Facing the Seasons of Your Life

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

Proverbs 31:25

You have surely read all the virtues of the woman of noble character described in Proverbs 31. Many exegetical studies have tried to explain just how this woman accomplishes soooo much!  The last time I read this though, God gave me a delightful insight.  I noted that verse 25 comes after quite a lengthy list of tasks the "Noble Woman" achieves.  I was already worn out just thinking about emulating her, much less putting my feet to the floor to actually doing what she did.  But then this nugget jumped out at me, and it gave me a new clue to her efficient productivity.  

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

First, she wears the right attire-- "She is clothed with strength and dignity."  It made me think of the rather silly movies of super heroes whose powers appear when they don their costume.  On a serious note, think deeply about this spiritual clothing...it's spiritual strength that she wears.  The source of this woman's power is the strength that God gives and since nothing is impossible for Him, she can certainly do anything He asks of her. When our focus is on accomplishing what God sets out for our day, we will be more efficient.  Things that aren't important will not distract us. 

Second, LOOK at this woman's amazing attitude.  "She can laugh at the days to come."  This isn't describing a woman experiencing a manic crest.  This is a constant, pervasive attitude of the mind and heart.  She is fearless...she is worry free...she is full of joy.  She has pushed out all the destructive thoughts that clamor to fill her mind, and she instead chooses simple joy as her outlook on life.  

At my age, I've passed through several seasons of life.  I've pursued the education to have a career, I spent 30+ years striving to be the best at my job I could be, I've been a mother and watched my own children move into adulthood. I've been a pastor's wife for 30 years.  I left the workforce and moved into retirement.  I became a grandmother.  I was recently asked to provide my resume...five pages of all that I've done.  Will I receive accolades for all of that?  No, not even most.  What God desires of us is not a long list of accomplishments, not that those are bad, especially if we are serving to glorify God.  But what He really wants is our heart, our dependency upon Him, our trust.  When we give Him those, He will bless us with strength, dignity and joy.  I'm not looking back...I'm looking ahead to the seasons of life that await me...and I pray that I can face each one with more and more joy!

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I did a simple watercolor wash to create the background for this page, did my own handlettering, and stamped the branch with flowers using the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps set Birds and Blooms.  The girl and the word joy come from the March printable, Garden of Grace, available at Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps.