Sunday, December 26, 2010

A Gracious Woman Retains Honor

Proverbs 11:16 - From Laine's Letters - Used by permission 
I have been doing a study for myself on the verse in Proverbs which states, "A gracious woman retains honor."  As I have been studying many of the verses pertaining to godly women in the Bible and their roles in the home and in the church, I have come up with a list based on those verses of a godly woman, wife, and mother - whom I aspire to grow into as I continually grow in Christ by the power of His Spirit. It also helps me to understand the role of the church as His Fruitful Bride and His Holy Spirit as our Helper and Comforter in that vital role.
With all that in mind and more, here is my list of a godly woman in her many roles written in the back of my Bible. My gleanings are based on Proverbs 31, Ruth, some verses on women in Proverbs, 1 Peter 3:1-7, 1 Timothy 2:8-15 & 5:3-16, 1 Corinthians 11:1-16, Song of Solomon, Psalm 113, 127, and 128, 1 Thessalonians 2:7-9, and Titus 2:3-5.
She loves her First Love and her First Faith - Jesus Christ her LORD. 
She has inside strength through the Spirit of God for her Husband's honor. 
She rises before dawn, she cries for help, she hopes in His Word. 
She is a bearer of the children. 
She is a modest dresser. 
She is a worker of good. 
She has a gentle and quiet spirit. 
She is faithful and continues in the faith. 
She is loving - her LORD, her husband, her children, her home, and others - in godly, wise priority. 
She is holy - set apart for God's use. 
She is self-controlled. 
She is merciful to the poor. 
She excels at woman's work. 
She is submissive to her husband. 
She trusts in God. 
She looks nice. 
She is a keeper (guard and shield in prayer and practice) for her home. 
She is obedient to her own husband. 
She is gentle. 
She is dear to her children, and her children to her. 
She longs for her children. 
She imparts life. 
She imparts the gospel - everlasting life. 
She is affectionate. 
She is a nursing and caring mother who cherishes her children. 
She is a nurse by day and by night. 
She will be praised because she fears God. 
She shows piety at home to repay her parents by taking care of the widows in her family. 
She is careful with her tongue - gracious and discreet. 
She is not a busybody. 
She is busy in her own home. 
She opens her mouth with wisdom. 
She is not idle - she watches over the ways of her household. 
She is not a gossiper. 
She lives for God. 
She is always praying. 
She is a helper of the hurting. 
She is a servant to the saints - doing even the lowest jobs for their strength. 
She is hospitable. 
She is faithful in all things - little or big. 
She is self-controlled. 
She is not a drunkard.
She is a teacher of lovely, good things. 
She honors the Word by the living of her life. 
She is reverent. 
She is not a slanderer. 
She learns in silence in the church with all submission. 
She is not a teacher of men in the church. 
She is not a leader of men in the church. 
She is a great helper in the church. 
She labors night and day - if necessary. 
She continues to learn and grow - especially in God's Word. 
She keeps her body as strong as possible to be of such a help to her family. 
She has good foresight through wisdom given her by God. 
She does quality work. 
She keeps the bills paid - her lamps are always lit and welcoming. 
She is a gifted artisan selling from her home- thus her lamps are always lit. 
She prepares for hard times - "the winter" - during the summer and fall harvest. 
She is a decorator with tapestries that she has made. 
She is a provider of quality clothing for her family. 
She wears purple - the color of queens and quality. 
She honors her husband by all her good works causing him to lead wisely and well. 
She supplies the merchants with her wares. 
She is a wise cook - for health and frugality. 
She is a wise shopper. 
She is fragrant. 
She has paths of peace. 
She is a wall - pure and only for her husband - an enclosed garden and a sealed fountain. 
She is her husband's crown. 
She restrains her lips and keeps a guard over her mouth. 
She provides her supplies in the summer. 
She gathers her food at harvest. 
She is enraptured with her husband's love. 
She loves her husband and children. 
She avoids deception by her godly duties of raising children in faith, love, holiness, with self control. 
She is a teacher and trainer of her children. 
She builds her house with her children. 
She builds His House with her children - imparting to them the gospel as well as her own life. 
She is fruitful and multiplying. 
She prepares her food and furnishes her table. 
She is humbly hidden and helping for His Honor. 
She watches over her children well and does not leave them to themselves. 
She disciplines her children promptly. 
She is not contentious. 
She is a joyful mother of her children. 
She seldom sets foot in her neighbor's house, rather she is busy in her own home. 
She is a wise woman who daily builds her house. 
She has a house built by wisdom and established by understanding - The Word. 
She has rooms filled with all precious and pleasant riches by knowledge - The Word. 
She continually trains her children with patience and perseverance. 
She is a good saver. 
She is a careful spender.
She is prudent. 
She is not slothful. 
She promotes health with her tongue and learning with her sweetness of lips. 
She has a godly attitude - The Word hidden in her heart. 
She has discretion. 
She gets more and more beautiful as she continues to grow in Christ, no matter what her age.
She is a fruitful vine in the very heart of her house.
She gets up before dawn. 
She is a loving cook early in the morning. 
She is a land researcher. 
She is a land purchaser and developer. 
She is a vineyard manager - land put to profitable use for the benefit of her family's finances. 
She is a wise student - ever learning. 
She is trustworthy. 
She gets her servants going early in the day. 
She has a full pantry provided at wise prices. 
She is blessed by her children. 
She is blessed by her husband. 
She fears the LORD - the beginning of wisdom and true beauty. 
She has so much fruit from her hands. 
She excels above all - according to her family! 
She will rejoice one day, for God promises her so. 
Thank you for letting me share "my gleanings" with you. I know "all things are possible through Christ" and "apart from Him I can do nothing." "I forget what lies behind, and I reach forward to what lies ahead" in Christ.

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