Are You a Virtuous Woman
No doubt you will agree with me when I say that life can throw some crazy curveballs our way. When we are born, we are not handed a life user manual to help us succeed. But, did you know that the one who created us did give us a manual of sorts? That user manual would be the Bible! Many people feel that the Bible is a book composed of stories and tall tales. But found within those stories of old are so many lessons that, when taken to heart, can help you live a good life, will help you be a better person, and will set you up for a successful life. When you open the Bible with the viewpoint that everything in there was written for a reason and start to search for the reason, that is when the Bible will begin to have an effect on your life. Take my own personal experience for example.
Journey to Virtue and Commitment at a Bible Retreat
I was in my 30’s and was working my way back into going to church after two marriages that didn’t work out. So, I decided to go to a Bible Retreat. It was just like being a kid at camp again. There were bunk houses for the men and the women, common areas, and most importantly, Bible study. One such study that really touched my heart was when we read from Proverbs 31 and what it means to be a virtuous woman. I knew that if I wanted to marry again, and have it be to the right guy, I had to be willing to change some things about myself. It was at this retreat that I made the dedication to be celibite and work on making myself a “virtuous woman”.
Transforming into a Virtuous Woman
With the help of a study guide, I was able to read in the Bible what it takes to be a virtuous woman, and I realized that if I wanted to be a good wife, I had to start acting like good wife. These were not changes that I could make only after the wedding. They needed to be impressed upon my heart first, before the right man could be brought to me. Doing the “worldly” things had no fit into what I wanted. Clubbing, sleeping around, drinking, and all those other sorts of worldly things was not going to make God bring me the mate of my soul! I stopped dating and was single for 4 years before meeting Bill. I don’t want to give the impression that this was easy!
The Challenge of Waiting
That first year was HARD! I could hear the clock ticking and felt like I was going to wait forever. I held tight, stopped counting, and 3 years later, God brought me my person in my time. Have you ever been stuck waiting on someone? You know how hard it! I admit, at times I began to feel antsy and I thought maybe I had to help God, so I tried Christian dating apps.
That was no help and certainly was not a step in the right direction! It wasn’t until I stopped feeling like God needed to be “helped” that he stepped in. In the meantime, while I waited, I was able to cultivate qualities that would make me a good person, spouse, and woman. I learned to wait patiently on someone else’s schedule rather than my own. That time truly taught me how to be a “Proverbs Woman”.
When I took the passage from Proverbs to heart, so many things made sense! I learned that to be a good wife doesn’t mean working your butt off 24 hours a day, but means that she is someone who is willing to work for her household. She shows that she wise in the way she handles her household and in the decisions she makes. The scriptures say that she is worth more than rubies, she is priceless to her husband. I wanted to be that person for my future husband! I wanted to be someone he could depend on, trust, and value.
The Reward of Trust and Commitment
The biggest reward in working with God’s direction? Having a marriage with trust. There is nothing better, in our 20 years of marriage, to not have to worry what each other is doing. Trust takes a long time to build but can be gone in a split second. But having a marriage where you both are living by the same standards and working for the same goal brings real peace to the marriage. And the comfort I have in my heart knowing that Bill is true to me, is indescribable. My marriage to Bill showed me what real love is and showed me how safe a marriage is supposed to feel. If I hadn’t done the work first, I would have never gotten such a beautiful gift.
The Bible account of the virtuous woman has takeaways for the men, too. This isn’t a one way street by any means. In order to make a modern marriage work and be successful, looking to the Bible as a guide will help set that marriage up for success. I challenge you to open your Bible (or download one if you don’t own one!), turn to Proverbs 31. If you want a “Proverbs Wife” you need to be a “Proverbs Man”. If you keep God in the center of your lives, you will see an instant benefit and strengthening of your marriage. Take the time to study and pray together. Doing those two things will give you the 3 fold cord that cannot be broken. It isn’t going to make a perfect marriage, but by keeping God in the center of your marriage, you will almost guarantee a good marriage. You will have trust, respect, and love in your marriage.
Commitment and Improvement
In the society we live in today, marriages are regarded as throw-away. If this one doesn’t work, jump into a new bed and try again! Isn’t it true that this is the attitude we can see around us? That’s not what marriage is supposed to be. Marriage is a commitment. Before you can make that commitment to someone else, make the commitment to yourself to be the best spouse that you can be. If you didn’t have good examples of that in your life, turn to the Bible. God gave it to us for more than just a good story or history book. He wants us to look to it for examples of how to live.
Are you looking for a spouse? Put it into God’s hands. Give it over to him. Take the time while you wait to turn to God, start reading, and read everything he has to say about marriage. Work on making yourself the best you can be for God, and then he will bring you the spouse of your soul. Are you in a struggling marriage? It isn’t too late! Study the Bible, see if there are things about yourself that could be improved upon to make your marriage more harmonious. Pick an aspect of the “Proverbs wife” to work on and let God mold you.
Impact on Business and Personal Life
What does this have to do with business? When your personal life is calm and peaceful, it will transfer into your professional life! If you are a strong and supportive spouse, you likely will receive that back from your spouse. This will then cause your business to thrive and prosper. It has to start with you, though. You have to search out the guidance and want to apply it. Putting the rest into God’s hands is the next step! If your business is struggling and everything within your home is peaceful, is there still an aspect of the personality of the “virtuous woman” that you could work on? None of us are perfect, so it makes sense to say that there are always things that we could do better at. Maybe you work, but do you work hard? What other facets of this Bible verse could you pick apart and work on? Being one the lookout for ways to improve is like looking in a mirror before you leave the house. You do a full rotation in front of the mirror and see a big stain on your shirt and some lipstick on your teeth. Would you then continue to just walk out the door? No! You would make the needed changes so that you were presentable for the day’s activities.
Taking Action for Personal Growth
Making changes in our personality is similar. It isn’t enough to just acknowledge that you have something to work on. You need to physically take steps to make a change for the better! Start taking those steps now and watch how your life is completely transformed.
