Woman of Valor

I was so saddened to hear of the death of Rachel Held Evans (RHE).  I've read three of her four books, and watched on twitter as she stood up for those who are oppressed, forgotten, hurting.  I was inspired by her, and learned from her. I will miss her voice, but so will the world.  

One of the phrases I remember from the book, A year of Biblical Womanhood was "woman of valor." It answered my concerns about Proverbs 31, and I still remember and am blessed by her explanation.  Many today are calling her a "woman of valor." And I agree.

This week my posts will focus on RHE.  I will bring back some of the writing I did earlier, but today is new.

Below is where my mind was wondering as I thought about the phrase woman of valor.  These are four sketches of four woman. One of them is RHE.  I hope you see yourself in some of this, because, you, too, are a woman of valor.

She works hard during the day,

answering questions,

typing reports,

bringing together those who disagree.

On the way home,

she stops at the field

to pick up her son from practice.

She grabs carrots, cereal, and milk,

and then, with the help of all,

fixes dinner.

Homework, dishes, baths, 

all a coordinated effort.

She is a woman of valor.

She sits by the side of her elderly husband,

holds his hands.

She tells him stories of their lives together,

stories he doesn't remember.

She is alone in the memories,

but sits with him,

so that he is not alone.

She cries, she hurts, she loves.

She misses him already.

She is a woman of valor.

She married, had two babies

She wrote four books,

Questioning, living, searching, inspiring.

She blogged. She tweeted. She taught.

She stood up for the oppressed,

escaped the church that she loved and couldn't support,

led others to freedom.

She invited everyone to the table,

sharing faith.  Pointing to God.

She died too soon.

She was a woman of valor.

She served others all her life.

Preaching the word of God.

Teaching forgiveness and grace.

She hardends herself against the arrows of prejudice.

She welcomes the homeless, and loves the grouchy.

She feeds people bread and juice, soup and peanut butter sandwiches.

People call her "woman preacher" on a good day.

"Sinner" on the worst days.

But she has a call, and she told God "yes."

She is a woman of valor.

Whether you work with wool or flax,

bring food from afar,

buy fields or stay up late at night.

Listen to others sing of your valor.

Whether you are a soccer mom, or a single woman,

a woman is is never alone, or one who is lonely, or both.

share your gifts

speak your mind

stand up for those who are hurting.

You are worthy.

You are a beloved child of God.

You are a woman of valor.

Hear us sing about you.

Fear of God

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.   (Proverbs 9:10)

The devotional in our office meeting this week was based on a passage from Proverbs.  Sally talked about fear - what does it mean to fear God?

I think when we hear the word fear, certain connotations come to mind.  A God we are afraid of is hard to imagine as a loving God, as a God who desires a relationship with us.  A feared God would be a difficult God to approach in prayer, and yet we are called to bring everything to God in prayer.  So what does it mean to fear God?

Sally's definition from the devotion she was reading was that fear of God is awesome reverence.  A God we revere, we will obey.  I don't think that obedience is out of fear, but instead springs forth from humble respect - from a knowledge of who we are and who God is.  In that obedience, we will come closer to God.  We will begin to see the world from a "changed perspective," as Sally put it.  We will begin to see the world as God sees the world.  From that changed perspective, comes wisdom.

Knowing God better, obeying God more, will result in insight.

WIsdom

The Sunday school lesson I taught today was based on Proverbs 8:22-35 -- a passage about wisdom.

What implications does it have on our understanding of creation to realize that God created the universe with wisdom at his side?  When we attempt to make decisions regarding what we will do in our lives and who we will follow, what difference does it make in our judgment to understand that the first characteristic of God as he created the universe was wisdom?

What about our own creative side?  Do we find delight in the wisdom of creation as God did?  And does?  What difference does it make in our understanding of ourselves to be told that God found joy in the wisdom of our own creation?



Trust and Obey

Our Sunday school lesson this morning was based on Proverbs.  Marv asked us to distinguish between knowledge and wisdom.  There were lots of answers, but I liked what Marv himself proposed, and the distilled version of knowledge vs wisdom.

Spiritual knowledge is a reverence for God -- a knowledge of God.  Perhaps a declaration of faith.  It grows through study and prayer.  Once we acknowledge God, then he will provide us with spiritual wisdom -- the ability to discern what we are to do in obedience to him. 

Could it all boil down to trust and obey?

Proverbs 31 Woman

One of the lectionary readings from this week is Proverbs 31. What do you think about it?

I went to a funeral this week, and this scripture was used to list the praises for the woman who had died.

On one hand, I don't mind the passage. It is a passage that describes a woman who could be called -- in anachronistic terms -- a Renaissance woman. She was into everything -- purchasing property, providing for her family, establishing a household. You name it; she was doing it.

On the other hand, and the reason I think this passage bothers me, is that it describes a woman's value based only on what she DOES rather than who she is. We are more than the sum of our actions.

When I am remembered, I hope it is because of the way I loved people; I hope it is for the grace I brought or the hope I created. I hope it is not just for what I did (or didn't do).