Where’s the Spa Days for the Proverbs 31 Woman?

May 3, 2012 By

 Photo Credit

Proverbs 31:28-31 say of the Proverbs 31 woman:

28 Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
29 “Many women do noble things,
but you surpass them all.”
30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.
31 Honor her for all that her hands have done,
and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.” NIV

 

When we study the Proverbs 31 woman - we find that this woman worked her tail feathers off!  From caring for her husband, children, servants and even the poor to rising early, staying up late, planting a vineyard, sewing her own clothes, her family’s clothing, the tapestries and the beddings – this woman never seemed to stop!

 

In the end, what did she get for all of her hard labor?  A prize, trophy, or a plaque?

 

No, Proverbs 31:28-31 says she received praise.

 

Let’s reflect for a moment on the above list.  She had to be exhausted!  I mean where are the spa days? Disney Land vacations? The raise with the corner office and bonus checks?  Proverbs 31:31 says – “Give her the reward she has earned.” So what has she exactly “earned“?

 

Proverbs 31:28 says “Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also and he praises her.” Her reward is the praise of her closest loved ones.

 

Some may say, “Praise is not much of a reward.”  But truly, how many wives do we know who loooooooong for their husband’s appreciation and acknowledgement of what they do.  How many parents do we see struggling with the rebellion of their teens.  The Proverbs 31 woman does not face these struggles.  Wouldn’t we take the peace, love, and harmony of a warm cozy home over a free family vacation filled with strife?

Let’s switch gears, I have said many times on my blog at Women Living Well “Who you are at home is who you really are.” But I want to add - we cannot be warm to those inside our home and cold to those outside our home and be like the Proverbs 31 woman.

 

Her character was clearly seen by those outside of her home. Verse 31 says: “Her works bring her praise at the city gate.”  Not only is she praised by those INside her home, but now we see her being praised by those OUTside her home!  Double bonus!

 

So, at the end of the day, do we pity or praise the Proverbs 31 woman? I suppose it matters what we value? Money, status, power, or people?

 

Life is empty without the people in my life. And though I never want to selfishly seek praise from others – we see that it is the natural outcome of a woman who lives her life poured out for her family and friends.

Does God pity or praise the Proverbs 31 woman?

 

He praises her.   It is God I ultimately desire to please.   And though this world may be confused by our dreams, visions and goals, one day when we stand before God’s throne on judgement day it will all be clear.

Proverbs 31:10 says, “A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.”  Indeed sweet Christian sister, you are rare and your worth is beyond any earthly treasure.  Now go treasure the people in your life and pursue pleasing God.


Walk with the King!

, WomenLivingWell.org

This post is an excerpt from Courtney’s free eBook titled “The Proverbs 31 Woman~One Virtue at a Time.” This eBook has been chosen by the Good Morning Girls to be their summer book club.  This book club begins May 14th and will run through August 15th.  To find the Bible reading plan, how to get your free copy of the eBook and all the other details click here.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
9 Comments | Filed Under: Homemaking, Marriage/Relationships, Parenting
About Courtney

Courtney blogs at WomenLivingWell.org on the topics of faith, marriage, parenting, and homemaking. She has been married to her high school sweetheart for nearly 14 years. She homeschools her son and daughter and is a graduate of the Moody Bible Institute.

In November 2009, she was featured on the Racheal Ray show on the topic of marriage. Her passion to see women live well inspired her in 2010 to start a second blog called GoodMorningGirls.org. There women gather together to dig into their Bibles daily through tech accountability groups.

  • Pingback: Where’s The Spa Days for the Proverbs 31 Woman?

  • http://www.increasemyhunger.blogspot.com/ Megan

    Wonderfully put! If our goal is to please God and glorify him in all we do, including tending to our family, cleaning our homes, and blessing our neighbors, then we will succeed! We will even feel accomplished knowing we bless His heart. We will fall short if we are only looking for man’s approval.

  • http://www.facebook.com/loveyababe0909 Kelley Howard

    I agree Megan. ALTHOUGH a spa day would be great, I know that while I am gone I will miss my children. I have come to FULLY embrace being a woman of god and a keeper of the home. SO FOR the old me who kind of wanted those things (I was never the type that had to have the latest and the greatest and til this day, I am not), I now know that those things are great but I cannot take them to heaven with me, nor does having those things make me a better mom, wife or woman of GOD. AND I do receive praise from my family, which is far better than spa days, diamonds and any other materialist thing that does not bring me the joy of life. ALL I want is for me and my family to not have to worry about anything. Thanks for posting.

  • Ulrika

    I’ve always had a difficult time with the Proverbs 31 woman. :D Sure she doesn’t choose carrier over family, but she somehow seems to actually do it all. In a way she does have a blossoming carrier outside of the home too, contributing to the family financially. Trying to do it all, caring for the family and then working hard with other projects and not getting much sleep seems a bit dangerous to me, and like a recipe for burnout no matter how much God is the motive. And of course she receives praise – who wouldn’t praise and admire a person like that? But how many can live up to that standard? I sure can’t. (Am I really the only one almost hyperventilating from performance anxiety just from reading about her? :D ) I just do the best I can.:)

    • http://www.womenlivingwell-courtney.blogspot.com womenlivingwell

      Thank you for sharing your thoughts Ulrika. Here’s a few details on the background of Proverbs 31 that will help to bring better understanding. First, this woman was not a woman with a name, Proverbs 31:1-9 says that King Lemuel was telling her son what type of woman to look for to marry. Then she describes the ultimate wife in verses 10-31. Secondly, this woman would not have necessarily done all of these things within the same week but over a life time. Maybe during one season of life she was sewing sashes, during another season of life she was planting a vineyard and during another she was into decorating and sewing her draperies and beddings. We see this long description of all of her amazingly hard work – and then her children arise and call her blessed…that means that they were fully raised and had the perspective to praise her.

      So I say all of this to comfort you – the standard is not – “do all of this within one week”. But rather – over a lifetime. This passage is also about priorities and diligence, self-sacrifice and discipline. This is an inspired passage of scripture that we must seriously wrestle with and not turn away from in despair. God equips his children to follow his word when we turn to him and pray for strength in our weaknesses. I invite you to join me as I do a summer series every Monday for 14 weeks over on http://www.womenlivingwell.org We will discuss all of the above and much more and give you resources and the encouragement you need to strive towards being a Proverbs 31 woman.
      Lots of Love,
      Courtney

    • http://www.womenlivingwell-courtney.blogspot.com womenlivingwell

      Thank you so much for sharing your heart Ulrika. Please know that the Proverbs 31 woman did not do all of this in one week – but over a lifetime. It was at the end of her days that those around her are rising and calling her blessed! This passage of Proverbs is about diligence, self-sacrifice, discipline and priorities and though it’s a hard passage to accept we must wrestle with it – because it is God inspired. God will give us strength in our weaknesses. I invite you to join my summer 14 weeks series on the Proverbs 31 Woman over on http://www.womenlivingwell.org I hope it will encourage you.
      Much Love,
      Courtney

    • Kim Hall

      I have had these same concerns, Ulrika. Thanks for saying them out loud. :-)

      I do believe is that we certainly need to be careful of doing things just for the personal glory, i.e., “Look at me-I’m SuperMom!” I also know we need to be wise time managers, as opposed to frantic multi-taskers.

      However, one additional question I have is how and where does the rest fit in? Moms tend to feel overwhelmed, but are very hesitant to share that information, I think, out of fear or shame. I don’t believe God intended for us to work 24/7 and never taking rest and refilling at the well, but am not well-versed enough to see where and how this fits into being a Proverbs 31 woman.

  • http://psalm23five.blogspot.com/ Nicole Anderson

    Wonderful post! I enjoy reading how other women work out their faith in this crazy world. It is great to know that we are not alone and that there are others out there that desire to only please her King. Thanks for this beautifully put post!
    A Proverbs 31 post:
    http://psalm23five.blogspot.com/2012/03/it-is-easier-to-serve-god-or-work-for.html

  • http://thechuppies.blogspot.com/ Kara @ The Chuppies

    Ugh.
    “Who you are at home is who you really are.”
    WAY too convicting.
    But so true.
    Thanks Courtney…
    Love,
    K

    And even if they don’t see… He sees it all.
    Do I really believe this?
    Again–so convicting.
    Praise God for His grace & mercy & forgiveness.

    “Doing things in secret
    that you are ashamed for others to know
    is practical atheism.
    God’s knowing doesn’t count?”
    -John Piper