She perceiveth that her merchandise is good; her candle goeth not out by night.
She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff.
She perceiveth that her merchandise is good;
Have you ever said things like, "Oh, I don’t think this is very good,” or “I can’t do that as good as...”, when we really believe inside that it IS good or better than someone else's? This is false humility, a quality that the virtuous woman surely did not possess. She knows that what she makes or does is of great worth or value and good quality, because she isn’t a slacker who does things only half way. Sometimes we just want to get sympathy from someone or attention to make us feel better about ourselves. We shouldn’t look for man’s approval, but God’s. Colossians 3:23-24 "And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ."
If our heart and actions are pure and right before God, our true humility will be evident. We just need to be real before God, and others.
1 Peter 5:5-6 Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Do we want to be humble, or do we want God to humble us?
Her candle goeth not out by night...
Some days, our job seems to never end, even when it’s time for the lights to go out. We wear many different hats during the day, but we must always remember to save energy for our husband....he has needs, too. Put the children to bed early enough to spend quiet time with him.
Suggestions:
-Don’t put your children first whenever possible. Your husband was with you before your children were, and will be with you when your children are grown, married, and out of your home. Obviously, the smaller the children are, the more attention they demand. But don’t allow them to steal your attention away from your hubby for unnecessary reasons. Sometimes, just let the baby cry, as long as you know he doesn’t need anything. They need to see that you love each other. Children gain security knowing their parents want to be together.
-Don’t let the children come between you two and play one of you against the other. If daddy said no, don’t feel sorry for him and let him have his way, even if your husband is gone to work. Stick together on everything, even though you may think your husband is wrong about something. Dad is the law, Mom is the grace. We women are too soft, sometimes. Besides, Proverbs 23:13 says, “Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.” He won’t be damaged for life, with proper correction. We should also not 'wait 'til dad gets home!!' Our children will eventually not look forward to daddy coming home, if he is their only disciplinarian. We moms MUST be consistent in correcting our children WHEN it is needed. It's unfortunate that correction is not a black and white matter. Sometimes it takes getting to the bottom of a situation to seek out the wrongdoing. But when a child directly disobeys a command the parent has given, he/she is in violation of Scripture, and it should be dealt with immediately.
Also, what are we telling our children when they do something wrong? Why is what they've done wrong? Is it wrong because Daddy says it is? Is it wrong because that's just what we've taught them? Why is it bad? What standard are we going by? Is it our opinion? We must have the Bible as our standard, because that is God's Word. What they have done is wrong because GOD's Word says it is wrong. We should be able to point these things out to them in the Bible. One verse that is very clear is Ephesians 6:1 "Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right."
-NEVER argue about the children’s discipline in front of them, but discuss it privately. Don’t even ACT like you think your husband is wrong in front of the children. Kids pay very close attention to these things.
-Don’t let them criticize their daddy.
Her candle goeth not out by night...
This doesn’t mean she just stayed up late, especially watching TV, reading books, or being on the computer. If we aren’t careful, Satan can steal our time using these things, even when they all seem to be ‘harmless’ shows or books. If we haven’t read our Bible or prayed, we shouldn’t be doing these other time-consuming activities. Ephesians 5: 15-16 "See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil."
The virtuous woman, as we have already seen, is very productive. But productive doesn’t always have to mean cooking, cleaning, sewing, ironing, etc. We can also invest our time in others, as long as we are not forsaking the needs of our first ministry, which is our home, husband, and children. Get your children involved in serving the Lord, too. Some things we can do are:
-make cookies for someone
-help someone clean their house
-babysit for a couple so they can have a date
-take their kids to the park for a couple of hours
-write a note of encouragement to a missionary
-take a lady friend out to lunch
We are seeing a steady pattern with the virtuous woman: hard working, unselfish, humble, and godly. Our example will have a lasting, eternal effect on how our children turn out. What is our goal as a Christian woman? Don't we want to raise our children in an atmosphere that is Christ-centered, where they can enjoy life and serve God now and in the future?
Since the time I wrote most of this devotion sometime in 2010, we've experienced having one of our sons, his wife, and our grandson, move out of state with the intention of serving God in a Spanish ministry. It was very heart-wrenching seeing them leave, and especially sad knowing I won't have our grandson close as` he grows up. But it's very comforting to know that they are serving the Lord with their lives. THAT is what we raise them for...FOR GOD'S GLORY. We certainly made mistakes over the years, but God's grace has helped us through thus far, and following His Word is the most important thing we can do as Christian parents.
GOD'S WORD WORKS!!!!
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