Guest Contributor Jessalyn from from Desiring Virtue
We’ve all thought it as we respectfully highlight and underline our way through Proverbs 31: “Who is this woman, and why does she have to be so perfect?” I’m sure you would agree that she sets a pretty high standard for the rest of us imperfect wives! Often I find myself rebuked and discouraged after reading through this foundational piece of instruction for my calling as a God fearing wife.
But let me ask you a question: Isn’t this the case with our Christian lives in general? Aren’t we called to the highest standards as children of the Lord? Displaying the character of Christ is not exactly an easy thing to do; in fact it is impossible in this fleshly body. This truth, however, does not change the fact that we are called to live out Christ’s holiness in our everyday life!
I was first encouraged to relate these two callings by a very wise man leading a marriage class at our church. “Wives,” he said, “when you feel like you will never be the Proverbs 31 Woman, remember that you are also called to walk as Jesus walked, which is a far more difficult task.” Jesus is the incarnation of Wisdom in every area of life, the Proverbs 31 woman is simply an example of a wise homemaker.
This virtuous woman is a specific picture of applied wisdom. She is the ultimate homemaker and represents the wisdom of God lived out in the daily and mundane tasks we often find ourselves overcome by as homemakers. She is purposefully described as uncommon and rare. The writer acknowledges that she is not your everyday woman, she is the ultimate woman! It is no wonder that we find it so difficult to find ourselves in her, weak and sinful as we are.
Yet, as I alluded to earlier, the standard that we are called to in this text does not diverge from the rest of Scripture. It is not in addition to the commands we already have, rather it is an application of the way of wisdom in our specific calling as wives and homemakers.
For instance, take verse 15 into consideration:
“She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens.”
Now, we may not all be able to relate to this (apparently) wealthy woman’s management of her maidens, but we can all relate to the inherent benefits of rising early to serve our families. The concept of being disciplined in the area of sleep, however, is not relegated to this passage alone. Throughout the Bible we are given instruction to not overindulge in this area of our lives. Passages like Proverbs 20:13 give stern warnings about the consequences of slothfulness and encouragement to seek the rewards of a disciplined sleep life:
“Love not sleep, lest you come to poverty; open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread.”
This type of discipline is encouraged throughout the Word of God, but in the instance of Proverbs 31 it is specifically applied to the life of a wife and homemaker. How wonderful to have this picture of practical wisdom to look to as we aspire to be homemakers who glorify the Lord!
The question arises, “Why does this woman bring glory to the Lord?”. How does my effort to be the virtuous woman in Proverbs 31 bring glory to my God? The virtuous woman brings glory to her Savior not because of her works, but because of her faith in the One who can make it all a reality. In a very real sense, the realization that we are unable to attain this woman’s perfection, is the only way we will ever be able to resemble her!
The wisdom that the virtuous woman displays in her homemaking is just as impossible as every other example of wisdom found throughout the Word of God. What hope does any woman have of reaching these goals? The only hope any of us have is in God himself. When we are tempted to despair in our calling to be wise homemakers, we must remember these precious truths:
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.
~ Proverbs 9:10 ESV
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God,
who gives generously to all without reproach,
and it will be given him.
~ James 1:5 ESV
God calls us to impossible standards, but he also provides us with his own power to attain those standards. The Gospel of Jesus Christ didn't just have the power to save our souls from an eternity of torment, but has the power to daily infuse our lives with Christ's holiness. What is left for us to do, but admit our own inability and rely on the incredible reserves we have in Christ?
It is for this very reason that I titled my blog “Desiring Virtue”. I know that I am not the Virtuous Woman in Proverbs 31, but I desire to be! I know that I can confidently desire to be virtuous because my God delights in bringing his children to sanctification. It is his desire for each of his daughters to grow in wisdom, daily growing closer to the image of Christ, and therefore closer to the image of the Proverbs 31 woman.
“And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven.” (Colossians 1:21-23 ESV)
By His Grace, Jessalyn
About the Author:
When Jessalyn isn't scraping crushed goldfish out of the carpet or changing her spit-up, soiled blouse for the unteenth time, she might be seen blogging at DesiringVirtue.com or snuggled up on her bed, coffee in hand, engrossed in a volume of Spurgeon's Sermons.
Her love for the God who saved her soul from the pit compels her to live out her callings as wife, mother, and homemaker through the grace of God in a way that brings glory to his name.
Find Time-Warp Wife on facebook: Click here
If you would like to have Time-Warp Wife delivered to your inbox daily, simply click here: Subscribe to Time-Warp Wife
Today and every Tuesday, I want to invite bloggers to link-up any blog posts that will encourage women to joyfully live out their roles as wives and keepers of their homes I'm looking for posts on marriage, parenting, housekeeping, or recipes.
All you have to do is enter the direct link from your post into the linky tool below!
I'd also like to ask you to link back here with the {TITUS 2}SDAYS code (below) so that other bloggers can join in too!
When Jessalyn isn't scraping crushed goldfish out of the carpet or changing her spit-up, soiled blouse for the unteenth time, she might be seen blogging at DesiringVirtue.com or snuggled up on her bed, coffee in hand, engrossed in a volume of Spurgeon's Sermons.
Her love for the God who saved her soul from the pit compels her to live out her callings as wife, mother, and homemaker through the grace of God in a way that brings glory to his name.
Find Time-Warp Wife on facebook: Click here
If you would like to have Time-Warp Wife delivered to your inbox daily, simply click here: Subscribe to Time-Warp Wife
Today and every Tuesday, I want to invite bloggers to link-up any blog posts that will encourage women to joyfully live out their roles as wives and keepers of their homes I'm looking for posts on marriage, parenting, housekeeping, or recipes.
All you have to do is enter the direct link from your post into the linky tool below!
I'd also like to ask you to link back here with the {TITUS 2}SDAYS code (below) so that other bloggers can join in too!
In participation with:
0 comments:
Post a Comment