Me and my future "Proverbs 31" girls

Do you ever come to the end of a study and feel like you should be showing a lot of improvement by now?  I know I get frustrated with myself sometimes when the change I want  is so slow. At this point I feel like I should have planted a vegetable garden, be a wiz with my sewing machine, only serve healthy homemade meals, have half of the Bible memorized, volunteer at a soup kitchen, have super obedient children and look awesome for my husband when he walks in the door after work.  It is easy to read Proverbs 31, get excited about wanting to become this seemingly perfect kind of woman, and then plummet into despair because the change we see is slow in coming.

Here are a few things that I have walked away with from our study.

1. No one who is perfect.

There is no one person alive who has it all together, either outwardly or inwardly.

    for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
(Romans 3:23)

This should actually be a comfort to those who are feeling defeated. The “perfect” woman does not exist. Only Jesus holds that ability.

It means that we should take repentance seriously and beat down any pride that we may feel.

2. As Christians we are changing

    And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in
you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
(Philippians 1:6)

Sanctification is usually a slow process by which we are transformed more and more into the image of Christ. While it is the work of God in us it still costs blood, sweat and tears. Christ’s blood and our sweat and tears in the form of hard work (through the power of Jesus) and repentance. If we are faithful we can be assured that God will be faithful as well. And even when we are unfaithful or faithless, he remains ever faithful to us. As time goes by we will be changed.

He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.
(1 Thessalonians 5:24)

3. We know what kind of woman God wants us to be.

I am so thankful that God included Proverbs 31 in his word. Here we see the kind of woman we should strive to be. We need to seek out godly character qualities like, generosity, kindness and wisdom. We need to be hard working, uncomplaining and devoted to God. The reason we are to seek out these things is because we see all of these qualities in Jesus. He is our example. Because Christ is in us we have the power to be like him.

4. Our hope before God is not becoming a Proverbs 31 woman.

I know the whole point of our study was to learn how to become a Proverbs 31 woman. The principles we see there we can also find laid out for us in other parts of scripture. Yes, we are to strive to be this godly kind of woman, but Proverbs 31 should not be our hope or where we find our identity. My hope is that Christ is a Savior who rescues women, like me, that don’t measure up. He is a Savior of those who are weak, who are tired, who mess up or who sometimes give up. While we should be eager for our character to be reflective of Proverbs 31, it is not our identity. Our identity is found in Christ, through whom we are the adopted children of God the Father. Therefore, no matter what, we are always loved, always forgiven, always heard, always accepted.

God is always at work in his children and the more we study his word, pray for his guidance and wisdom and work hard through his power we will become more and more like this Proverbs 31 woman and therefore more like Christ.

Looking To Jesus,

I sat on my ten year old’s bed and felt the heaviness in his heart.  Moms feel every bit of that, you know.  It had hit sooner than I had hoped, and hurt deeper than I could have ever imagined.

Sometimes you just don’t fit in.

He may have known it before then, but the hot tears streaming down his face confirmed that the blow was a good one this time.  His ears stuck out too much, he wasn’t athletic in the least, and that was just the beginning.  Forget his inquisitive mind and compassionate heart.  Those things don’t feel cool when you’re ten.

I waited until just the right time, then I told him the story of when I was his age.  I shared just the highlights: being invited to the birthday party of the year (all of the most popular girls would be there…), me scrounging up all of my spare change to buy the birthday girl the most hideous (but oh so cool at the time!) Pepto-Bismol-pink purse, packing my bag for the overnight bash, only to be uninvited at the exact moment the other eight giggling girls piled into the bus after school to catch a ride to the party.  Oh, I remember it like it was yesterday, and I empathized with my struggling boy.  My advice to him that night?

The world will always tug at us to fit in.  But God has called us to something greater.

I love to read the scriptures out loud.  There’s just something about hearing the Word audibly spoken that helps it sink into my heart.  So for this Proverbs 31 study, I always looked forward to when Courtney or Angela would quote our verses on their Monday videos.  And these words got me every time:

“A wife of noble character who can find?” ~ Proverbs 31:10

Only eight short words, but life changing for me.  God really challenged my heart throughout this study in one key area:

Dare to be different than the world.

The world tells us to compromise.  The Word tells us to keep doing right.

The world tells us that we deserve better.  The Word calls us to be faithful.

The world tries to talk us into cutting corners.  The Word speaks of diligence and discipline in our work.

The world tells us to be takers.  The Word talks about satisfaction in giving to others.

The world encourages worry.  The Word speaks of confidence in Christ.

The world elevates physical beauty.  The Word elevates a heart that fears God.

You see, leading a Proverbs 31 life allows for much influence for God.  Getting up early, working hard, being creative and profitable, serving others, etc. should not JUST be in an effort to make life run more smoothly (though it is often a wonderful by-product!).  Instead, when I am committed and efficient in dealing with my family and in other areas of my life, it makes room for even MORE serving, more loving, more generosity, more time to show God’s love to all around me.

The world says “Look to your own interests.”  The Word says, “Point people to Jesus by how you live.”

Sometimes it’s a good thing to not fit in.  Will you dare to be different with me?

At His feet,