Proverbs 31:12-15 Multitaskers arise. . . early!

We are going to see that the Proverbs 31 woman is the ultimate multitasker! Just reading what she does exhausts me! Her description could actually discourage us as we pale in comparison, but we should actually be encouraged. So, while we be looking at all she does, I want to reemphasize that the underlying message is who she IS. Her description is capped off by her commitment to her LORD, and that relationship is evident to all around her by how she prioritizes and by what she accomplishes. So keep that in mind as we marvel.

I’m going to back up one verse as we begin to look at the plethora of duties that the “excellent wife” performs.

She does him good, and not harm,

    all the days of her life. 
She seeks wool and flax,

    and works with willing hands. 
She is like the ships of the merchant;

    she brings her food from afar. 
She rises while it is yet night

    and provides food for her household

    and portions for her maidens. (Proverbs 31:12-15) 

First of all, this wife is a benefit to her husband. She supports him in all he does, and seeks to build him up. Jon Courson mentions that in doing him “good” and not “harm,” she is obviously NOT the woman who spends her husband into bankruptcy to fulfill her own needs. She honors her husband by the decisions she makes.

She is not sitting at home on the couch eating bonbons. But, please, do you know ANY woman who sits on her butt all day??? If you’ve got toddlers and babes at home, you are NOT sitting! Whether we work inside or outside of the home, we women have so much to do in a day! This woman is seeking wool and flax. She’s seeing to the needs of her household.

The noteworthy thing about the “excellent” wife is in her attitude: she works with willing hands. She isn’t doing the dishes while she gripes about her family, she’s not folding laundry cursing the children who fill the laundry basket daily. Now she MAY be huffing and puffing at the workload, but she sees a purpose in what she does, because she wants the best for her family. She sees them as the gift from God that they are!

The working woman may be overwhelmed by the stack of papers on her desk or the number of emails waiting to be answered, but she gets that whatever she does, she does for the glory of God, not herself. And it’s that attitude that those around her witness.

And the key here? She rises while it is yet night! Truly, when my girls were little, if I did not get going a full hour before they did in the morning, I would be behind all day. And for me that was not only because my vanity demanded that I be fully dressed and made up before presenting myself to the world [ although that actually was a huge motivation - in fact the main reason I never joined a gym to exercise, other than the fact that I detest any form of exercise, is that I could not see the point of showering and getting made up to go to the gym, working out, then coming home to shower and make up all over again!!! ]. But I also knew that I needed some quiet time just getting some input from God each day! I could not, and still cannot face the world if I haven’t had some time realigning my will with His by searching His Word and enjoyed the only silence of the day.

While you may find yourself already a bit annoyed by the seeming perfection of this woman, hang in with me to see her in all her glory to get a glimpse of what God truly wants for all of us!