God tells us to avoid sin.. and even the APPEARANCE OF EVIL..

Ephesians 5:18 - And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
 

Proverbs 20:1 - Wine [is] a mocker, strong drink raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.

Isaiah 5:11 - Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, [that] they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, [till] wine inflame them!



Do you think it is somehow a mistery to God that things which he says we must avoid..

Are indeed BAD FOR US??

Galatians 5:19 - 5:21-19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are [these]; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told [you] in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.



Luke 21:34 - And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and [so] that day come upon you unawares.


Proverbs 23:20 - Be not among winebibbers; among riotous eaters of flesh:


Isaiah 28:7 - But they also have erred through wine, and through strong drink are out of the way; the priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they are out of the way through strong drink; they err in vision, they stumble  judgment.


1 Peter 5:8 - Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Is your knowledge of satan and his actions so limited that you can't imagine him trying to destoy you?

BE WARNED.. He doesn't want you to come to hell for a party with all your friends..

He wants you in hell to suffer for all eternity that he may remove from you any chance of  God giving you HOPE,JOY,LOVE, PEACE AND A CLEAN CONSIENCE!!

1 Corinthians 6:10 - Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

Proverbs 23:29 - 23:35 - 29 Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? 30 They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine. 31 Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, [when] it moveth itself aright.
32 At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.
33 Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things. 34 Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast. 35 They have stricken me, [shalt thou say, and] I was not sick; they have beaten me, [and] I felt [it] not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.

Proverbs 31:14

¹⁴ She is like the merchants' ships; she bringeth her food from afar.



Where did you go today to get your food??

If you had been required to drive 8 hours..
to get your husband his favorite kind of Steak would you have still gone and done it?
How about it ladies.. How far are you really willing to go?? To bring your families happiness?


Does your families needs and desires propel you to do great things.. 
Bring in great surprises..
 
Or are you kind of like.. Why should I?


Are you interested in going the extra mile.. Or just doing the bare minimum.


I have had to talk to myself face to face..

Like in the mirror..


Wagging my finger..

Giving myself the business because I really do tend to be the bare minimum type momma..

And I know that this mentality isn't doing me or my family any good..



And MOST IMPORTANTLY God isn't impressed!  

One of these days like it or not each of us must answer to God for all our actions, thoughts and deeds. 

And a "I just couldn't care less" attitude isn't going to be something we can rationalize away then..

Oh don't get me wrong.. I know it is so easy to fall into one.. It's just that I sure wish I could get rid of it once and for all..


However I do know one of the keys on how to get rid of it little by little day by day..


Here's the Verse!
And now here's the Prayer of our heart..

Dear Lord,

I pray for the energy to go above and beyond in my relationship with You and with my husband. I have a heart to serve and desire to be a blessing, but so often I justify my way out of going the extra mile. Please help me care more and give me the strength and motivation to love as You love. I pray that You remove laziness or tiredness or anything that keeps me from serving You and my husband well in Jesus’ name Amen!

Proverbs 31:13

¹³ She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.

Are you willing to work?

Are you a little less than industrious??

How can you improve that..


WELL one thing every household needs is clean dishes and laundry.. (And heaven knows there is usually enough of both) Just make it your mission to End every day with no dirty laundry on the floors of your home.. Or Dirty dishes in your sinks.. I linked you to "The FlyLady"


She is the perfect person to teach you how to keep a home..


However God's word is the proper place to change the inner man's struggles..


That I don't want to.. Mentality.

Our nation has gotten so used to instant gratification.


"The I will do what I want to do.. when I want to do it.. " Philosophy.


And that's the total opposite of what GOD says for his people.. 

Do what you "know you are supposed to do"

Lets look at a section of scripture

Psalms 15:4b But he honoureth them that fear the LORD. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not.

God says if you promised to do something.. DO IT! 

God will honor you..

If you are "SUPPOSED TO DO SOMETHING" ...
DO IT!


Hey.. I say do it if for no other reason than you know God's word promises that God will honor you for your effort.. AND Because it is the right thing to do! And yes.. even if it might in the short run trip you up to do it!

My son just thrilled me!!

Proverbs 31:12

¹² She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life.
Can your husband go to work each day without ever once thinking your going to do or say anything to betray his trust??

What about telling the kids "Don't worry what daddy don't know won't hurt him" type statements?



You do know that eventually he will find out that each day even if it doesn't seem like any kind of big deal.. that you overruled him and his decisions. And more importantly than the actual thing you did.. will be the distrust, sleazy and underhanded way it was done that will erode the trust and break down communication and really make him not trust you.. And often bring about great quantities of DISTRUST?!




Once there is no ability to trust you.. There really isn't any ability to base a relationship on anything at all...

Proverbs 31:11

¹¹ The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil.

A good, supportive, trusting wife is a blessing to a man. A woman who partners with her husband, who is reliable and looks out for his interests, gives a man a security that is greatly lacking in the world. She is worth more than a substantial paycheck. To bring in the metaphor, wisdom provides the same benefits—it is worth more than money, you can always trust it to make the right decision, and it provides blessings for those who have it.

She knows that, as a partner in her marriage, she has a tremendous influence on her husband’s ministry. She can integrate her life—both domestic and professional—with her ministry in such a way that her husband has the freedom to serve. In fact, her reputation is so established, that it bleeds off onto him.
The Proverbs 31 wife is a fierce provider and protector for those she cares about. She is wise to the ways of the world, but lives by the wisdom of God. As in the rest of the Proverbs, these specific examples provide a metaphor for the larger truth. How any individual woman exemplifies these characteristics will depend on her situation, gifts, and abilities. The key is in verse 30, just as it is in the beginning of Proverbs, in 1:7:
But a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.

Proverbs 31:10

¹⁰ Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.

What does it mean WHO CAN FIND A VIRTUOUS WOMAN??

Well I guess we need to start here..

What is virtue?

There is a difference between Possessing a virtue..

And BEING Virtuous..


Example..

I really am a punctual person.. That is a virtue..

However My entire nature isn't designed around punctuality..

Do you see what I am saying?

I will give another example.

Lets pretend my son has 2 friends over.. Both are honest boys..

Jimmy and Jeremy love to have cookies

So we make up a batch of 10 dozen cookies.. 

I tell them.. YOU MAY EACH HAVE 1 dozen cookies to take home..

Both boys through out the course of the day watch me package up 10 separate packets in ziplock bags of 12 cookies each.

And From one bag I give Jimmy a cookie, 

From another bag I give Jeremy a cookie,

From a third bag I get myself and my sons each a cookie..

In my mind I have given each child a cookie from out of his dozen..

When it is time for each boy to go.. "One Grumbles and complains.. YOU SAID WE'D GET A DOZEN TO TAKE HOME.. We only have 11 cookies each to take home.." he says..


If I am virtuous what should I do?

Honestly.. I from my gut say I need to take one cookie for each and give it into their bags.. as I DID PROMISE A DOZEN WOULD GO HOME..

How do I know how often they get cookies that are home made?

How do I know if they didn't look forward to sharing them with their family?

But because of WHO I AM.. I need to honor my own word.. And what I actually said..




A virtue such as honesty or generosity is not just a tendency to do what is honest or generous, nor is it to be helpfully specified as a “desirable” or “morally valuable” character trait. It is, indeed a character trait—that is, a disposition which is well entrenched in its possessor, something that, as we say “goes all the way down”, unlike a habit such as being a tea-drinker—but the disposition in question, far from being a single track disposition to do honest actions, or even honest actions for certain reasons, is multi-track. It is concerned with many other actions as well, with emotions and emotional reactions, choices, values, desires, perceptions, attitudes, interests, expectations and sensibilities. To possess a virtue is to be a certain sort of person with a certain complex mindset. (Hence the extreme recklessness of attributing a virtue on the basis of a single action.)

Honestly.. I probably could tell them to be greatful they got anything.. and send them home.. But what will that tell them about me, about my word?


And side note.. Remember God tells us parents not to build anger into our children.. Think about it yourself.. If I had been a kid and an adult did that.. To me it would have seemed kind of slimy and not on the up and up.. KWIM?

How can you be virtuous??

How does God define a Virtuous woman.. Yes I know .. Read this chapter.. lol But at the core.. What is it that God says is of value?

It’s her fear of the Lord that makes her a woman of virtue – that’s it. Her perfection doesn’t stem from her impeccable homemaking skills, but from her heart. Her perfection is not her own, it belongs to the One who owns her soul 

What does it mean about her having a PRICE?

 
Two different averages and equations for determining the worth of a wife/mother who does what the Proverbs 31 woman was doing... Plus she'd probably be worth more.. honestly!



Now lets compare it...

Below is the cost of one RUBY!

Sale price $840.00

Regular $2,100.00

What does it mean that RUBIES are not as valueable as she (This Virtuous woman) is??

This woman buys and sells, trades and does business just as much as any Fortune 500 company CEO..

She runs the vineyards and farm etc.. Tells the hired help how to do what.. keeps track of their paycheck etc..


She isn't slack!

This is the kind of wife ANY MAN would be honored to have found..
He would be blessed to have a hard working industrious woman..

Think about it.. 
How often do we allow ourselves to lose our value and importance by our laziness!


Um... Guilty.. Just keeping it real ladies..

I am not preaching at you.. I am doing this mostly for my own bible study.. You just get the blessing.. Or I hope you see it as a blessing!