Proverbs 31 is one of my favorite passages in scripture. It’s about a woman and this woman can do it all. She cooks, she cleans, she sews, she works, she shops, she provides for her family, she has help doing it all and her husband praises her for it all. Just seeing that list makes me exhausted. There are 22 verses dedicated to what she does for her family. There are only 24 hours in the day so how on earth does this woman get it all done? In today’s society I think many of us would refer to her not so much as Mrs. 31 but as Wonder Woman.
Mrs. 31 is a very busy lady and there always seems to be
time in her day to make it all happen. We see her as Wonder Woman feel that if
we don’t aim for perfection and execute it perfectly then we are failures. That’s simply not the case. I
remember the night that I learned that
Mrs. 31 wasn't an actual woman and that she is just the ideal of what we want to
strive to become. I was sitting in a woman’s bible study at my church and
you could literally hear the sighs of relief from every woman in the room. I think just about every woman had walked in
the room that night thinking they were going to hear how they were failing in
life because they weren't the perfect woman and living up to the expectations
of being Wonder Woman in their homes.
We all had been using those verses as a checklist of items to complete
to be the ultimate woman (our version of Wonder Woman) rather than seeing the
whole picture and who Mrs. 31 actually was and is.
Commentaries will tell you that she is the dream wife and
difficult to find, but not impossible. What it all boils down to is that Mrs.
31 was a woman of wisdom and that all that is mentioned in verses 10-31 is how
she applied that wisdom. I can’t become
Wonder Woman. I’m simply not wired like that and I don’t know many women who
actually are. I do know that I can pray
for and learn to apply wisdom in my day to day life.
I think as the wife of a coach and especially during the
season there’s a lot about the Proverbs 31 woman that I can apply to my own
life. I love verse 11 where “her husband has full confidence in her and lacks
nothing of value.” Those are my marching orders for the season. My husband is off and engaged in the battle
of football season and I’m home to man the fort. I can strive to be like Mrs.
31 and take care of all of the day to day details of the home and family. I try to make a plan and work the plan. I love lists so I have my daily list of
chores and errands that I can fit around my job and the football schedule. I attempt to meal plan for the week and head to
the grocery store on Sunday afternoon or Saturday morning. There’s the endless basket of laundry that
has to be done. The list goes on and one and I’m sure yours does as well.
Each season comes with the demands of the day to day
activities that I must deal with by myself while my coach is focused elsewhere
and those are fine and come with the territory. I don’t know why, but it seems
as if every season there is one major disaster at our house. This is when I wonder how exactly my house
and car know it’s football season. The garage door fell off its tracks as I was
backing out of the drive way to the game. The water heater has needed
replacing. The air conditioning system for the house completely died. The washer and dryer died within days of each
other. The one time I parked my car in the driveway for the night a tree fell
on it. You name it, I've dealt with it. I
call and give my coach a heads up that the budget is about to take a hit but I
assure him I've gotten several bids and found the best solution for the issue. It needed to be dealt with and I dealt. For
that moment in time, I am Mrs. 31. My awesome coach, just like Mr. 31 in
Proverbs praises me for dealing with it and we move on to the next issue at
hand.
My coach knows how much I love Mrs. 31. Verses 13, 14 and 16 are where she
shops. I LOVE shopping. I often tease him that shopping is my
spiritual gift. He quickly reminds me
that spiritual gifts are in the New Testament and that this is just one of Mrs.
31’s many qualities. Verses 17 and 18 are where she works for a living. I enjoy going to work. Verse 15 is where my coach and I will both
tell you I fail miserably. “She gets up
while it is still night.” Anyone who knows me well will tell you that’s a big
one for me to overcome. I’m not a morning person. Never have been and most
likely never will be. I also don’t sew
and I don’t do math. Therefore I don’t
watch the affairs of the household as they are mentioned in verse 27.
Now I’m not letting myself off the hook completely on those
things where I fall short and I’m not just giving up. I think it’s important to strive to do all of
these things for my family and there are some definite qualities and virtues
that I need to do some major work on in my life. I want to be Mrs. 31 and
become the woman that my husband praises and that my children (football boys
included) call blessed. But what I know now is that I’m striving to be a woman
of wisdom and not just Wonder Woman. It’s about character and not just a
checklist.
I want to be as many of these qualities and virtues that I
can possibly be, but now I know that
if the laundry doesn't get folded and put away, it’s okay. If I have to drive through to pick up dinner,
life isn't going to come to a complete halt. Life happens and unplanned things
get in the way. Something comes up a
work, a household item breaks and the day and plans get derailed. I need to remember to do what I can and then
strive for the rest but that doesn't mean striving to the point of exhaustion
and sending my blood pressure through the roof.
The key is stop. Take a deep breath.
Take a moment to apply a little wisdom to the situation and then work
the new plan that may or may not include cooking, cleaning, sewing, shopping,
and working. Take one step at a time and
remember tomorrow is another day and a new chance to be Mrs. 31.
Cheering you on,
Laurel
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