This week in our series, we’re talking about Quieting Your “Home” for the Holidays. Our first reading assignment takes us to Proverbs chapter 31. What can we learn from this chapter? How can we apply it to our lives this Christmas?
I’ve decided to share an excerpt from my book, Messy Beautiful Love: Hope and Redemption for Real-Life Marriages. I hope it encourages you!
She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens.
– Proverbs 31:15
When we think of virtuous women we often picture them as being loving, generous and kind; women who reach their hand out to the poor, lead their children in faith, and provide food for their family. What I tend to overlook when examining the lives of virtuous women is that they also exhibit a high level of self-control.
I’m not a morning person, so I can’t begin to tell you just how impressed I am with this. I’m sure if I was sitting down to have tea with her I’d ask, “What? You get up at what time?!”
I practically said that exact thing today when I was chatting with one of my neighbors. She has the most obedient, fun loving dog I’ve ever seen. He’s a big teddy bear if I’ve ever seen one. The minute he sees you, Willis will flip over on his back and wait for a belly scratch. I love that guy!
So today I noticed that he doesn’t as much as flinch when another dog walks by. He’s always outside without a leash and never leaves her side unless it’s for a belly rub.
“How did you get so lucky?” I asked, as I bent down to scratch his tummy.
“Oh, it wasn’t luck,” she said. “We got him at six weeks old, and for the first month I got up every morning an hour earlier than the kids to train him. I’d take him outside and show him where his boundaries were and what we expected of him. I had to be on him 24/7.”
I had already thought this woman was pretty much perfect in every way, but this one cinched it. She cooks like Rachel Ray, decorates like Martha Stewart, and works out like Jillian Michaels. Now she’s got a dog that puts Lassie to shame. It’s no wonder her husband is always smiling.
She has three kids and looks like a teenager, but I still love her.
Getting up is one thing, but what we’re really talking about here is virtue. We’re all a work-in-progress as we strive to put will over want. Whether we’re talking about appetite, over-spending, laziness or losing our temper, we all benefit when we exercise virtue.
If you value a clean home, do the leg work it takes to get there. If you value your faith, then nurture that faith by opening your Bible more often and taking time out to pray. If you value your marriage, actively work on your relationship.
With that said, let’s also remember to keep a healthy balance in our lives. Things that appear virtuous can become a snare to us when our priorities are out of whack. In all of the hustle and bustle of bringing joy and peace into our homes this month, let’s not forget to put faith and family first.
Excerpt from Messy Beautiful Love: Hope and Redemption for Real-Life Marriages. Used with permission by Thomas Nelson
You are loved by an almighty God,
Darlene Schacht
The Time-Warp Wife
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Just wanted to drop by for a quick thank you. I have been enjoying this series!
God Bless you.
Patricia
Thank you for sharing this. So true…it takes work to get the desired results. Thanks for that reminder. ((blessings))
This was a long passage of Scripture, so it would be interesting to see what particular portions spoke to different women as they ‘in-depth’ it today. For me, it was that she could, “smile at the future” — not flippantly or with a lack of concern, but because of her joyful spirit and willingness to ‘get ‘er done’. She had made her preparations for the future carefully and appropriately, which starkly contrasted the farmer we’d studied last week.
I’m really enjoying this study and I’ve enjoyed sharing it with a small group of ladies from our church. And I’ve particularly enjoyed the prayer journal part of it, too! Blessings to you! 🙂
thank you for the honesty! If I want a tidy house..then I have to get up and clean the house. I am so thankful for the opportunity to experience the blessing of a loving correction.
I can’t tell you enough how encouraging this article is, at a point in my life when everything seems out of control! I am a full time employee and full time Mom (3 children) and wife. Sometimes the only quiet and planning time I have is at work! I struggle with getting up early almost every morning and know there is a need to reorganize my priorities and better order my household. Please pray for me.
Sophia, I’ll pray for you right now so I don’t forget.
Thank you for sharing Darlene, self-control is a virtue that the virtuous wife definitely radiates. Do you have any tips on how to gradually obtain self-control. I feel like it is the number one thing that I lack and know I need God’s guidance to have it.
I sat back and read proverbs 31, Wow! I am at the edge of getting married in 22 days. I need to work on this, but If I fail, I will just have to get up the next day and try again. Great read.
Mary, what struck me most is how much she loved her husband and children. I think when our priorities are in order, things fall into place where they should be. 🙂
I am loving this series and thank you for this post today. God bless you
I’d love to have our ladies do this study! Is it still available? I have only seen this post…Thanks for all your hard work on these studies and journals!
We will be starting a new one for Christmas and the posts will be well marked. There will be a free study guide in a couple of weeks. This old study is online. You can find all of the post on the website, but unfortunately there isn’t a table of contents. I’ll give you the links:
https://timewarpwife.com/2015/11/ (find some of the posts in November 2015)
https://timewarpwife.com/2015/12/ (find some of the posts in December 2015)
My anchor for my cell phone adtodciin is the cover my daughter made for me. For my recent birthday, my awesome neighbors made me this frame to create a vision board. It is beautiful and I filled it with things to remind
IMHO you’ve got the right ansrwe!
मैं सोच à¤ी नहीं सकता था कि होमियोपैथी के हवाले से à¤ी कà¤ी अनवरत का उल्लेख कहीं हो सकता है।
Your’s is a point of view where real intelligence shines through.
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