THE BLESSING OF A RIGHTEOUS WIFE

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

A wife of noble character who can find?

She is worth far more than rubies.

Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value.

She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.

She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands.

She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar.

She gets up while it is still night; she provides food for her family and portions for her female servants.

She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.

She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks.

She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night.

In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers.

She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.

When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet.

She makes coverings for her bed; she is clothed in fine linen and purple.

Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.

She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies the merchants with sashes.

She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.

She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.

Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:

 “Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.”

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

Honor her for all that her hands have done, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

Proverbs 31:10-31

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Today, it ends. My writings in the Book of Proverbs conclude and tomorrow we enter the Book of Ecclesiastes as we continue to walk through the Old Testament scriptures together. But before that, we have a very important set of verses to look at, verses that are near and dear to my heart.

More than 21 years ago, the Lord blessed me deeply by bringing a very special woman, a righteous woman, into my life to love and to marry, a woman who changed me forever.

How much so?

Well, so much so that The Christian Walk ministry as well as a lot of other service I have rendered in support of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, would probably never have taken place. This is why I tell people that Grace is my wife’s middle name because her first one is “Amazing”.

So today’s devotion is a tribute to her and all other righteous wives out there, wives who are of noble character because they are in and of Christ in all that they do.

What are the characteristics of a righteous wife?

Our scriptures tell us the following:

1. She is worth far more than rubies.

Indeed, when you find a woman who is righteous, one you can partner with to honor and glorify God daily, you have been blessed with someone more valuable that the world’s finest gems.

2. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value.

One of the major tenets of a Christian relationship is to see your mate as God’s beautiful, priceless gift to you. And when God gives you a gift like that, you are never lacking in confidence in her because you know that in her righteousness, she is always connected to God and He to her.

3. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.

No mere Word document can contain the amount of good I have experienced through my years with Grace. She has always been my supporter, my counsel, my lover, and my best friend. I am so grateful to God for the gift of her.

4. She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands. She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar. She gets up while it is still night; she provides food for her family and portions for her female servants. She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard. She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night. In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers. When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet.

She makes coverings for her bed; she is clothed in fine linen and purple. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies the merchants with sashes.

A righteous woman works hard for her family and Grace has done and continues to do just that. I had been married prior in my life and had two daughters in that marriage. A few years after Grace and I married, we took custody of my girls and Grace treated them as if they were her very own. She worked tirelessly to make sure they were clothed, educated, and cared for, bringing them up on a foundation of righteousness, all while she was still employed in elementary school administration, a job that required boundless energy and effort in caring for the education of young children. Through it all, you never heard Grace complain that it was all too hard. You see, a righteous woman is a woman with a heart of a servant because she is of Christ, the perfect Servant who gave feely of Himself to others. She finds her strength and power in Him, the One through which we can do all things (Philippians 4:13). And you only need to be around Grace a short time to know she is Christ’s faithful servant. She truly is an inspiration to all who know her.   

5. She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.

A righteous woman is a charitable woman because she is of Christ who never ceased to show His love and assistance to anyone who needed it. She understands what her Savior meant when He called on His disciples to care for the least (Matthew 25:34-45).

6. Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.

In my life, I have been blessed to serve in many positions of honor. The Lord has blessed me with that and, to Him, I am so very thankful for the wonderful opportunities He has brought me to and through. But none of those achievements would have been as good had it not been for the fact that I had a righteous wife, a partner in Christ, who was as respected as I was. When we were in company together at events, it was always such a privilege to stand with her, knowing that everyone had such a strong respect for us as a couple. Righteous marriages between a righteous man and woman bring great respect because people when people see a couple that lives like this, they see the Lord and His ways, ways that will always garner respect.

7. She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.

I have to admit, there were days in my life when I didn’t want to continue in certain endeavors.

There were times during my long military career when I wanted to just leave the military and live a more ordinary life.

There were times as I worked to earn my college degree when I just wanted to give it up and quit.

But when I got to those places, there was Grace, always encouraging me and being strong for me when I was weak. Righteous women do that. They encourage and bring energy to their family when energy might be lacking. Although the future might seem uncertain, they always see the future in a positive light, knowing and trusting that the Lord will be there in the future as much as He is in the present.

And you know what, I did make it through 28 and a half years of service. I did earn first my Associates degree and then my Bachelor’s degree in college. Both happened in part because of the support I had from Grace.

8. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

If I want sound advice, all I need to do is talk to the Lord and I do. But it’s also a comfort to know that when I talk to Grace, I find the same sense of wisdom and guidance and faithful instruction. This is because she and the Lord are one in Spirit, the Holy Spirit, and so His wisdom is hers. This will be a common trait found in any and all righteous women and every man should want to have one by their side.

9. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:

You’ve heard my praises. Ask my two daughters, Stephanie and Danielle, and they would give you theirs as well. Both are well into adulthood and could not have gotten to where they are today had it not been for the love and teaching they got from Grace when they were home. They were both blessed with her and Grace would tell you she was blessed with them.

Can you see how blessed I have been to have such a righteous woman in my life?

I can completely relate to the final quote in this passage as it applies to the way I feel about “Amazing” Grace. For:

 “Many women do noble things, but (Grace) you surpass them all.”

She’s beautiful and charming but that’s not what makes her central to this devotion. Rather, it’s her righteousness born out of her deep respect for the Lord God Almighty that brings her to where she is praised.

I pray this devotion has been written appropriately to honor her but I pray even more, it has been written to honor and glorify the Lord who brought her into my life, the Lord who gave me a righteous woman to love and share life with forever.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

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