Becoming A Proverbs 31 Woman: 1 Virtue At A Time Week 4 Lesson 4

Week 4 Lesson 4

The Proverbs 31 Woman Rises Very Early

Proverbs 31:15 “She gets up while it is still dark; she provides food for her family and portions for her servant girls.”

So far we have learned that she is a treasure to her husband because she is trustworthy, a woman of action, works with eager hands and is a great shopper!

In vs 15 we see a new character trait. She rises VERY early! For all the night owls, I want to clarify in advance – I am not saying that all godly women rise early. Believe me, I am a night owl and I rise early, sometimes I do not. When I do sleep that is. I’m saying the Proverbs 31 woman, she rises early. Later in Proverbs 31:18 we’ll see that her lamp does not go out at night. Meaning she stays up late working too. But in this passage, she rises early, that is what we are going to discuss. Why does the Proverbs 31 woman rise early?

1. To provide food for her family.

2. To provide portions for her servant girls. The portions in this passage actually means work. She rises early to feed her family and delegate the days work that needs to be done. In this day and age we don’t have servant girls, so let me suggest that our washing machine, dryer, dishwasher, and vacuums are just a few modern day servants that lighten our work load tremendously compared to Biblical times.

What are the benefits to rising early?

1. Time with God. You can be alone – just you and God in peace and quiet. This is my most precious time of day.

***Tip for those with little ones who disrupt this golden time.

*** Starting at the age of 3,

One lady trained her children to stay in their rooms until there was a 7 on their digital clock. She covered the last two numbers of the clock with masking tape and wrote the number 7 on it. She told them to wait until they saw matching number 7′s, then they were allowed to play and read in their rooms just not come out until there was a 7. Other suggestions are children's nap time, early morning hours like 2-4 am, or scheduled time with family help. The creativity list goes on. With no little ones you are a lot more flexible. With jobs, somewhat, depending on the job you have. I have enjoyed my quiet hour for years now with nearly no interruptions having no little ones. But older children are sometimes worse :), they make noise, ask questions, and need assistance too. So whatever time you get use it wisely.

2. Time alone for planning. The Proverbs 31 woman delegates the days work. She knows what needs to be done and she owns her role as the manager of her home. I like to use the morning quietness to think clearly and write a list of what I need to get done that day, or just jump into ministry on the computer and get busy with ministries day.

3. Time for making breakfast, packing lunches and even some dinner preps. The priority of providing food for her family got the Proverbs 31 woman out of bed in the morning!

4. Time for family devotions. We try to do devotions with our family as often as we can.  It’s a great way to prepare everyone’s hearts.

5. Me time, it’s my time to post my daily blog, do web maintenance, check emails, prep bible studies, etc.!

How to discipline yourself to rise early:

♦Determine what time you plan to rise and make it the same 6 days a week.

♦Get to bed early – at least 7 hours before your wake time. Ha!! good luck for some of us.

♦Pray and ask God to help you rise early.

♦Get up! If you are in a season of life where you are nursing a baby or caring for a sick family member – please do not let this put guilt on you. There are seasons of life where we are not able to rise early. God never really commands that we do. But we see the example of the Proverbs 31 woman as a GOAL to attain. Are mornings hectic and chaotic in your home? You can change that by rising earlier. Rising early can change the entire course of your day and will bless your family.

Do You Have a Dream?

Proverbs 31:16 “She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.”

The Proverbs 31 woman is truly an amazing woman! The thing that stands out to me most is her work ethic. She labors with all her energy to benefit her family as an early riser, eager worker, and smart shopper. The character trait in the vs above is a summation of all of these. In verse 16 we see:

1. She considers a field. She is not rash to jump into things. She is patient, cautious and prayerful. She sees a field and can imagine what it could become – she is a visionary! She is creative!

2. She buys the field! No matter how you translate this – this is a business deal. She buys the field. Rather than spending the family’s extra money on frivolous pleasures for herself she wisely invests in something that will benefit the family.

3. She plants a vineyard – Once again we see her work ethic. Planting a vineyard is not an easy task. She works hard and as a result her family benefits! At harvest time they will have plentiful fruit and drink.

Do you have a dream?

Do you have a talent you wish you could use to contribute to your families’ finances? Follow the Proverbs 31 woman’s plan.

1. Consider – take time to pray about this. Ask God if this is the right season of life to invest time and money into this dream? Will this pull you away from your family or benefit your family?

2. Buy – most likely resources will be necessary for your dream to take place. You may have to buy materials, renovate a room in your home or purchase new clothing. Whatever it is – be wise. Be prudent with your family’s money.

3. Plant – here’s where the rubber meets the road. You must work hard to accomplish your dream. It won’t happen overnight. It will take day in and day out over sight and care. They’ll be setbacks and frustrations. You must persevere to reap the fruit of your labor. I experienced this vs when I considered starting Ur Beauty 4 Ashes Women's Ministry.

This website project was a vision I had in 2000. With the cares of life and alot of issues going on, I put it on the back burner. From December until January I prayed and I sought God. I knew who I was in God, I knew what I was supposed to do.  I also knew what it would entail, and I am a confrontational person, but not the type to be up front. So the website was okay, but the vocal presentations of bible studies were a different story. Believe it or not, I am a shy person, but get me talking about the Lord and you think I'm a chatty Kathy. 

Do I have the time? I had nothing but time. Is this the right season of life?After getting in tune with God and it all falling in line, I knew it was time. What is my purpose? I have always had a special love for the female gender. I'm a female. We get way too little recognition, we don't get the teaching we need in church, and the truth is semi-fictional in the church for women. We were living underneath our privileges and I wanted to change that with biblical scripture. 

One big benefit was that I could do website ministry from home – unlike the ministry I knew was coming outside my home. I knew I had the passion , and the time was okay to do this.  Was I really ready to make this start in my life? I decided “yes” this was what God placed in my heart in the year 2000 and the enemy tried to hold it back. For 14 years he did just that.So I was ready. When I got to the point where I needed to start, I found a website site and all, the rest is history. 

I have seen great and powerful things transpire from the Ur Beauty 4 Ashes Women's Ministry. I don’t make any money from the website and I don’t ever intend to. I just want to encourage women and let them know they are not alone and that this walk is an individual one, but you have a friend in Miranda if you need it. 

We all have common dreams placed in our hearts by God – to be the best wives, moms and homemakers we can be. But after that we each have unique talents and gifts. When the talent and timing match the dream (and your husband is in full support, which you will find out during the “consideration” time) I believe God is in it. Even though I wasn't married when I started this women's ministry, I ended up with the just right guy that God sent for me. We compliment each other in each others ministry.

Right now in this season of your life, it may not be the time to invest time or finances in your dream. But pray and wait and when the timing is right – do it like the Proverbs 31 woman – to the glory of God!

That concludes Week 4 Lesson 4 of Becoming A Proverbs 31 Woman. Please ladies comment, remark, and participate. I always love hearing from you.  I always enjoy sharing with you guys. I open the comments area for your sharing as well. Remember, what you share may help someone else. We are all different and no two of us think alike. So, please share your thoughts, comments, and stories. If you want to reach me personally, you have the website information also the info below.

Word of prayer

Lord thank you for teaching us the value of family and the correct way to achieve what you want us to be. Thank you for women who come and fellowship and who love you for who you are, not seeking your hand but your face.Thank you for helping us become better women. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Thank you for visiting with me and allowing me to share this information. I will see you ladies next week with lesson 5. Hope to hear from you guys. God bless.

urbeauty4ashes@gmail.com(209) 407-1980 (call or text)

Prayer request-prayer page on website.