Ultimately, I want to be a wife and a mother. I believe that this is the most important calling for women. Not only is this something that I believe, but it is something that I WANT more than anything. This brings me to many doubts.
I'm in college, pursuing a degree in nursing. I chose this career because I want to help people and care for those who need assistance. My area of interest is Neonatal nursing: helping babies and mothers right after delivery. I think this would be an amazing job and also something that could become a ministry. But to be honest, I want to be a wife and mother WAY more than I want that career. My God given responsibility (if I get married) will be to my family. So, this brings me to scary doubts: Should I be wasting my time in college? What if all of my education goes to waste? I might only work for a couple years, so is it worth it? All of this time, money, and effort will be thrown down the drain! I might never even use my degree!
Well, I have been reading a book called "Womanly dominion." (written by Mark Chanski) Trust me, it's not a feminist book. Instead, it is quite the opposite. It brings to light the importance of a women dominating their gifts and talents as a nurturer and supporter. It helps women to see how they are more than a "gentle and quiet spirit" but how they are the back bone of a Christian family. By being a helper and supporter, a women doesn't take on an inferior job. Being a "stay at home mom" isn't shameful and it doesn't make you inferior to career women.
This book is AMAZING! And it was really neat because it referred to my fears of my schooling going to waste. It showed me that even if I only work as a nurse for 5 years, it will never be put to waste. As a mother, I will have an elite mission that will stretch me over all the bases and my nursing abilities and background in education will only enable me to offer more to my family.
Let me share with you part of what this book said. It explains the different areas and professions the mother will have to exercise in the home. It was so eye-opening!
"Homemaking motherhood is no refuge for the inept woman who can't "cut it" in the real world. Rather, stay-at-home mother is the ultimate profession for the elite of her gender.
She realizes she's raising thoroughbreds for the kingdom, and so she studies and reads and prepares meals with the inspirations of a dietician and a nutritionist. Her health care duties summon her often to rise to the level of nurse and physician. Domestic engineer is a suitable title for her who exercises dominion over her household headquarters by subduing swarming details into workable order. She is an economist in keeping budge, hpolding the purse strings as the accountant, and acting as the purchasing agent for the family corporation, averting bankruptcy and maintaining solvency. She's a psychologist in analyzing the peculiarities of each temperament, tracing the development of each child, and bring the apt word as a counselor in every situation. She's a personal trainer and disciplinarian as she cultivates obedience and self-control in her natively wild herd. She's a teacher and professor in instructing her students in reading, spelling, grammar, mathematics, history, science, and art. This is exceptionally and overwhelmingly true of a homeschooling mother. She's a pastor and theologian as she educates her children in the lofty themes of morality, spirituality, and eternity.
With a job description like that, I advise young women to get all the education they can. Any liberal arts or professional university degree will provide money-in-the-bank knowledge from which a mother will daily make heavy withdrawals."
I thought this was sooo cool because it encouraged me to be hopeful in my education. Even the classes where I am constantly murmuring, "why am I taking this? This has absolutely NOTHING to do with nursing." Well, those classes will be used later on in life in the career that I'm really shooting for, which is mothering.
Just thought I would share all that and encourage all the girls out there who are having my same problem. It's not all a waste. The Lord will use this all later in life, with or without kids!
