1) Prairie Muffins are committed to obeying God’s law in every
area of life, as they are aware of its application to their lives and
circumstances.
2) Prairie Muffins are helpmeets to their husbands, seeking
creative and practical ways to further their husbands’ callings and aid them in
their dominion responsibilities.
3) Prairie Muffins are aware that God is in control of their
ability to conceive and bear children, and they are content to allow Him to
bless them as He chooses in this area.
4) Prairie Muffins seek to conform themselves to the image of
God by not chafing at the trials and afflictions which He brings to them, but
thankfully submitting to His loving providence as He makes them fit for
heaven.
5) Prairie Muffins improve their intellect and knowledge as they
have opportunity, first by seeking wisdom from God’s word, then by reading good
books and other materials which help them to make informed opinions about a wide
variety of subjects.
6) Prairie Muffins dress modestly and in a feminine
manner.
7) Prairie Muffins protect the innocence of their children,
until such a time their children are mature enough to be exposed to
potentially-harmful cultural influences.
Prairie Muffins are creative, learning new skills and working
with their hands to provide items of beauty as well as utility for their
families.
9) Prairie Muffins do not reflect badly on their husbands by
neglecting their appearance; they work with the clay God has given, molding it
into an attractive package for the pleasure of their husbands.
10) Prairie Muffins are patient and forbearing, not responding
rashly to slights, perceived or real.
11) Prairie Muffins own aprons and they know how to use
them.
12) Prairie Muffins prefer others above themselves, seeking to
serve God by serving others, especially members of their own
household.
13) Prairie Muffins practice hospitality, graciously, even when
their home is not as perfect as they would like.
14) Prairie Muffins have a sense of humor, even in the midst of
trials.
15) Prairie Muffins do not become paralyzed by fears and
worries; rather, they see God’s loving hand in all their
circumstances.
16) Prairie Muffins are accomplished at organizing and
delegating.
17) Prairie Muffins place their husbands’ needs and desires
above other obligations, arranging their schedules and responsibilities so that
they do not neglect the one who provides for and protects them and their
children.
18) Prairie Muffins are fiercely submissive to God and to their
husbands.
19) Prairie Muffins appreciate godly role models, such as Anne
Bradstreet, Elizabeth Prentiss and Elisabeth Elliot. They do not idolize Laura
Ingalls Wilder (Little House on the Prairie) or Louisa May Alcott (Little
Women); while they may enjoy aspects of home life presented in their books, PMs
understand that the latent humanism and feminism in these stories and in the
lives of these women is not worthy of emulation.
20) Prairie Muffins make significant economic contributions to
their households in many ways. They are careful with the hard-earned money that
their husbands bring home, wisely weighing expenditures to ensure that they
stretch the dollars as far as they can go, without being parsimonious. They also
may help their husbands in their husbands’ callings or bring money into their
households through homecentered business under their husbands’ authority, as
long as that activity does not detract from their very important homekeeping
duties.
21) Prairie Muffins recognize that all good gifts come from the
Father of Lights (James 1:17) and they also realize their privileged position as
“home despot,” thus they are grateful to God and their husbands for enabling
them to engage in the wonderful role of homekeeper.
22) Prairie Muffins try to maintain a peaceful environment for
their families by keeping their voices quiet and their tones gentle as much as
possible.
23) While Prairie Muffins seek to have a multitude of wise
counselors, they are careful not to
elevate mere men and women to a position
where they are tempted to idolize those whom they admire. They also are aware
that all have weaknesses, and they accept this reality without discarding the
good teaching of those godly people who may occasionally stumble in their
weakness or with whom we sometimes must disagree.
24) It is not possible to fit Prairie Muffins into a box. They
come in many shapes, sizes and flavors, they have a variety of talents and
interests. All their pursuits, however, are weighed to see if they are pleasing
to God and done in obedience to His will as revealed in His word.
25) Prairie Muffins are tough on themselves, but forgiving of
the faults and differences of others, without sacrificing their commitment to
truth and righteousness. This is sometimes a difficult balance, but one which
Prairie Muffins strive to keep.
26) While they often may feel like they have split personalities
because of the many hats they must wear, Prairie Muffins do have their feet
firmly planted in two worlds: the now and the not yet. In the now, they must
deal with the realities and disappointments of everyday life, praying for daily
wisdom and walking by faith, not by sight, as God providentially directs their
steps. In the not yet, they strive for the biblical ideals by which they
determine the direction of their lives, understanding that they may fall short
of these ideals as they struggle with their flesh and their circumstances, but
trusting that God will honor their humble obedience with a more mature faith and
the blessings that come from both the struggle and the obedience, in this life
and in the next.
27) The letter “P” at the beginning of their names should be the
only similarity between Prairie Mufffins and Pharisees. Never should the Prairie
Muffin haughtily pray, “Thank God I am not like that…(fill in the blank).”
Rather, she should always say, “There, but for the grace of God, go I.” This is
not to say that obedience to God’s law is not important, however. Prairie
Muffins gratefully accept the yoke that Christ places on them, and they seek to
have the mind of Christ with the godly perspective which sees the burdens of our
Lord as truly light; He is the One who gives us strength to carry those burdens,
and He is even the One who carries them.
28) Prairie Muffins mind their own business. While that business
may include encouraging other women “to love their husbands, to love their
children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their
own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored,” it most
emphatically excludes encouraging other women to run ahead of or resist the
authority of their husbands or elders in pursuit of any PM
distinctive.
29) Prairie Muffins are open to correction from proper
authorities. They are responsible to submit to their own husbands, to their
elders, and ultimately to God. If rebuked by these authorites a PM should
receive such correction gracefully and gratefully. If rebuked by others, she
should take the concern to her proper authorities.
30) “Home, Sweet Home” is more than just a sentimental saying
for the Prairie Muffin. Her home is the center of the Prairie Muffin’s
activities. Of course, she needs to occasionally go away from home to engage in
various activities related to her calling, but her focus is on making home a
haven for her husband and children and using it to glorify God in whatever
ministry to others He may call her. She is content in her home and does not see
it as a prison from which she constantly must escape. She wisely rules over her
domain by keeping busy in her full-time calling as homekeeper. Chocolate
bon-bons may be a rare indulgence, but Prairie Muffins don’t have the time or
inclination to waste their lives on soap operas or other inane and inappropriate
entertainment.
31) While Prairie Muffins try to be women who make plans and
stick with them, so that they use their time wisely and reach the goals they and
their Prairie Dawgs have determined for their families, they also know they must
be flexible and be prepared to meet whatever circumstances fall into their laps,
sometimes at a moment’s notice, responding with grace and calm.
32) Though we abhor the idea of women being involved in the
military and fighting battles which men are commanded to fight, Prairie Muffins
recognize that there is a real battle in which they are on the front lines: the
battle of the seed of the woman against the seed of the serpent. In this
most-important conflict, we gratefully serve King Jesus in the capacity He has
given us, waving our wooden spoons and rallying our children to stand alongside
us in the battle, training them to be mighty warriors in the defense and
furthering of God’s kingdom.
33) Prairie Muffins are not clingy, they are clinging. There are
many things in this world that it is tempting to grasp, even good things such as
our homes, our marriages and our children. Our hands need to be firmly planted
in the Savior’s hand, not clinging to those things which are good gifts from
Him, but clinging to His will for our lives. When those good things are
sometimes taken away, we must accept what is better, knowing that our loving
Father wants what is best for us.
34)A Prairie Muffin is generously affectionate with her children
(and husband!), lavishing hugs and kisses on each one as a reminder of how
precious they are to her.
35) This society worships rugged individualists, and lone ranger
Christians are often the rule rather than the exception. While we know that it
is becoming more difficult to find family-friendly and biblically-based
churches, Prairie Muffins reject the notion that commitment to a local church is
optional. We affirm the importance of the church in our families’ lives, and we
willingly submit to its leaders. It is our desire to raise children who are
life-long worshipers in the pew and future leaders of strong
churches.
36) Prairie Muffins are happy to be girls—they rejoice in the
distinctives which God sovereignly bestowed on them which make them feminine.
They are also happy that their husbands are masculine, and they do not diminish
that masculinity by harping on habits which emanate from the fact that boys will
be boys, even when they grow up. In addition, Prairie Muffins are careful not to
use their feminine, hormotional weaknesses to excuse sinful attitudes and
actions, but learn to depend more and more on God’s grace and strength in the
midst of any monthly trials.
37) Prairie Muffins may go against the flow, but they also know
how to roll with the flow. Living moment by moment, day by day, season by
season, they don’t depend on present circumstances to dictate their direction in
life. Circumstances change constantly, so Prairie Muffins hang tightly onto the
Father’s hand while they ride out the waves of life that ebb and flow past their
doors.
38) The chief end of the Prairie Muffin is to glorify God and
enjoy Him forever. Because she is not her own, but belongs to her faithful
Savior Jesus Christ, she understands her responsibility to please Him in all
she
does, looking to His holy, inerrant Word for guidance in everything pertaining
to life and godliness. As a Berean, she measures all she reads and hears against
that plumbline, and she purposes to gratefully obey God’s law, in His strength,
because Jesus, the second person of the Trinity, said, “If you love Me, keep my
commandments” (John 14:15). We understand that nothing we do will merit our
salvation—that is only given through the imputation of Christ’s righteousness to
us—but serving our Lord is part of our sanctification. The Bible has some very
specific things to say to women regarding their God-given role, and Prairie
Muffins take those divinely-ordained distinctions very seriously.
39) Aware that they are being watched, rather than becoming
paranoid—or annoyed—Prairie Muffins are employed* in setting a good example for
those who have their eyes on them. We in no way wish to endorse adopting masks
to hide the real “you,” but we firmly believe that what is on the inside will
show through, so we suggest remembering that there is no hiding the real you
from those who know you best, i.e., your family. By God’s grace we will continue
to work on cleaning up our act, being that good example, knowing that “more
attention our children pay to what we do than what we say.”
40) The women who will have the greatest impact on the world,
those who will have the greatest influence on history, are those “well-behaved”
women who faithfully serve God in their daily lives, seeking His approval rather
than the world’s admiration. Prairie Muffins know that while engaging in the
kingdom-building work in their homes of loving, training and disciplining their
children, the world may not express its approval, but it will be turned upside
down.
41) Self-fulfillment is not a motivation for the Prairie Muffin.
As time flies by, she senses the urgency for living a “real” life, really living
life for eternity. Our goal should be to please ourselves less and please God
more: our pleasure should be pleasing God.
42) We are reminded in Proverbs 10:19, “In the multitude of
words sin is not lacking, but he who restrains his lips is wise.” Prairie
Muffins must refrain from being mouthy, including online. It is not our place to
always set everyone straight or tell everything we know. In fact, Proverbs also
warns us not to answer a fool according to his folly (Proverbs 26:4), so pray
for wisdom before unleashing your opinions like any fool with a keyboard. This
entreaty to restraint particularly applies to battles of which you have no part.
She who has ears to hear, read carefully the admonitions of the great Puritan preacher,
Matthew Poole, on the issue of detraction, an admonition that is never more
timely though written hundreds of years ago. Then go back to Proverbs, starting
with chapter one, because if you want to be a Proverbs 31 woman, then that’s the
place to begin.
43) There are many good things that Prairie Muffins love: their
husbands, their children, their churches. But most of all, Prairie Muffins love
their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and though those other treasures are
precious, they hold them lightly, trusting in God’s providence regarding even
those most prized possessions, knowing that to hold them too tightly would be
replacing them with God in their affections, and that would be
idolatry.
44) As we pour out our lives in service to God and our families,
we do not measure success by the visible return on that investment, as if we are
accountants keeping record on a balance sheet. In the economy of God’s kingdom,
our sacrifices are of great value, even though we may not see all the benefits
now, or even in this life. We mustn’t regret any effort given in service to our
Savior, and we ought to follow the example of Paul who rejoiced to be “poured
out as a drink offering” (II Timothy 4:6), knowing that in pouring himself out
on the sacrifice and service of the faith of others, he did not labor in vain
(Phillipians 2:16-17).
