Dear HeartBeat,
Should all mothers be stay-at-home moms?   My Mother-in-law is giving me fits about staying home with my 3 kids who are 5, 7 and 10.   My husband works very hard, but, our household with just one income will be horribly tight.   I have a chance to work at a job that I love and make good money to help out my family.   My MIL believes it's against God's Word for the woman to work outside the home; what do you think?
Thank you, Gayle from Oklahoma

Dear Gayle,
There really are only two direct verses/passages that talk about a mother staying at home with her children. Titus 2:3-5 says, "Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted too much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God." The other direct verse is 1 Timothy 5:14, which says, "So I counsel younger widows to marry, to have children, to manage their homes and to give the enemy no opportunity for slander." Another translation for the phrase "to be busy at home" in the Titus 2 passage is "to be keepers at home."

Also consider some less direct verses. Proverbs 14:1 states that it is wise for a woman to invest in her home. While it is not necessary to be a stay-at-home mom in order to invest in your home, we see the priority that God places on the home and the woman's involvement. Clearly the home is not to be neglected for the sake of outside employment. Deuteronomy 6:4-9 teaches the importance of constantly teaching our children. Of course, this is addressed to fathers as well as mothers. Staying at home with your children would only give you more opportunities to teach your children God's ways. So it is a positive investment that you can make in your children's lives by literally applying this passage of Scripture.

Finally, Proverbs 31 is the well-known passage about the wife and mother of excellence. From the description of her, we learn that this mother did work outside of the home. However, her family never lacked anything. She maintained a proper balance, so her family never suffered. Her family was always her priority. While the Bible leaves women the choice whether to stay at home with the children or go to work outside the home, it certainly is a commendable thing for a mother to be at home with the children and devote herself to training them full-time. Women are definitely encouraged in Titus 2 and 1 Timothy 5 to stay at home with their children. Whatever a woman chooses, she must maintain her home as a priority and not let it fall by the wayside.   These days it's imperative for two incomes in order to survive in today's society.   I do not believe it's a sin or wrong to work outside the home… just make sure, as said before, that you maintain your home and be the example to your children that God would have you to be.

Blessings, HeartBeat