Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Proverbs 31 Intro

Talk to me ten years ago and I was somewhat of a feminist. I didn’t buy into the whole feminist movement, however, I hated when told I couldn’t do something because I was a woman or that was a man’s job. In my mind, women were perfectly capable of doing everything a man can do. In some ways, I still believe this because, well, they can. Yes, woman lack in physical strength compared to a man, but not always. Sometimes, woman let their emotions get the best of them, but not always. Point of the matter, I didn’t believe the woman’s place was in the kitchen/house – cooking and cleaning and tending to every little need. The man was just as capable of fixing dinner, washing dishes, and vacuuming the carpet, as was the woman capable of taking out the trash, mowing the lawn, and fixing minor things around the house.

Now, have my views changed? Yes, and no. While I still believe that a woman is capable of doing most everything a man can do and vise versa, my strong opinions and where I see myself fitting into this puzzle have changed. Even just three years ago, I had no desire to stay at home. I wanted to work. My passion was teaching and I did it whole-heartily. I expected Matt to help out around the house since we were both working – it shouldn’t be all my responsibility. While I don’t necessarily think this was a bad thing to think and expect, it isn’t completely in line with biblical standards.

Then Molly came along and my thoughts changed completely. I’m reminded of the verse Isaiah 55:8-9 – “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” My thoughts and ways were not God’s and suddenly I had this overwhelming desire to be at home and take care of my family. God’s thoughts, not mine! It took nine-months of being away, being a working mom, and here I am. I thank God daily for providing Matt a job that allows me to be at home, raise our children, and care for our home. I don’t think it’s a bad thing that woman work, it’s just not right for me at this given time.

This said, my main goal in 2010 is to become like the woman described in Proverbs 31:10-31. She is the picture of God’s perfect woman. How am I going about this? I’m reading several books including Beautiful in God’s Eyes and A Woman After God’s Own Heart by Elizabeth George and Martha Peace’s The Excellent Wife, oh, and of course the Bible! I’m doing an in-depth study of the passage in Proverbs, working my way verse-by-verse. This is a fun challenge for me for a couple reasons. One, to ultimately understand and become that woman described in Proverbs 31 and two, while teaching I used to love planning new units and coming up with new material. In a way, this is like lesson planning (only I’m doing it for myself!). I’m pulling from various sources and compiling it into something that is somewhat concise and makes sense.

I hope you enjoy reading along. I’ll be posting my findings verse-by-verse every so often when I think I’ve gathered enough information. Praying that this will be a fruitful study for us all!

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