Posts Tagged ‘ Wife ’
Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
Proverbs 31:30, ESV
The Church is not supposed to be merely a place of entertainment and feel-good messages. The Church is the Bride of Christ who draws others to herself by her devotion to and worship of God our Savior.
As I type this, I am lying next to the lovely woman in this picture.
If you see her, be forewarned: she is dangerous.
She is tenacious and hard working. She is passionate about her goals and defending those she loves.
And she loves God with all her heart.
That is the dangerous part.
She will help you get to know God or grow deeper in your relationship with Him. She will not let unjustice go by without saying something, and that includes any injustice you may have against God.
And trust me, as a fallen person who needed my Savior to rescue me from the pit and still struggles from time to time with following Jesus completely, I know her ability to do all the things I have described here.
Thankfully, 11 years ago today (at the minute this is scheduled to post online), she agreed to help me personally everyday, no matter how hard it got, how stubborn I can be, or how much I make her laugh. (It seems that last one is a lot, even if I do not mean to …)
So, if you see her …
Remind her she is loved by her Lord and Savior. And her husband of 11 years, as of today.
Oh, and we finally got to meet our nephew, yesterday. He is great!
Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.
Proverbs 31:31, ESV
Women – made in the image of God – are to be praised and honored for their God-given gifts, especially as they honor God.
And the Church – the Bride of Christ and mother of the saints – deserves honor and respect.
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, NIV
In November of 2008, I read these words out loud before proposing to the most amazing woman I know.
Today, we celebrate ten years of marriage, and she has proven to embody the qualities of a wife that are described here.
Truly, she proves:
He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord.
Proverbs 18:22, ESV
Neither of us are perfect, and it has not always been easy, but we trust in our perfect God, and I pray for a continued “honeymoon period” (we still have people asking how recently the wedding was!) of love and joy, which is only possible due to trusting in the Lord, and the joy of the Lord is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10).
I pray we continue to seek the Lord and His righteousness firstly in all things (Matthew 6:33).
I pray we put each other before our own needs and God before all. (Basically, Ephesians 5, as well as Philippians 2.)
I love you, Mrs. Klem!
Here is to another decade!
He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord.
Proverbs 18:22, ESV
God is not saying to find the first person to marry.
Favor and blessings are only promised to those who seek His righteousness, and a good spouse is godly and willing to serve the other (both spouses!)
A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.
Psalm 68:5 NIV
Are you an orphan or widow (or widower? Just have an absentee or abusive father or husband (or mother or wife)?
God loves you and wants to care for you. Lean in to Him.
Find the beauty in God’s Word at Proverbial Thought.
Almost exactly seven years ago today (two days ago, actually) I met a young woman who inspired this poem.
You may have already figured out I am talking about my wife. The mushy part of the story is that I knew the moment I looked into her eyes that she would be my wife. I could also detect what I came to see over the coming days. Her truest beauty came from the One living inside of her.
more than skin deep
beauty that is more than skin deep
because of a deep love of God
if she only knew just how deep
the Father wants her to feel His love
her heart cries out for justice
in a world full of pain and grief
her soul cries out for the Lord Jesus
to put her troubled soul at ease
it has not been enough just to say
God had one Son Whom He sent
through His life lived and then paid
she knows she has a Perfect Friend
this love that so emanates
from her Savior working in Heaven
flows out as she emulates
the Lord Who is the Perfect One
this beauty that goes beyond skin deep
comes from the love of her Savior
it makes the inside soul and mind and body
a holy temple dedicated to the Lord
though on the outside her beauty is great
you need to see what she has inside
the love of her God so permeates
that you can see in her Jesus Christ
so walk with her and see this life
see the love that is so complete
and that this love from Jesus Christ
makes her beauty more than skin deep
We finished getting through the book of Proverbs at Proverbial Thought last month. Our church is almost done going through the book of Proverbs on Sunday mornings. I am preaching a sermon on the last chapter of Proverbs in my preaching class next month.
I thought it would be okay to give a relatively short post about that final passage of Proverbs (chapter 31, in the ESV)!
10 An excellent wife who can find?
She is far more precious than jewels.
11 The heart of her husband trusts in her,
and he will have no lack of gain.
12 She does him good, and not harm,
all the days of her life.
13 She seeks wool and flax,
and works with willing hands.
14 She is like the ships of the merchant;
she brings her food from afar.
15 She rises while it is yet night
and provides food for her household
and portions for her maidens.
16 She considers a field and buys it;
with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
17 She dresses herself with strength
and makes her arms strong.
18 She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.
Her lamp does not go out at night.
19 She puts her hands to the distaff,
and her hands hold the spindle.
20 She opens her hand to the poor
and reaches out her hands to the needy.
21 She is not afraid of snow for her household,
for all her household are clothed in scarlet.
22 She makes bed coverings for herself;
her clothing is fine linen and purple.
23 Her husband is known in the gates
when he sits among the elders of the land.
24 She makes linen garments and sells them;
she delivers sashes to the merchant.
25 Strength and dignity are her clothing,
and she laughs at the time to come.
26 She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
27 She looks well to the ways of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
29 “Many women have done excellently,
but you surpass them all.”
30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,
but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
31 Give her of the fruit of her hands,
and let her works praise her in the gates.
The entire book of Proverbs was written to a son, specifically Solomon’s son.
When we read Kings and Chronicles we see that his children did not really listen, but that is not the point here.
In 31:1, we read “The words of King Lemuel. An oracle that his mother taught him”. Lemuel, in Hebrew, means “For God” or “Devoted to God”. We can read this as “The words of a King devoted to God.” That makes it reasonable to assume it might be Solomon still sharing wisdom, especially since we never see the name Lemuel listed in any of the ancient kings.
Therefore, the last 22 verses of Proverbs are about how a godly and wise man can find a good wife.
I think Ephesians 5 sums up what this means for the family. It is not really about the wife, at least not only. It is about the husband as well.
Both love and respect each other. They have trust in each other, and they express their love, respect, and trust through word and deed. Neither is lazy, nor do they allow anything to break their bond. They protect and nurture their relationship.
And this begins before they ever meet (or, at least, before they ever get married, for those who may live with arranged marriages), though it is never too late to begin fresh!
As Isaiah said in chapter 61 of his book, “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”
And John shows us in Revelation 18-22 how the Church is the Bride of Christ. Listen for the similarities from Proverbs 31 in Revelation 19:
Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,
“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his Bride has made herself ready;
it was granted her to clothe herself
with fine linen, bright and pure”—for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.
And in chapter 22 we read:
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.
It is the Church that perfectly exemplifies the excellent wife! It does not mean all who call themselves Christians are part of the Church, and it does not mean that we will never make mistakes. By the power of the Holy Spirit to the glory of God, He makes even our mistakes work for His gospel!
We have an amazing God who loves us desperately, and I pray we come to a point of desperation for Him that pushes us to live out His commands of love with a lost and broken world!
Let us prepare ourselves, as Christ’s beautiful Bride, for His return by loving others as we pursue God in the power of the Holy Spirit!
a simple man of God 