THE VIRTUOUS WOMAN
A RECIPE
STEP #22
WELCOME BACK
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Today's
Virtuous
Vitamin
is
~REVERENCE~
worship
~
respect
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Proverbs
31 ...
Verse 30
Favour is
deceitful,
and beauty
is vain ... |
So nice to have you here
with me once again
today.
What is it that makes a
woman beautiful? That's
what we're going to be
talking about in this
Step. Did you know that
so many women in today's
world won't even be seen
without their make up,
but once they have it
on, they're as proud as
a peacock of their
beauty? Oh, yes, they'll
fan out their feathers
and strut around like
nobody's business as
long as they've changed
their appearance from
God's image to whatever
they think looks better.
Honestly.
If beauty is in the eye
of the beholder, and the
Lord is the only
beholder that we should
be concerned about, why
do so many women feel
like they need to
enhance their beauty by
changing or altering
what He created? The
answer is because
society has taught that
if you’re not beautiful
in the world’s eyes,
you’re not acceptable.
In trying to make a
beautiful outward
appearance, many have
compromised the beauty
in their hearts.
|
Proverbs
11:22
As a jewel
of gold in a
swine's
snout, so is
a fair woman
which is
without
discretion. |
|
1 Samuel
16:7
… for the
LORD seeth
not as man
seeth; for
man looketh
on the
outward
appearance,
but the LORD
looketh on
the heart. |
What if for every minute
you’ve ever spent
putting on foundation,
mascara, lipstick,
fingernail polish,
eyeliner, etc., etc.,
etc., you instead spent
a minute reading the
Word of God, or just
spent time with Him?
Which one would your
betrothed think made you
more beautiful? Do any
beauty products really
represent who you are in
your heart? Do you think
people would treat you
differently if you
didn’t wear make up?
Shame on them and hooray
for God! He would only
treat you better.
I realize we've
discussed this matter
already, but as usual,
there's more to be said.
Women spend so much
time, money, effort and
thought on their
appearance and they
really believe it's
their identity. Now, I
have something very
interesting for you to
think about for a
moment. You'd probably
agree that one of the
most beautiful things to
behold is an infant baby
(younger than 12
months). Ahhhhh ...
God's creation at it's
most innocent time. But
what is it that you
think is beautiful about
babies? Is it their
physical appearance?
Heaven's no! A baby's
head is ¼ the length of
it's body (no wonder
they can't walk)! If
your head was ¼ the
length of your body,
that would be 16½ inches
for a woman 5½ feet
tall! What a beaut you'd
be! Babies generally
have hardly any hair,
they have no teeth, most
of the time they wear a
fragrance called
"essence of baby puke",
and they're usually so
fat that it looks like
they have rubber bands
on their wrists and
other joints ... So
where's the beauty
again? But didn't you
agree that an infant is
one of the most
beautiful things to
behold?! The thing that
makes a baby so
extraordinarily
beautiful is that they
are unaltered. They are
God's creation with no
human editing. It's also
pureness of spirit ...
The innocence ... It's
the fragility, the
helplessness, the fact
that for every single
thing that is necessary
to maintain life, except
for breathing, a baby
must depend on someone
else. Wow! I think that
what you think is
beautiful about babies,
is everything that the
world teaches you that
you shouldn't
be!
Okay, what about
animals? What would you
think if Fifi got up 30
minutes early before
going out for her
morning newspaper
retrieval to put on her
mascara and rouge and
eye shadow and lipstick
because she would be
just humiliated if Fido
next door saw her
without it? Surely you
know some people who
actually do put ribbons
in their dog's hair and
paint their toenails,
and you know
it looks utterly
ridiculous! Now, how do
you think it looks to
God when His naturally
beautiful daughters
clown up their faces
with paints and
plasters? He may want to
laugh ... And cry, both
at the same time.
Your spirit is what
identifies you, not what
your fleshly being looks
like. Your heart is what
the Lord judges. What
are you saying to God
when you put on make up
because other people
judge you by appearance?
Is it that other
peoples' opinions are
more important to you
than God's? You know,
some people like
abstract art, and other
people, no matter how
much they observe it,
can't see the beauty in
it. You're not the
painter, God is ...
You're His painting, yet
you're picking up your
brush and changing the
picture that God made of
you, to suit your own
will instead of His.
Would you be insulted if
you created something
and it changed itself
because it wasn't
satisfied with what you
did? I'm sure you may
have thought of some
comments about how you
may not care if
improvement could be
made, etc., but you're
forgetting one thing ...
God made you in HIS
image!!! You can't
improve that!
Give it some careful
thought.
Another thing you may
want to reflect on is
how much money you spend
on perfumes, nail
polishes, make up,
baubles and beads and
jewels and such. That
probably started when
you were a teenager, as
that's when the world
really puts the pressure
on about a girl's
appearance. How often
have you spent more on
make up than on
something for your
betrothed? Just
something to ponder on.
Favour is deceitful and
beauty is vain ... They
are worthless. Physical
appearance has no worth
in the Lord's eyes. Why
does it mean so much to
humans ... Women
especially? It deserves
some honest
contemplation.
MIRROR MIRROR ON THE
WALL
... And on the vanity
and in your desk and in
your purse and on the
visor in your car ...
My, oh my oh my, beauty
is vain,
isn't it? How many times
do you look at yourself
in a day? Do you ever
see the image of God in
those mirrors? Do you
still think you need all
those mirrors, or just
the mirror to your soul?
Don't be too hard on
yourself, now. Realize
the TRUTH, repent and
confess if the shoe
fits, then accept God's
Grace, and press on.
Now, the entire Verse
30:
|
Proverbs
31 ...
Verse 30
Favour is
deceitful,
and beauty
is vain: but
a woman that
feareth the
LORD, she
shall be
praised.
|
Fear of the Lord and
faith in Jesus Christ
are the utensils you
will need to insure the
success of your recipe
to becoming a virtuous
woman. Remember,
fear of the Lord
doesn’t mean you should
be terrified of Him, it
means that you have the
utmost respect for Him
... It means you have
reverence for
Him. It means that you
put your life in His
hands. A woman that
fears the Lord,
glorifies Him every
chance that she can. By
glorifying Him, you’re
declaring your faith in
Him.
|
John 3:16
For God so
loved the
world, that
He gave His
only
begotten
Son, that
whosoever
believeth in
Him should
not perish,
but have
everlasting
life. |
|
Romans 10:9
That if thou
shalt
confess with
thy mouth
the Lord
Jesus, and
shalt
believe in
thine heart
that God
hath raised
Him from the
dead, thou
shalt be
saved. |
With the ingredients and
the utensils you now
have, you will WANT
to surrender your life
to Jesus, and each and
every day, walk
dependent upon the Holy
Spirit to guide you.
Know that He will, with
childlike trust.
Psalms
147:11
The LORD
taketh
pleasure in
them that
fear Him, in
those that
hope in His
mercy. |
Proverbs
19:23
The fear of
the LORD
tendeth to
life: and he
that hath it
shall abide
satisfied;
he shall not
be visited
with evil. |
|
1 Timothy
6:12
Fight the
good fight
of faith,
lay hold on
eternal
life,
whereunto
thou art
also called
... |
Surround yourself with
things that remind you
of God and your new walk
with Him. When you first
wake up, say "Good
Morning" to God, Jesus
and the Holy Spirit.
Hide and watch ... The
times that you remember
to do this, does your
day go better? Put
something on your
nightstand, or on your
bathroom mirror that
will remind you that He
is waiting for you to
talk to Him. Attach a
"post it" note to your
kitchen cabinet, above
your washing machine, on
the refrigerator, or
anywhere and everywhere
to remind you to greet
Him throughout the day.
Write a reminder in
permanent marker on the
top of your coffee
machine if making coffee
is what you do first
thing every morning. It
doesn’t go with your
décor? God doesn’t mind.
He will redecorate your
entire life when you
acknowledge Him first.
Is He not more important
than any color scheme,
designer placemats, or
silk flower arrangement
you have ever owned?
LOVE NOTES
It's a sad thing that
people, for various
reasons, fall out of
love with their
soul-mate. Don't let
that happen between you
and God. Don't ever stop
writing Him notes of
your love for Him, or
saying Good Morning or
Good Night to Him, or
doing special things,
going out of your way,
just because you love
Him so much.
We were just talking
about notes ... Well,
what if you got a little
yellow Post-It
®
note
from ... GOD!
No, really, if you got a
little note from the
earthly love of your
life you would cherish
it and probably keep it
in a special little box
with other things he
gave you, and probably
whatever he wrote on it
would become a special
private thing spoken
just between the two of
you.
As you know, the Proverb
that we've been studying
is a prophecy that was
told to king Lemuel by
his mother. A prophecy
is a message
from God. Consider it a
Post-It®
note, written by your
first love ... GOD!
ALWAYS BE AWARE OF HIS
PRESENCE
If your child woke up
and didn't say good
morning to you, you'd be
hurt. Don't ignore God
... You are His child.
When you look at a
crucifix, do you imagine
what it would be like to
be standing in front of
Him while He hung there
with His life ebbing
away ... For you ... Or
are you immune to the
emotion of it because
you've seen it so many
times? It wasn't just a
story in a book that you
won't remember tomorrow,
or a movie that you can
soon forget when you
leave the theater or
turn off the television.
The pain He suffered was
real. And it was for
love. He put you
first in His life and
gave up His. Think of
how many times you have
missed a blessing that
you may have gotten, if
you had only put Him
first in your life.
|
Psalms 5:3
My voice
shalt thou
hear in the
morning, O
LORD; in the
morning will
I direct my
prayer unto
thee, and
will look
up. |
|
Psalms 143:8
Cause me to
hear thy
lovingkindness
in the
morning; for
in thee do I
trust: cause
me to know
the way
wherein I
should walk;
for I lift
up my soul
unto thee. |
Let me repeat the last
part of Verse 30 for you
once again:
... but a woman that
feareth the Lord, she
shall be praised.
"Feareth" ... Has
reverence for ...
Respects ... Worships.
Remember that the Holy
Spirit isn't only there
when you want to talk to
Him, He's always there,
waiting, and hoping, and
blessing, and guiding,
and calling, and loving
you. When we think it
seems like He's not
there, it's not because
He left, it's because we
have.
But His arms are always
open wide when we
realize we've lost our
way again, so always
remember to reflect on
His Grace, and thank
Him, each and every day.
|
STEP #22
Meditate on:
REVERENCE
Related
Study:
Music
Selection:
Don't forget
to write in
your
Personal
Journal!
Go back over
each Step
often to be
sure you
have not
missed
anything.
|
If you have any
questions about the
program, contact one of
the FEMALE CHRISTIAN
TEAM LEADERS in the
Christianity Oasis Chat
Room.
Or you can contact us
at:
VirtuousWoman@ChristianityOasis.com
To
continue our program,
select:
STEP #23
I’ll meet you there!
Take care and have a
SON-sational day.
