On Wifely Submission & Working Outside of the Home

The following excerpts are from the blog, Sunshine Mary:

"My great-grandmother worked, but she was not a career woman.  Her purpose in working was to serve her family, not to serve her own ego or materialistic desires.  The Proverbs 31 woman worked both inside and outside the home:

She considers a field and buys it;
with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard. (verse 16)

She makes linen garments and sells them;
she delivers sashes to the merchant. (verse 24)

She worked outside the home, but this was her motivation in doing so:

She looks well to the ways of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness. (verse 27)

A woman’s primary concern, whether she is working at home or outside the home, is for the well-being of her household."


"A Christian wife is concerned with pleasing her husband, not herself; she is concerned with her family’s well-being, not her own preferences.  She doesn’t fight against her husband; she submits to him."


"Your obedience to your husband is more pleasing to God than whether you spend your day at home or in the workplace."


I encourage you to read the post in its entirety - Traditionalist Marriage versus Christian Marriage Exemplifies Selfish Rebellion versus Selfless Obedience.

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 As a Christian and (far from perfect!) submitted wife that works outside of the home, the above really resonated with me.  I'm not working to climb corporate ladders or to maintain a lifestyle.  I work simply because my husband feels it is best for our family to have two incomes at this time.  In the Bible, Ephesians 5:22-24 speaks of wives submitting to their own husbands in everything.  For me the "everything" includes working outside of the home!  It should also be noted, the passage says, own husband.  While one husband may feel that it is best for his wife to be at home, another may feel differently.  However in each instance, the husband is doing what is proper for their household.  It is challenging at times to be somewhere other than where your heart desires.  Yet, I know in doing so, I'm honoring my husband and looking well to the ways of my household.  

Mary Ellen