08.17.09
Posted in Productivity, Proverbs 31 at 3:00 pm by trisha
Proverbs 31:13 She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands. 14 She is like the ships of the merchant; she brings her food from afar. 15 She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens. 16 She considers a field and buys itl with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
The NIV says eager and the ESV translation of the Bible says willing. Two awesome words to say a woman that is ready to work!
When I walk in to a room that had previously been clean, organized, and presentable, instead I find couch cushions out on the floor, toy bins dumped, thrown, books pulled off shelves, and the floor is covered with various debris of a 30 minute chunk of time, I thought would be bliss? I think to myself, “YOU are kidding me!!! This will take forever to put back together.” My redeemed heart COULD say, “Looks like these kids had fun while I was upstairs making lunch, maybe we can make a fun game of cleaning this up together.” My heart would be stilled. My heart COULD be eager to clean up after my children instead of aggrevation, masked with a happy face, trying not to dishonor my kids and make them feel like a burden.
6am, the alarm goes off. I have an hour before my kids wake up and greet my husband and I for the day. Some mornings, I am eager to get to work, to work out, get some time alone in the Bible and pray that my heart would be patient and that I would be self-controlled that day. Most mornings, my heart groans, “could it possibily be 6, already?” Am I eager, willing, and ready to get up and serve my Lord?
The sluggard stays in bed long past time to rise for work. Proverbs is full of verses rebuking the lazy sluggard, who is the opposite of our eager and willing worker. Here are a few looks at how God describes this reluctant worker.
Proverbs 6:9 How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep?
Proverbs 20: 4 A sluggard does not plow in season; so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing.
Proverbs 26:14 As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed.
Where is Jesus in the midst of the messy play room or alarm clock going off? In my flesh, I don’t see him, I don’t acknowledge the Holy Spirit tapping on my wandering heart. The truth is, those moments are precious opportunities for me to obey. To obey and worship Jesus, to be still, to know that a messy room doesn’t mean I am messy. My messes are not who I am. Even in the midst of chaos and endless task lists, my heart can be calm. My desire is that my heart would be continually Controlled by the Spirit.
Eager. Eager and Willing are the opposite of Lazy and Disobedient. Are you the Eager Servant or Reluctant Sluggard? What motivates you to do either? AGAIN, we are to see that the Fear of the Lord could be our motivation. Fear of man, can superficially motivate me sometimes to get things in order, yet my heart isn’t intrenched in the satisfaction of serving my family, which is serving the Lord.
When I am tempted to not work with eager and willing hands, is my heart sensitive to the Lord? When I say, “ugg, more work, could it really be this much, Lord?,” am I quick to rely on God for strength? Do I pray a dependent on Jesus prayer, “Lord, please make me quick to serve and eager to put others first!”
Do you ever find your self tempted by laziness, a sluggard mentality? Do you struggle to get organized? Do you change your behavior for a while and eventually find that you are right back where you started? I am praying that you, that I, can continue to gaze on Christ and that He would show us where repentance needs to happen. Perhaps, it is selfishness, love of pleasure, lack of self-control, lack of time-management, i.e., stewardship, etc.
Sluggards can repent. And the proud productive worker can repent. The willing servant can repent of feeling like you have arrived. There is no proverbs 31 woman. There is only Jesus. He is the goal, the precious treasure! He is the reason why I can get out of my bed at 6am.
Working with willing and eager hands isn’t the end, it is a means to worship. And it is worship when you surrender your desires and your desires change and become a willing heart enjoying Jesus, and EVERY part of His lavish grace on you.
So, my friend, are you worshipping? Where is your struggle? What side of the fence are you on? Or are you straddling?
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08.08.09
Posted in Fear of the Lord, Proverbs 31, worship at 3:17 am by trisha
This section of scripture is an acrostic poem exalting a noble wife. Each of the 22 verses begins with a consecutive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Such a woman is almost a personification of wisdom.
“A wife of noble character, who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value, She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life. ” Proverbs 31:11-12
The first attitude of her heart I see is- consistency. This woman has consistent character. Her heart is consistent, let’s explore that more deeply!
Capable Trustworthy Heart “Noble, Translated Capable. He trusts her. Her careful household management enhances their family’s wealth. This kind of woman is an asset, not a liability, to her husband. Good comes to him that can be directed attributed to her. She supports and encourages him. And she is faithful in helping him all ….her life..” - The Bible Knowledge Commentary
Consistent Stewarding Heart. Faithful. Her husband doesn’t doubt her delivery of her duties and it comes from a consistent and faithful character. Behind her character is the theme of this section, the fear of the Lord. She fears the Lord which is her motivation for her behaviors. Her diligence comes from fear of God.
Serving Generously Heart. If she is always doing him good, she is generous servant. She anticipates her husband’s needs and meets them, so much so, that he always trusts her. Her love for her husband thinks about him and acts with ways to show him.
Abundantly Fore-bearing Heart. He doesn’t doubt her work or her heart. She is consistent and ready to love, serve, work, and enjoy him. She is a crown, a Godly helpmate to her husband, if he can always trust her. She is thinking of ways to love not ways that she could be loved.
Her work is consistent because her character is. Her fear of God is in place and from that flows fruit of righteousness, capable work, abundant trust from her husband. God loves this woman and she is responding to God’s love by faithfully pouring out love to her family. It isn’t hit and miss, it is consistent, because her relationship with God is consistent.
So, the Holy Spirit prompts me to ask myself, “When am I not doing producing these attributes, God?” And, the LORD reminds me that if my heart is first motivated to love and serve Jesus, the rest will follow. There is no formula for being a productive woman. For the woman who fears God is to be praised. That is what I want to desire more. To fear God is beautiful. Not the perfect body, not the perfect house, family, effective household management, etc, etc. To fear God is it!
Jesus, I pray that I would first fear you and trust you to iron out my weaknesses. I thank you for your grace that you give me daily when I don’t worship through my work. I know that you want my realigned worship, that my heart would seek your face only and out of that by your grace, fruit would follow for your own glory! To your Glory and in your name, amen.
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08.05.09
Posted in Proverbs 31, worship at 2:18 am by trisha
Have you ever wondered what the Proverbs 31 woman was really like? I would love to follow her around and learn from her. Yet, God wants more than my productivity. He wants my worship. Join me in exploring the work of the Proverbs 31 woman and the quest for a heart that worships thru work.
I am going to post a 5 part series on this woman. My aim is not to set up a perfect ideal of a worshiping woman of God. She isn’t the Goal. Christ is. He knows our hearts and I believe he wants our realigned worship. My prayer is for myself and for you, to read with an open heart, be watchful of condemnation (the hints of the enemy that you will never measure up) and search your heart for where you are needing to confess sin and ask the Lord to show you how to worship Him.
Being like Christ is our motive for change- not to be a good and productive woman. I am excited about this journey through understanding this working woman and her motives, looking at my motives, and exploring lies we believe, and truth for our meditation.. More exposition to follow:
Proverbs 31 *ESV10[d](P) An excellent wife who can find?
She is far more precious than(Q) jewels.
11The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will have no lack of gain.
12She does him good, and not harm,
all the days of her life.
13She(R) seeks wool and flax,
and works with willing hands.
14She is like the ships of the merchant;
she brings her food from afar.
15She(S) rises while it is yet night
and(T) provides food for her household
and portions for her maidens.
16She considers a field and buys it;
with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
17She(U) dresses herself[e] with strength
and makes her arms strong.
18She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.
Her lamp does not go out at night.
19She puts her hands to the distaff,
and her hands hold the spindle.
20She(V) opens her hand to(W) the poor
and reaches out her hands to the needy.
21She is not afraid of snow for her household,
for all her household are clothed in(X) scarlet.[f]
22She makes(Y) bed coverings for herself;
her clothing is(Z) fine linen and(AA) purple.
23Her husband is known in(AB) the gates
when he sits among the elders of the land.
24She makes(AC) linen garments and sells them;
she delivers sashes to the merchant.
25(AD) Strength and dignity are her clothing,
and she laughs at the time to come.
26She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
27She looks well to the ways of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
28Her children rise up and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
29“Many(AE) women have done(AF) excellently,
but you surpass them all.”
30(AG) Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.
31Give her of the fruit of her hands,
and let her works praise her in the gates.
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