by Barbara Latta
Do you groan every time you read the 31st chapter of Proverbs?
Does that out-of-reach pinnacle persecute your self-esteem?
We read about this woman who appears to have no faults. She
works night and day and never makes a mistake. She makes money, she is kind,
and she is praised.
The comparison demon tells us we don’t measure up so why
try.
But is the Proverbs 31 woman perfect?
Several qualities are listed in this chapter, and this is how I see myself up next to her perceived perfection.
Her:
She prepares for times of lack. She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her
household is clothed with scarlet. (v.
21)
Me: Mine was clothed with Wal-Mart.
Her:
She provides for her household and the poor. She also rises while it is yet night and provides food
for her household, and a portion for her maidservants…She extends her hands to
the poor (Proverbs 31:15, 20 NKJV)
Me: Sometimes I sleep too late, and we eat Cheerios. Maid servant, are you kidding? But I
do remember the poor.
Her: She profits from her work. She considers a field and buys it; from her profits she
plants a vineyard. (v. 16)
Me: My home-based business fell into the red and my plants
died.
Her:
She fears the Lord. But
a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised. (v.30)
Me: Hallelujah, I do fear the Lord!
And this is the key—to fear the Lord.
The Bible tells us we have all sinned, so we know
this woman was not perfect. Only our Lord is perfect (Romans 3:23). Her good
qualities are focused on, but her faults are not exposed.
I would think there were times she got tired from all this
work. Opportunities for anger and lack of patience would have faced her because
dealing with people exposes differing personalities. Some days maybe she didn’t
praise the Lord like she should have. Profits may have been slim on business
transactions when she dealt with a cheat.
She was as human as you and I.
The Proverbs 31 woman is credited with all these amazing qualities because she fears the Lord. And we as Titus 2 women and daughters of God, whether single or married, have the righteousness of Christ in us.
This is how the Father sees us as His daughters. The Lord your God is in your midst, the Mighty One, will
save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.
(Zephaniah 3:17 NKJV)
When we fail, sin, act out of tiredness or impatience, we do
exhibit wrong behaviors; but our Father sees the Christ in us, not our
failures. This puts us in the same category as this icon of virtue.
We have times when we perform the same activities the
Proverbs 31 woman does, but with various methods.
- We prepare for lack when we look to the future. We save money, stockpile food (even if it’s Cheerios), or prepare clothes and homes for the coming winter or spring.
- We may rise early for Bible study, to prepare meals, get kids off to school, and drive to our own places of employment; or if we are stay-at-home moms, we work as caretakers of our own homes (the hardest job of all).
- We profit from the work we do when we receive a salary. But we also profit from work through satisfaction of a job well done. A clean house, an organized closet, or a child we corrected who finally got it.
- We do receive praise and accolades from our husbands, children, and friends at times.
Honoring God is why those positive qualities shine in the Proverbs 31 woman's life
and the reason her mistakes are not laid out for us to see.
In our Father’s eyes, we are all the Proverbs 31 woman. Even when we fail, we are still His daughters, and He rejoices over us with singing.
We are not called to compare ourselves to others. We are called to live according to the Savior’s standards.
During Women’s History Month, we can see ourselves as history
makers. Because everything we do and say leaves an imprint on someone.
Our legacy may not be perfect, but it will be positive
when we walk under the control of the Holy Spirit.
What would you like to share? Join the conversation.
Does reading about the Proverbs 31 woman persecute your self-esteem? (click to tweet)
Thank you, Barbara, for the reminder!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing, DiAnn. Have a great week. Blessings!
DeletePerfect? There's no such thing in this life, but oh, how I'm looking forward to that day my friend. My goal, like that of many Christians I think, is to minimize the amount of work He'll have to do on that day. #MoveCloserToGod. God's blessings sweet friend.
ReplyDeleteYou are right, J.D., there is no such thing as perfect. But we still seem to hold this woman in Proverbs up before us as if she is. As Christ is allowed to work in us, we can become more like Him here on earth and when we stand before Him in heaven we will be perfect. Thanks for sharing. Blessings!
DeletePerhaps the Proverbs 31 woman is the ideal, and her heart character, and mind are worth emulating, we must accept ourselves when we fall short of the ideal, just as God does. I admit when I was younger and less mature spiritually, my self-esteem plummeted whenever I read Proverbs 31.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this reassuring look at this passage.
Yes, Candyce, we must accept ourselves the way God does. He wants us to emulate those who walk in obedience to Him, as Paul told his followers to follow him as he followed Christ. I would read this passage in Proverbs and my self-esteem would plummet too. But, thankfully, as we mature we can find out we are not to live into self condemnation when we fall short of God's precepts. We get up and know we are forgiven and keep going forward. Thanks for sharing. Blessings!
DeleteI expect most of us have cringed when we've read Proverbs 31 and thought, "I can never live up to that." But you've pointed out that it is our desire and our attempt to follow our Lord, submit to Him, and do good in His service that brings joy to our Father. If He loves us enough to send a Savior for us, then we know His faith, love, and trustworthiness are unfailing.
ReplyDeleteFollowing our Lord is what brings joy to our Father. We can be thankful He did love us enough to send us a Savior who was perfect in our place. Thanks for sharing, Katherine. Blessings!
DeleteThe Proverbs 31 woman has always been a little (okay, a lot) daunting, so I appreciated your post and humor!Thanks for the reminder that we are all God's daughters and forgiven through Jesus' death.
ReplyDeleteBeing a forgiven daughter of God is the best place to be. Thanks for sharing, Kathy. Blessings!
DeleteBarbara, I always falter at the rising early part, among others. Boy, I'm not a morning person. But I too, fear God and am so glad to be His daughter. It's good to know God freed me through Jesus from comparison to anyone/anything but God's standard.
ReplyDeleteAnnie, I am so thankful God sees us that way too. Thanks for sharing. Blessings!
DeleteBarbara, I love this post and appreciate the examples you shared to show us we, too, fit some of these descriptions, just in different ways. My favorite part is: "In our Father’s eyes, we are all the Proverbs 31 woman. Even when we fail, we are still His daughters, and He rejoices over us with singing."
ReplyDeleteJeannie, the verse in Zephaniah is one of my favorites to hold on to that reminds me of how our Father feels about us. It gives us hope instead of condemnation. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Blessings!
DeleteIt's so easy to feel like I don't measure up. Thank you for the reminder that I don't have to.
ReplyDeleteErin, it is easy to feel that way when we compare ourselves to the image of perfection. Thankfully, God only requires us to accept the perfection of Jesus instead of us trying to reach that platform in ourselves. Thanks so much for sharing. Blessings!
Delete