The Virtuous Wife- Lesson Six

"Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrificies as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams." 1 Sam. 15:22

Welcome Ladies, let's pray:

Our Father, we come to You this day and thank You once again for the gift of life. I ask once again, that you speak to all who participate in this study through the reading and studying of Your word. Make us new in Christ Jesus this day.

I pray for forgiveness of sins once again as I know I have sinned against You. I pray that you will cleanse me through Your word and create in me a new heart like Yours.

I pray that You will give me the passages of Scripture that You want these ladies to read and change our hearts, Lord. Make us more like you.

In Jesus' holy name, Amen.

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Welcome to Lesson Six:

Today's passage: Prov. 31: 13 "She seeks wool and flax and willingly works with her hands."

This passage introduces us to the "work" passages in Proverbs 31. From now until the verse 28 we will see how she works diligently to provide for her household.

Why do we have to work? Why can't we just live lives of leisure?? Okay, enough whining....

Idleness. This is something I have struggled with for many years as a Christian because I tend to want to just sit and relax instead of "do".

Remember I asked you a question at the end of Lesson Five:

Why did God create?

Did you come up with an answer?

This is a question that my philosophy professor once asked us in class. I couldn't come up with an answer right away, so I went home and looked up several verses that, I thought, answered the question.

But, really, the whole Bible answers the question.

God created....to be known.

"To be" is "to do."

Unless God did something, He never would have been known. To know God is the best thing for all creation: the universe, the heavens, and for earth and its inhabitants.

God knew this and that is why He created. Get it? Good.

Please read:

Gen 1:1-3

God created, God hovered, and God said.

Because God did, we know who He is.

Now read:

Gen. 1:27-28

Since we were created in the very image of God, we are to "do" things as well. Only, because we are finite, what we do will be finite.

Yet, we were created with a purpose: to know God. By knowing God, we have life.

John 14:6

To know God is to know the way, the truth, and the life.

Therefore, we are to do the works that the Lord appointed to us so that we may know who God is and honor the purpose for which we were created.

Eph. 2:10

We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works.

The Virtuous Wife made good use of her time and talents as we will soon learn. As wives, we too, are to make good use of our time and talents to honor our husbands, our household, and God.

Please read:

2 Tim 3:1-6

Remember the "gullible women loaded down with sins"??

1 Tim 5:11-16

How were the young widows reacting to having time on their hands?

They cast off their promise to Christ. Paul warns that because of idleness, these women should marry right away.

Prov 15:19

Prov 6:6

There is a right way to handle our time and a wrong way. The Virtuous Wife handled her time the right way.

"She willingly works with her hands..."

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Life Application

I deemed this summer the "Summer of the Closets". Sounds like a horror movie, doesn't it? Well, if you saw my closets.....

I decided that after I finished school, I would clean out all our closets and re-organize. I spent most of today cleaning out my son's closet and rearranging his room. He was pleased with the results and so was I. It felt good to get up early, exercise, then start in on his room. I was finished by 1pm.

Now, tomorrow, on to my closet.........

To work "willingly" with our hands we must have the right attitude.

Please read:

Phil 2: 14-15

Phil 2:3-4

Col. 3:23

Our attitude will determine the outcome of all our hard work.

This year was a tough year at my son's school. It is a charter school and it is a very good school full of great teachers.

Unfortunately, the school year started off rather rocky as an 8th grade student did something awful to one of his teachers. It involved his MySpace.com web site. He was expelled from the school, but the teacher went on a personal vendetta since she didn't think the administration handled it well.

The short version of the story is that she recruited other teachers and together they "wreaked havoc" on the school all year. Those were her words to describe what they did.

It was sad to see how their bad attitudes affected the students. These kids worked hard and didn't deserve to have their teachers acting so unprofessionally. One of the teachers I know well and I know she is a Christian. To see her behave this way was so sad for me to watch because I knew she knew better.

I also know that you should never burn bridges and that's what she did.

There is a right way to leave a job you hate and a wrong way to do it.

It was a good lesson for me, though. I was able to learn from their mistakes and I realized how important it is to make sure I do my work heartily "as to the Lord, and not to men."

Remember, we will be known by what we do just as the Lord is known by what He has done and continues to do.

Please read:

Luke 24:44-48

What Jesus accomplished on the cross and by rising from the dead is still known over 2000 years later. Because of His actions, we now know life and peace and hope.

Job 31:24-28

What do these verses say about material prosperity?

If we make our goal in life to work for material gain, what have we truly gained since all the material things are finite?

If we work because we are willing to do what the Lord has given us to do, then we will have that which is eternal: the hope that is of God.

Rom. 5:1-5

What is the hope of God?

So, today we learned that we are to do because the Lord did. We are here to do the works He gave us. We are to do those works as to the Lord, and not to men.

Our talents and time are gifts from the Lord. Willingly work with your hands.

Until next time.........

My Kitchen Prayer

Lord of all the pots and pans and things,

since I've got not time to be

A saint by doing lovely things

or watching late with Thee

Or dreaming in the dawn light

or storming Heaven's gates,

Make me a saint by getting meals

and washing up the plates.

Although I must have Martha's hands,

I have a Mary mind,

And when I black the boots and shoes,

Thy sandals, Lord, I find.

I think of how they trod the earth,

each time I scrub the floor;

Accept this meditation Lord,

I haven't time for more.

Warm all the kitchen with Thy love,

and light it with Thy peace;

Forgive me all my worrying

and make my grumbling cease.

Thou who didst love to give men food,

in room or by the sea,

Accept this service that I do,

I do it unto Thee.

-Eleanor L. Doan, The Speaker's Sourcebook (as cited in A Woman's High Calling, by Elizabeth George, 2001)

Blessings,

Ruth