Top Tips for Moms Who Really Want To Be a Stay at Home Mom

Since childhood, I’ve been fascinated with the story of Moses and the children of Israel. I’ve watched the Ten Commandments movie at least 50 times, and the kids’ version, The Prince of Egypt, probably twice that number.

I used to marvel at the fact that “those rebellious Israelites” could see God perform miracle after miracle (hello parting of the Red Sea!) right in front of them, yet they still doubted God and complained about Every. Little. Thing.

I talked badly about “those ungrateful people” until, during one of my many times reading their story, God revealed a harsh truth about myself: I was just like them.

Wait, what? How am I anything like those ungrateful complainers?

Read the story again and look deeper, He encouraged me.

And as I read the story of the exodus again, I begin to see myself in their journey. I had been just as guilty as they had been. In what ways, you ask? Oh, let me share with you how.

I Want To Be a Stay-at-Home Mom But Why is it So Hard?

They all had the opportunity to make it to the Promised Land. Pharoah had let them all go.

Yes, they may have had different backgrounds, abilities, and experiences, yet they all had the same goal. Their goal was to leave behind a position of slavery and move forward to a land of freedom.

Each person had access to the plan. They all heard about it. They even had a guide to direct them along their journey. And this Guide supplied them with food along the way.

What more could they ask for?

Everything, apparently.

• The plan wasn’t what they would have chosen. They could think of hundreds of ways to make it to the Promised Land quicker and easier.
• And they couldn’t even see their Guide. How did they even know if He was really qualified to lead them successfully?
• The food they were provided didn’t look, smell or taste like what they were used to—the delicacies from Egypt. Where was the fish? Anything fried? What about the seasonings?
• They had to walk too long between sources of refreshing water. And who wants to dig to find water?

All they did was complain.

From my vantage point, now thousands of years later, I can say, What were they thinking?! But when I looked a little closer, a little deeper, I began to realize that I was no different.

I wanted to be a stay at home mom—desperately. But I could now see that my actions were quite similar to the children of Israel who were following Moses.

Here’s how…

Why Some Women Never Make it To Their Dream of Stay-at-Home Mom

What were the Israelites’ main problems? Their negative, complaining spirit, their lack of faith, and their disobedience.

What did that have to do with me? How did it relate?

1. They doubted God’s plan for getting them to the Promised Land.

Because they couldn’t see their guide and He was leading them a way they weren’t familiar with, they didn’t trust His plan.

So, I had started following a plan—a course and online mentor to guide me on the path to becoming a stay at home mom. But because I didn’t really know her and she wasn’t teaching in the same way or the same exact things as another course instructor (who seemed more successful), I decided to switch.

When the new plan by the new guide was taking too long, I switched again. And then again.

I soon came to realize that it wasn’t them. It was me. I wasn’t giving the plan—any plan—enough time to work and I wasn’t trusting the process.

So my journey to becoming a stay at home mom was getting delayed each time I switched.

The Lesson

Stick with the plan and trust the process. When you pick a good mentor or guide, you’ll have to acknowledge they know more than you do. They’ve been where you are and know how to get you to where they are now.

Chances are you aren’t seeing success because you have yet to stick to something longer than 6 months. You’re always running to the next best thing.

Decide to stick with your current plan for at least 18 months, doing exactly what is instructed, and completely implementing the plan. If, after 18 months, you are not profitable, then consider switching.

2. The food God provided didn’t look like what they were used to.

So they wanted fish and meat, and He gave them white flakes.

It’s just not the same thing.

But what they failed to realize was that manna provided their bodies with all the nutrients they needed to be healthy and to sustain the many harsh days ahead.

The meat, which they eventually got, left them sick and weak, and many died.

I wanted to turn in my two-week notice and be home with my kids right away, but we couldn’t afford that. I even tried to convince my husband to take on a second job so we could keep our same lifestyle (what was I thinking?!).

The Lesson

Sometimes the path to staying at home doesn’t look like the path we asked for. You may have asked God to give you the opportunity to become a full-time stay at home mom, but He might say you have to be a work at home mom instead.

You might have asked to leave your job in two weeks, and He said you have to work longer to pay down debt first. Or maybe He said you have to first downsize your home and cars.

The “food” that we ask for may seem better for us in our own minds, but we have to trust that God knows what’s best overall. His food—His path is always the best one for our ultimate good.

3. They had to go too long between getting refreshing water.

It was hot in the desert and they would get really thirsty real quick. When they got to a source of water, they filled up. But when they couldn’t find an easy source of water the next time, they complained to Moses.

Moses even grew tired of their complaining about water and ended up disobeying God by striking the rock in anger.

For me, the refreshing water sources were the times my work from home paid off and I had income flowing in. However, it wasn’t steady at first. I couldn’t budget around it because it was somewhat sporadic. I became discouraged and was even tempted to give up.

The Lesson

The lesson I had to learn was to measure out my “water” frugally—to budget wisely and save furiously. I also had to find sources of encouragement to stay focused on the goal and not give up.

If You Want To Be a Stay at Home Mom, Don’t Delay the Process

In conclusion, the children of Israel’s unwillingness to follow God’s instructions prevented many of them from entering the Promised Land. And the rest had to wander around an additional 40 years before they could go in.

What if they didn’t complain and resist? What if they had just followed the plan?

As you pray and ask God to give you His plan for your desire to become a stay at home mom, decide to trust His process and follow His plan.