Woman

Did you ever look at yourself and just want to barf? Okay, yes I didn't do my hair and make up that day but good glory, 12 years ago I was a size 6 and 115 lbs. Barf barf barf!!! Well, Braxton is almost 3 and for goodness sake I am going to take a stand and make/force/demand that my oldest and my husband watch our youngest so I can go workout again. Nobody will watch him and if I take him to a place with daycare he just screams and they always make me take him and leave the gym. :( I have certainly tried..... But after looking at this picture, argh, I'll be turning 40 in December and frankly, God has been dealing with me about my health and weight. Not good. Do you like my boot? It is heavy!! Hate that dumb thing and those annoying crutches. I do however love that bottle of Caswell Massey Gardenia lotion next to me, yummy yummy it smells fabulous. LOVE Caswell Massey almond products, I am all out, need more. Highly recommend Caswell Massey. It is the oldest company in the United States and the soap provider at the White House too. I used to sell it :). Great company, awesome products.

I am going to do my next Bible study after we finish 2 more sessions on Discovering God's Will For Your Life on the topic of "Woman". Wendy Blight has been doing some great studies on women on her blog. Love Wendy's book, don't be deceived by the title, even if you happy as a clam this book is a life changer, please buy it if you haven't. I don't endorse books lightly. You can get a good read for a buck at Goodwill, Wendy's book is totally worth buying. Anyhoo, I spent time in Proverbs 31: 10-31 which is noted as being in the Life App. Bible as the "Epilogue: The Wife of Noble Character". I made notes off to the side as to what the character traits of the noble wife are:

1. Valuable- do you consider yourself valuable & does your family?

2. Trustworthy- her husband has full confidence in her- how do we care for what we are trusted with?

3. Lacks nothing of value- I took this as a spiritual value, of a full supply of the important things in life. Love, joy, happiness, good character traits, honest. etc. But it says nothing, not just spiritual..... do you have value in your own personal life? Women often de value themselves and leave themselves for last and do not take care of their needs.

4. Walks in love- doing and caring for others, bringing good and not harm. Does that describe me?

5. Eagerly does her work. - oh boy. Yes, that includes household chores.

6. Takes care of her family- she is like the merchant ships that bring food. She gathers and supplies for her family. She provides meals for her family and cares for them.

7. Makes wise financial decisions- hmmmmm. In the verse she has considered a field, bought it and out of her earnings she has planted a vineyard.- She has not been recklessly spending, she is thinking about how to benefit her family in finances also. She is also earning income here. How can we save money or bring in income? What can we do to benefit our family with our money?

8. Vigorously works- so she is not laying around all day and then cleaning up an hour before the hubby gets home? She is vigorously working and taking care of her responsibilities. No All My Children or General Hospital for her! Can she listen to them while she vigorously works I wondered?

9. She can make money with her skills- in the verse she sees that her trading is profitable and her lamp does not go out at night- she has used her funds to take care of her home's needs also, not just the hubster. She can use her skills to bring in income. How often in the past have I been taught women should not work and the hubby should bring in the money? Clearly the woman here is using her skills to make money.

10. Helps those in need & the poor.- what are any of us doing to help the poor and needy? It's not hard, do you know a family in need? It can be as simple as looking up their address and anon. mailing gift cards to the grocery store, hair cut place, Wal Mart. Do you know of a run down home you drive by often? Look at the address on the mailbox, you already know the street, mail them gift cards and you can pray for them every time you drive by. I dare you to do that and I would challenge you to see how God blesses that family. In time, you would need to move on to another run down house. Helping can be that simple. Do you like to bake? Bake and take it someplace like a teen shelter, a homeless shelter. Everyone can help, do we?

11. Clothes her family well to their needs.- She makes sure they are warm in the cold, they have what they need.

12. She takes care of her home- She makes coverings for her bed- she is aware of the needs of her home and I have to believe she has made her home a comforting place to be in. She has decorated her home, she has cleaned it and gathered in what the family needs to be happy and comfortable. - What do our homes say about how we care for our family?

13. She is clothed as she deserves- (CONVICTION ALERT!!) What do most women do..... they spend and do for everyone but leave themselves for last or do not take care of themselves much at all. The hubby and kids have new clothes and she has the old worn clothes, she gets irregular hair cuts, she has old "holy" underwear, she does not do her hair or clothe herself to show she is a valuable person. Clothe yourself as you deserve, but also clothe your family as well. We are not to be selfish but we are not to be self deprecating either. Does our appearance say I am worthy?

14. Has a respectable husband- she not only has noble qualities but her husband conducts himself in a noble manner also. Men have responsibilities also and they need to take care of them.
If you are married to a selfish husband, or a man of not so trustworthy character how much harder is it for this woman to be noble herself? She has harmony in her home, both spouses are of good character and respectable, they are treating each other well and both fulfilling their duties. The wife can do her wifely duties so much better as well as the husband doing his when both partners are behaving as they should. If one partner is dropping the ball then there are consequences and both will suffer.

15. She is clothed with strength and dignity- she is not a whimpering door mat, she is not weak and unable to weather the storms of life, no she is strong. She knows where her strength comes from, she is strong in the Lord, in her faith and she is able to carry on. She has dignity, she values herself and does not sink to lowly things of the world. She does not think lowly of herself and she does not conduct herself in a lowly manner.

16. She laughs- she is able to laugh, she is fun and not a sourpuss. Lots of women are always saying to their children "Not now, I am busy." They are busy cleaning or doing chores. The noble wife knows she needs to take time to laugh and enjoy life and not just work. Play, laugh, enjoy the life you have been given.

17. She speaks wise words- she is not calling up Mary to fill her in on the latest gossip in Bethlehem. She is not full of idle chatter.

18. She has faithful instruction on her tongue- she means good things with her words and seeks to help others and build them up. She has praises on her lips, compliments her husband and children, she gives kind words when needed and helps to guide those around her.

19. She is busy supervising her household affairs- She is supervising and involved in anything that will effect her household. Her home is her priority and everything in it. Her home is her reflection and a priority. She runs it, it does not run her.

20. She is busy and not idle- she is not a couch potato or surfing the net most of the day. She takes care of business and then she plays and enjoys her life.

21. She is respected by her children and her husband- "Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also,"- They call her this because they can see God in her life, she has done as she should and God has blessed her. She has walked in love and helped the needy and she has good upstanding character and she is strong in the Lord, God will bless this woman and her family will see it.

22. She is praised by her husband- (CONVICTION ALERT FOR THE MEN!!) If she is fulfilling her areas of responsibility and loving and caring for her man, he should also be doing these things for her and he should be praising her for her good works in her duties. Often in these times women work full time jobs and still are taking care of the majority of the things done to run a home and care for the children. If she is doing this a man of noble character will praise her for it. (Feel free to show verse 28 to your hubby if he does not acknowledge all you do.) You know, people need to feel appreciated, they need praise. We should be giving and receiving praise.

23. She is rewarded for her works and praised- Did you see that in verse 31? Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate. Not keep denying yourself and being dowdy and wearing the same old things in the same old pony tail. Not being oppressed by an abusive or neglectful mate, not treating herself and feeling guilty for it. No, she is to be rewarded for her works. She is a beautiful woman inside and she is to enjoy her life. She works hard, plays hard and she prays hard. She should enjoy her family, her home and her life. She is not to be denied or told well that's what you are supposed to do, no she is to be praised and rewarded. She works in her home and sometimes she works outside and inside the home and she deserves to be respected, praised and rewarded for these things. She has cared for her family and so also should they care for her.

WOW. After really looking at those scriptures and writing down what I just did I would really love to be that woman and have that marriage. I see things I do and things I could do better and things I don't much do as often as I should. Do you see any things here that moved you? Being a woman is hard and we are supposed to stay looking young and beautiful while we do all the enormous tasks we take on. We are over exposed, it's hard to sit down to watch a show even with your husband without him getting a good look a few ladies in their bra and panties and this is not supposed to bother us? Life is tough for women and quite often unfair. Why is it unfair? Because people are just too dern busy taking care of themselves and their own needs and not their families and spouses. There are plenty of women who take care of their own needs first and neglect on hands parenting so they can pursue their pleasures for certain. Our children suffer most in this society as they are being left to parent themselves and watch video games and the TV. We just want to do what we want to do as a society and this is not what we were meant for. We are meant to care for each other. I care for my husband and respect him and care for my children and in return they should do the same for me. I wonder how many households can truly say this about how they treat each other. When was the last time someone got up for something and asked the other people in the room if they could get them anything while they were up or from a room they were going into? Sigh. I think I am going to be parking myself in these verses for awhile.