A Virtuous Woman

I am in the middle of a study on the Proverbs 31 woman and wanted to share some of what I am learning. The full text is Proverbs 31:10-31.

Before I dig into the actual text, I want to back up to verse 1.

The sayings of King Lemuel-an oracle his mother taught him.

The Proverbs 31 woman, the woman of noble character was spoken by a woman. The King's mother taught King Lemuel what to look for in a wife, fully expecting him to find a woman with such character. What hope that brings. Women like this do exist and we can be such a woman with God's guidance.

If you look at the whole text, we see that a virtuous woman is pure, honest, industrious, thrifty, strong in character, kind, wise and holy. I will discuss each of these traits in future posts but for now, lets look at the first part of verse 10, which says,

Who can find a virtuous woman?

Webster's 1828 Dictionary defines virtue as moral goodness; the practice of moral duties and the abstaining from vice, or a conformity of life and conversation to the moral law.

The Hebrew word for virtuous is used 200-plus times in the Bible to describe an army. This Old Testament word refers to a force and is used to mean able, capable, mighty, strong, valient, powerful, efficient, wealthy, and worthy. (Beautiful in God's Eyes by Elizabeth George)

That is a tall order. It seems impossible to attain, but remember, this woman does exist. A woman needs mental toughness and physical energy to accomplish the tasks set before her. This woman is indeed rare.

So how do we become this woman? How do we begin? First of all, pray. Ask God to give you the desire to be this woman. It won't happen in a day or a week. It will take years to become a woman of such virtue.

I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:4-6

God's work in us will be complete the day we meet Jesus. This verse brings me to the next point which is a partnership in the gospel. Own it. Read and memorize God's word. Daily reading and memorizing scriptures are key tools when fighting against temptations. If you are not in the word on a daily basis, I advise you to begin today. God wants to spend time with you.

Last, surround yourself with women who will encourage you to grow in the Lord. I do this daily from my home by reading blogs of other godly women. I also spend time with women from my church and neighborhood who will encourage me. Find women who will build you up but will still be honest with you. Pray for each other, encourage each other and love each other.

If you have not begun this journey, start today. We can all be God's virtuous woman, beautiful in His eyes.

In His Service,

Angela