Proverbs 31 Woman

PROVERBS 31:10-31

10 Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.

11 The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil.

12 She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life.

13 She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.

14 She is like the merchants' ships; she bringeth her food from afar.

15 She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens. 
16 She considereth a field, and buyeth it: with the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard.

17 She girdeth her loins with strength, and strengtheneth her arms.

18 She perceiveth that her merchandise is good: her candle goeth not out by night.

19 She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff.

20 She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy.

21 She is not afraid of the snow for her household: for all her household are clothed with scarlet.

22 She maketh herself coverings of tapestry; her clothing is silk and purple.

23 Her husband is known in the gates, when he sitteth among the elders of the land.

24 She maketh fine linen, and selleth it; and delivereth girdles unto the merchant.

25 Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.

26 She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness.

27 She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness.

28 Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.

29 Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all.

30 Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised.

31 Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.

People can interpret bible verses so many different ways. I know of some that would probably read this and say "Ok, to be a virtuous woman I have to make all my own clothes for me and all my family, spin my own wool, grow a vineyard, never touch any makeup, and be perfectly kind to every single person I meet. I don't necessarily see it that way. Let's talk a little more about this.

 

I was recently reading a post on Facebook, entitled;

"10 things NOT found in Proverbs 31".

I was intrigued, so I read it. It goes like this;
‎

10 THINGS NOT FOUND IN PROVERBS 31

1. Her coffee table never has dust on it.

2. Many have eaten off her kitchen floor.

3. Better Homes and Gardens just did a photo shoot in her living room.

4. She does all of the housework herself while the kids play Wii.

5. All of the words that flow from her children’s mouths are blessed.

6. All of her children are straight A students, musical geniuses, and all-star athletes.

7. Her hair is always fixed perfectly and her make-up is artfully applied.

8. She does not touch make-up or hairspray because it is vain and the art of Satan.

9. She never makes a bad decision.

10. She is classroom mom, PTO President, the bearer of orange slices at soccer games, and the church committee queen.

I can't really say why, for sure, but that really slapped me in the face. Was it because it was wrong? No. It really doesn't say that in Proverbs. I think what really got me was the fact that I was trying to be.......this person. The "NOT found in Proverbs" woman. Let me explain. 

Ever since my mom passed away, I've been wanting to be perfect. OK, not perfect in every way, but a perfect wife. I wanted to get my house in perfect condition, keep everything put away, always have nice meals cooked to perfection, wonderful desserts (home made at least once a week), the yard all landscaped and kept mowed all the time, and basically just everything........perfect. 

I thought if I could do that, I would be someone that mom would have been proud of. I would be the type of woman that she was. 

Now, after re-reading that last sentence, it gives the impression that my mom was perfect......and she was. As my mother, she was perfect. Was the house always clean? No. Were there always 3 home made meals a day? No. Did she always think before she spoke? No. But she was perfect? Yes. 

"11: The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil."

"12: She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life."

"28 Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her."

My dad has said many times that he couldn't have been more blessed to have had my mom because she was a "virtuous woman". I never really thought too much about that when I was younger. Mom was just......mom. She did her best to make sure her family was taken care of. She paid the bills on time, kept the house as best she could (until she was too sick to do it anymore), cooked, took care of all of us, and so much more. But now as I've grown, I say she was wonderful.

"15 She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens."

"20 She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy."

"26 She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness"

OK, so there are lots of ways to interpret these verses, but I can say that mom always took care of her household. She didn't always get up before dawn to make dad breakfast, but he was still taken care of. Maybe mom didn't volunteer at a soup kitchen every weekend, but I can guarantee she never let anyone go hungry in her presence. And her words were always spoken with wisdom, even if it didn't seem kind at the time.

"30 Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised."

Verse 30 says it all. "A woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised." This is what mom was all about. She feared God and was a servant to Him all the days of her life. That is what made her a virtuous woman. That is what she wanted from me, and what would make her proud. It doesn't really matter if nothing is perfect, because I can still be a virtuous woman by trying to do my best. By trying to be what God wants me to be and by following Him, fearing Him, and serving Him. 

This doesn't mean that I won't fail. That I won't still try and have things perfect, even though I know that it's next to impossible to do, but now I realize more than ever that the first thing on my list should always be fear God and put Him first. 

Thanks, mom. You have taught me the true meaning of being a true Christian wife and mother. 

I pray that I can be just like you. 

Just a bit.....

.....of miscellaneous info. This way you can get to know me, if you don't already.

I'm Nikki O'Callaghan and I have a hard time describing myself. Believe it or not, I'm not that good with words, and am a terrible speller. So much so, in fact, that I'm still reveling in the wonder of how I spelled "miscellaneous" all the way through the first time with no mistakes! Gold star for me!

OK, so now we know I'm an awful speller, most of the time I'm grammatically incorrect, and I have a hard time making sentences.........so why am I writing a blog?
I'm not really sure what it is. I guess the strong desire to vent the ideas that are constantly roaming around in my head. As for myself, I love reading blogs and finding out cool stuff about people that I didn't know, or a recipe that sounds good, or reading about their travels to other places.........so, I feel like if one person can get some enjoyment out of MY craziness, I'm good.

I was homeschooled for all 12 grades and loved every minute of it! I am a strong homeschool advocate, and have no problems promoting homeschooling to friends, family and even complete strangers. I am thankful to God every day that my parents had the foresight to pull me out of public school.  I don't feel as though I missed a thing. I had a prom, a graduation ceremony, and a class ring. I was in plays, music concerts, choir concerts. We had field trips......everything a public school kid has, and a whole lot more. I won't get in to a whole lot of details right now, but I do plan on doing a post about homeschooling in the near future.

I've been married now for almost 4 years to my best friend. Dan and I met in 2004, we started dating in 2005, got engaged in 2007, and married in 2008. Our story is a very interesting one, and someday, I will most likely tell you the tail. It includes mistaken identity, music, heartbreak, reconciliation (Woo! Another gold star!), and talk of far away travels. I know you won't want to miss that.

My wonderful parents, brother and sister-in-law, nieces and nephew and grandmothers keep my life pretty busy, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I love helping my family! Sometimes do so much for them, my husband tells me I'm putting myself on the back burner, but I can't help it. I've always been that way.
I was born 17.5 years after my brother, and we are the only two children. It's been different, but we know God had a plan by sending me so much later than my brother. It has become obvious in the past few years, when mom was diagnosed with Chondrosarcoma cancer and had to have her right arm removed.  She does so great on so many things, but there are still times when she needs assistance. So, enter me. Dan and I live right across the street from mom and dad, and whilst some people tell me they can't understand how I can live so close, I have no problems. You will be gradually introduced to some of these crazy and wonderfully lovable characters in the near future as well.

That's pretty much all I'll get in to right now, because after all, this is just an introduction, and I don't want to overstay my welcome. I hope that in the future we will be good friends, as I welcome you into my life, and hope that you find it as amusing and lovable as I do.

Until next time,

Nikki