Proverbs 31:10 Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.
Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
As I sit here thinking about how tired I am… that it’s only Tuesday… and that I need more coffee, I still can’t help but to look forward to teaching precious little cherubs about the character traits of The Virtuous Woman this evening.
Dana told y’all yesterday that this week our church is having our annual Vacation Bible School and this year’s theme is one that I hold dear to my heart. Every time I read and study Proverbs 31:10-31, I see how much I lack in being the woman who God wants me to be. It humbles me and reminds me that I need the Lord with me everyday. Every meal I prepare, every purchase I make, every song or show I allow in my home, every decision I make, I need God’s wisdom and guidance to be just a hint of a virtuous woman for my family and for my God.
Yesterday {Monday} our character trait was Faith.
Faith
Faith is such a simple, yet complex thing.
In one of my favorite family Christmas movies, The Santa Clause, a little elf tells Scott Calvin {played by Tim Allen} that “Seeing isn’t believing; Believing is seeing.”
Judy the Elf
I asked the kids in my class if they think that there REALLY is such a thing as a million dollars. They said “Yes!”. I asked, “Have you ever seen a million dollars?” Well, of course not. None of them have. So then I asked them, “Then how do you know that it exists?” They looked at me like I had two heads. Then I said, “I bet you’ve seen buildings that cost a million dollars to build– and roads that cost a million dollars to pave, right? You’ve seen people on t.v. that make millions of dollars.” They all agreed.
Then I asked them, “Is God real?” They all exclaimed “YES!” “What about Jesus?” “Oh, YES!” “And Heaven and angels… all of that is real?” “Yes, Ms. Tangi!!” “Well, have you ever seen God? Or Jesus? Or Heaven? Or angels?” “Noooo.” Their big, sparkly, cherub eyes looked at me with anticipation and trust. “Then…How do you know they are real?”
*crickets*
Finally, a little munchkin voice chimed “Because we just know, Ms. Tangi.”
Aw. Sweet baby chile.
I smiled and said, “And that, my dear, is faith.”
It reminded me of this:
Matthew 18:
2 And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,
3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
—- Not gonna lie. I got a little teary eyed.—-
I went on to tell the children that like the buildings and roads that cost a million dollars to make, nature itself proclaims the existence of God {Romans 1:20}. And like there are people on t.v. that have a million dollars, there are people in our church and around the world that have been saved, felt the power of God, and have Jesus in our hearts.
Now… back to faith and being a virtuous woman…
I discovered just how weak my faith is during our adult Sunday School class this past Sunday. We side-tracked into a “What would you do?” discussion on a hot topic. I got very real and shared with my church family that if it were an extreme situation, it would be hard for me to not entertain the idea of doing something that I know in my heart is wrong, especially when it came to protecting my family.
Faith in God isn’t just about knowing whether He exists or not, but isn’t it also knowing that He is in control? Isn’t having faith knowing that if we follow Him and do what He has called us to do, that He will take care of things according to His purpose and His glory?
I pray that my faith grows so that when the “extremes” do happen, that I turn to Him– my Rock and my Salvation– and allow Him to take care of it… and that I don’t do anything stupid to make it worse. {Just keepin’ it real, folks}
Proverbs 31:21 says:
She is not afraid of the snow for her household: for all her household are clothed with scarlet.
“…is not afraid of the snow…”
I heard a saying that goes something like… “Don’t tell God how big your storm is. Tell your storm how big your God is.” I think that’s what we are seeing in this scripture. Sometimes our storms can be snow flurries of everyday irritations and disappointments. Sometimes our storms are downright blizzards of death, deception, abuse, and desperation. But whatever the storm, God can calm it if we ask Him to.
I pray that God will increase our faith as we try to grow closer to Him. I pray that He will clothe our families in the Scarlet blood of His Son, Jesus Christ. I pray that our lives will proclaim His power, mercy, and grace. I pray that our faith won’t shudder at the cold of the snow, but that the snow will shudder at the power of our God.
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