soon. You always motivate me, Lyft my spirit, and my home is the better for it. Thank you for all you do.

living from glory to glory said...

Hello, Always a pleasure to read your post! I believe they are much needed in so many ways! I have also slowed down and do my home making task more slowly but with a bit a pondering! Keeping our home peaceful and cozy is a great joy! The world will do what it does, but we will Rest In Peace and enjoy the comforts of a home filled with blessings! Hugs, Roxy

Anna said...

If I turn around from my perch at the kitchen counter, I will see the remnants of the flurry of the day with three small children in what is basically a one room house. Their dad is studying in the laundry room-office. Today we did home school, so there are books and papers, the girls got lost in their crafts with some new felt fabric we got yesterday, dinner bits on the floor, toys strewn around from the younger two playing while the oldest (6-almost-7) did school with me, and some laundry backed up due to running out of soap during a budget squeeze (it is now over and we have a giant container of detergent, so I'm catching up), and I thought tonight, a fleeting, "why?"... should I bend over and pick up again? Not really discouraged, just a cost-benefit analysis involving the repetition of this picking up process. I prayed for something to read tonight before going to sleep, and I peeked at the article in the appendix of Old Fashioned Motherhood on the preview. (The book is scheduled to arrive here Tuesday.) I had thought tonight, "What is the one thing that has stood out to me among the things I've read a bit of that makes the most sense to me now?" And that book with its description of motherhood seemed like just the thing to think more on tonight.
The article in the appendix brought it all into focus with the analogy of the vineyard demarcated from the forest. Yes! That is exactly what it is like. Every day, polishing the environment a little more, to work better, to be more beautiful, and prayers to train the little potential tidiers, too, is like the repetitive work of tending a vineyard day after day. I've noticed that because of the deep work I've done with organizing and arranging and designing and cleaning, that even when there is a proverbial storm that comes through blowing debris all over the place, cleaning up is quicker, and somehow, there is a holding of the underlying order that brings out that bright line of--this is the wilderness and this is the cultivated part. And reclaiming ground if the forest encroaches is sometimes needed. But that bright, clean peace that is possible is such a joy and a sparkle of motivation to bring it all back to its tidy place*.

*Speaking of back in place, that is one practical thing that makes cleaning easier--everything having a place in which it belongs.

happyathome said...

Dear Mrs White
Today i brought 2 more of your books. I have brought one or two a year in recent years.
I then got out your book An Old Fashioned Budget and thought as i read i would highlight relevant to me information from it.Needless to say most pages gave LOTS of things highlighted as i grew up in the 1960s so coukd relate and remember the way things were then.
My mother always wanted new things all the time but when i married the income would not allow for that expenditure and my first husband always had debt.
After 30 years of being married to my 2nd husband we are debt free and i regret the years we were owing debt. Most from our
Own stupidity and getting caught in the worldly spending web and some of it not our fault.
Your book has been so uplifting to me and i will read the others i have before the new ones arrive
I feel peace and contentment living a quiet life as the Lord tells us we should do
God bless you. Karen from New Zealand

Rose said...

Good morning from TN, I re-read your post this morning looking for homemaking encouragement and found it: "calm and cheerful", that is what I need today, thank you! Also, I have prayed that God gives you strength and honor according to Proverbs 31. Take care!

Mrs. Laura Lane said...

You have encouraged me in my homemaking and my relationship with my husband. Thank you for years of teaching and sharing. I've read your blog from the beginning, and it was time well spent. Be blessed!
Mrs. Laura Lane
Harvest Lane Cottage

Euzinha said...

Dear Mrs. White, I'm always inpired by your wrtings.
I'm not from the States, but I've lived in your country due to my husband's work for almost 2 years and I love it as much as I love my own country.
One think I have to say is that as you do, I long for calm, peaceful and cozy days, taking care of my family and house and glorifying God, as I do it.
God bless!
:D

JES said...

Thank you for the sweet encouragement... you are always such a blessing to read ❤️

Leslie McKinley said...

Thank you for the newer post. I occasionally pop in for some words of peace and comfort from you. So, thank you!
I read your post called the Mission House, as well. And thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks for all you share. I am also blessed to own several of your books...so inspiring!

Blessings,
Leslie