Jump Start # 837

Proverbs 31:15 “She rises also while it is still night and gives food to her household and portions to her maidens.”

This week we are taking a look at Proverbs 31—the virtuous woman. This was a mother’s words to her son, describing an excellent wife. There are many noble qualities about this excellent woman.

Our verse today illustrates that she is busy. She is a hard worker. She is industrious. There are several expressions in this chapter that identify this:

• She looks for wool and flax (13)
• She works with her hands (13)
• She brings food from afar (14)
• She considers a field and buys it (16)
• She plants a vineyard (16)
• She rises while it is still dark and gives food to her household (15)

This woman is remarkable. She’s not lazy. She’s not complaining. Remember, the mother is speaking these words to her son, who happens to be a king. I would tend to think being married to a king would be luxury, servants, sleeping until noon and spending the day buying clothes. Maybe that’s how many queens were back in those days. Maybe mom is trying to tell her son something.

There is more than just not being lazy here. She is bringing something to the home and the relationship. This is not a one sided arrangement. She is not just taking and taking. She is doing her part. What she does involves helping others.

It is interesting that our verse ends by saying that this excellent wife gives food to her maidens. You’d think it would be the other way around. You’d think it was the maidens who brought food from afar, but it wasn’t. It was this excellent wife. You’d think the maidens would work with their hands, making things out of wool and flax. Yet, it’s the excellent wife who is doing these things. This woman isn’t idle nor tied to the home all day. She buys fields. She makes linens and sells them. She plants vineyards. She is smart. She is sharp. She is thinking. She is helping.

Two qualities jump out of these verses.

First, she is not lazy. She is not afraid of hard work. She is familiar with work. It says that she “works with her hands in delight.” The “in delight” expresses an attitude. Many can work, but they hate it, complain about it, and make everyone around them miserable because of it. This excellent woman was happy to work with her hands. Now there’s no magical switch that she flipped on once she got married. I expect she was this way from a young girl. Her parents taught her to be busy. They taught her to use her talents. They made sure a lazy bone wasn’t in her. I fear we’ve gotten away from that in our society. Many like to spend the day doing nothing. Worse than that, they can be clueless to the things around them that need to be done. They don’t see things to do, they don’t have the get-up and go to do things and so the ole’ lazy bone fills their day. Staying up late, not doing much other than watching TV, sleeping in late, and only doing what they feel like doing. You get two lazy people together and it spells disaster. Neither one will want to do anything. Laundry piles up. Dirty dishes stack up. Clutter and junk everywhere. I’ve been to many homes. I see this. Maybe it’s just me. I’m not wired that way. I see things and wonder, why don’t they pick that up. They knew company was coming, why didn’t they clean the place up. I’m not talking about older couples, but younger ones. Just too much lazy in them to suit me. It’s not just women, it’s the men, especially the men, that are guilty of this as well. There is a time and a place for TV, video games and movies, but there is also a time for planting the vineyard, making things with your hands and rising while it is still night, as the excellent woman did. Lazy men are often appointed to be shepherds in the church. Bad decision there! Lazy men makes lazy elders. If nothing is done at home, you can be certain that nothing is done with the church.

So, the old fashion way of doing chores is best. Assign the kids jobs to do and make sure that they do it right. Not everything is a paid job, either. When the kids say, “I’ll clean my room for $10,” as one of mine tried on me once, I responded by saying, “Sure, and I’ll charge you $20 for being your dad!” Not everything is done for money. Some things are done just because they have to be done. Not everything is fun. Taking out the trash isn’t the highlight of the week, but it must be done or the place starts to smell. Picking up, doing the dishes, knowing how to do laundry are things that all kids (boys included) need to know and do. The excellent wife was the way she was because she was taught that. We need to do the same today. When a busy person marries a lazy person, one feels like a slave. It isn’t a good relationship. When two lazy people marry, nothing gets done. That’s a disaster. However, when two busy people marry, look out. Things will happening there. God always chose busy people.

Second, she realizes that she can add to the journey of life. She’s not there just to take things. She contributes. She found her talents and used them. Buying the field, planting the vineyard, making and selling linens gave her a sense of accomplishment, success and it helped the family. She did her part. All of us are gifted and talented. God made us that way. It is a shame never to use those talents. It is a shame to use those talents only for self.

Finding what your good at is hard to do. It takes time. It takes trying things. Some things work, some don’t. Some you are good at, other things you are not. Some have that flair for art and are very creative. They can take the simplest things and turn them into the coolest things. Others could never do that in a thousand years. Some are fixers. Some are comforters. Some are leaders. Some are planners. Some work better alone. Others work better in a group. Some need direction. Others can see and will do it.

This excellent wife had talent. She could do things I can’t. I don’t know how to plant a vineyard. I can’t make linens. I certainly can’t cook. But so often that’s what we do. We recognize talent in others and quickly dismiss ourselves as that is something I could never do. So I can’t plant a vineyard. What can I do? I can’t cook. What can I do? What can you do? What can you do around the house? What can you do for the church? What can you do for others?

She found what she could do and was busy doing it. Excellent is what she was. This is just one of the reasons.

Roger