31 Day Challenge

Vs 30

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

As I watched the Miss America pageant last night, I found myself conflicted.  As women I think we are naturally drawn to pageants, stages, celebrities and pretty things.  Because we’ve grown up with these things idolized and applauded it’s difficult to turn off those longings or desires.  I think it’s safe to say that every little girl wanted to be on that stage at some point in her life.

But as I read about the Proverbs 31 woman, I’m contented to discover that so much of what I idolized about beauty queens is not that much different from this Godly woman that we read about in Proverbs.

The Proverbs 31 woman:

• is noble
• is worth more than rubies
• has earned her husband’s confidence
• works hard
• is disciplined
• serves her family
• is a business woman
• is strong
• is a good steward of her resources
• helps the poor and needy
• decorates her home
• dresses well
• is married to a respected man
• has dignity
• laughs
• speaks with wisdom
• gives faithful instruction
• is not idle
• is blessed by her children
• is praised by her husband

Isn’t the Proverbs 31 woman so much of what we long to be?

Isn’t that what a lot of our pageantry is about?

I think the defining difference is in the last part of verse 30: “but the woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.”  While all of these other qualities are good, without the fear of the Lord these things become deceptive and fleeting.  I believe that is why all our attempts to aspire to these qualities end up feeling empty, shallow… hollow.

What stands out about the Proverbs 31 woman to you?

Jenni Catron

After a rough day at school, did your mom ever tell you “Sticks and stones may break your bones but words will never hurt you.”? I don’t think that there has ever been a bigger, though well-meaning, lie told by parents. Those of us who ever went to school, held a job, had a sibling, or talked to another human being, know that words can hurt a lot more than a few sticks and rocks. Those breaks and bruises heal up pretty quickly, while a well placed zinger can leave long-lasting damage that may never completely heal.

Solomon recognized the power of our words. In chapter 10 alone, he refers to it several times:

vs. 6

⁶ Blessings crown the head of the righteous,
but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.

vs. 14

¹⁴ Wise men store up knowledge,
but the mouth of a fool invites ruin.

vs. 19

¹⁹ When words are many, sin is not absent,
but he who holds his tongue is wise.

vs. 32

³² The lips of the righteous know what is fitting,
but the mouth of the wicked only what is perverse.

Mark Twain once paraphrased Proverbs with his quote, “It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.”

The power of our words to cause pain has been something that I have struggled with all of my life. We Surratt’s are blessed/cursed with mouths that can cut faster than most Ginsu knives. It’s probably because we’re too small to beat anyone up, so we try to cut them down to our size with words.

On the other hand, just as our mouths have the power to hurt, they also have just as much power heal and give life.

vs. 11, 21

¹¹ The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life

²¹ The lips of the righteous nourish many

I think that all of us can remember a time when someone gave us a well timed compliment. When a boss told you “good job”. When someone you cared about said “I’m sorry”, and meant it. Small, seemingly insignificant words have the ability to make someone’s day or ruin it. What are you going to choose to do with your words today?

• Is there someone in your life that needs a kind word right now?
• Do your kids need to hear that you love them?
• Do you need to ask forgiveness from someone that you have hurt?
• Do you need to forgive someone who has hurt you?

We all need to learn to use our mouths wisely or vs. 31 just might become true of us:

³¹ The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom,
but a perverse tongue will be cut out.

What are your thoughts about chapter 10?

Chris Surratt

I don’t know about you, but I’m an “approval junkie.”

As the firstborn in my family I quickly assumed the role of being the over-achiever, the model child, the straight ‘A’ student.  I’ve always tried to do the “right things” simply because I thrive on the approval and acceptance of those I am trying to please.

This tendency has not always been healthy… it’ll take years of counseling and prayer to strike a healthy balance in my life.

But with that context in mind you can imagine how much my “approval junkie” connected to this verse in Proverbs 8:

v35 “For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the Lord.

“Receives favor from the Lord!”

Isn’t that ultimately what we all long for?  Favor.  Approval.  Acceptance.

But before we get too excited we have to go back to the beginning of that verse: “For whoever finds me (wisdom) finds life and receives favor from the Lord.”

So while I really connected with the next-to-last-verse of the chapter, I had to go back and reread the previous 34 verses.  It’s in these verses that wisdom calls out to us, wisdom describes herself – what she looks like, who she is and when she began.  She gives us some pretty good clues to finding her if we’ll take the time to search.

My problem is that so often I get distracted by doing the things that gain me approval in the immediate that I neglect the search for wisdom.  In my pursuit of many other things, wisdom gets pushed to the back burner.  Isn’t it true that we make time for the things that matter to us?  It’s time for me to make room for the search for wisdom.

How about you?

How are you going to make room for the search?

Jenni Catron