I've learned some new things from Proverbs 31 over the past several weeks and I've enjoyed sharing them with you. It's amazing how endeared my heart is to this chapter, one that I used to despise. Just being honest ;) Don't worry, God already knows how I felt, we've talked about it! Ahem....that conversation took years. He has shown me a lot about the Proverbs 31 woman and I no longer see her as someone I could never be. I now see the richness of her character.
Although there is much more to learn from this small portion of a chapter, we'll wrap up this "mini-series" with today's post. Who knows? Maybe sometime we will take a look at this whole Proverbs 31 woman thing. We'll see where God leads the keyboard, for these keys belong to Him.
We've been talking about how important it is for our lamp to continue to burn, especially when we are in the midst of a spiritual night. We've learned not to be afraid of the dark, we've read about the vital breath His word is to us, and we've been reminded that He is already at work in the deepest parts of our nights preparing for the morning. In case you missed any of those posts you can catch up on them here:
Now, lets refresh our memory of Proverbs 31:17
Although there is much more to learn from this small portion of a chapter, we'll wrap up this "mini-series" with today's post. Who knows? Maybe sometime we will take a look at this whole Proverbs 31 woman thing. We'll see where God leads the keyboard, for these keys belong to Him.
We've been talking about how important it is for our lamp to continue to burn, especially when we are in the midst of a spiritual night. We've learned not to be afraid of the dark, we've read about the vital breath His word is to us, and we've been reminded that He is already at work in the deepest parts of our nights preparing for the morning. In case you missed any of those posts you can catch up on them here:
Now, lets refresh our memory of Proverbs 31:17
She senses that her gain is good. Her lamp does not go out at night.
Proverbs 31:18
We camped out on the last part of this verse, she keeps her light aflame during adversity, but what about the first sentence?
She senses that her gain is good.
She senses something. She perceives something. She senses she will gain something, and it's good. Gain in this context means profit. She senses something is going to be profitable. What though? Let's back up just a few sentences and see.....
She rises also while it is still night....
Proverbs 31:15
Don't forget that we've read that this "night"may not necessarily mean physical nighttime. This word also means adversity.
I think she senses 3 things that are profitable
Rises, doesn't mean just getting out of bed. It means taking a stand. In the night, in the time of adversity, she takes a spiritual stand! This ground is yours, Jesus is already victorious over it.
Stand up!
While it is still night, my friend, it is profitable, you will GAIN if you RISE up.
If you are in a night, let me share an illustration with you that I heard just yesterday on a radio broadcast of pastor Robert Jeffres of First Baptist Dallas. He said we often envision times of adversity like being in a deep pit that we struggle to get out of, but really we should see these times as a "tunnel" that we are going through. The tunnel may be dark, but we know we eventually will come out of it. We will pass through it.
You aren't in a pit, sweet one, it's just a tunnel. Rise, while it is still night, take a stand, and travel on through.
I'm so sorry, I have lied to you. At the beginning of this post I told you that this would be the "end" of a "mini-series", but I can't stop here. I just can't. I told you the keys on this keyboard were His, and in the time spent in the rocking chair writing this post, He's been nudging further, and I must be obedient and give him the keys.
You would be surprised what goes on between paragraphs as I write these posts. I look up a verse, He talks. I cry. I get goosebumps. My mouth drops open in awe. I type.
Repeat.
And something happened today between these paragraphs. What takes you minutes to read, takes a lot of time on His part shaping my heart, and boy has He been busy with me today.
Would you care to join me for more from this chapter? You should probably bring a change of clothes and some snacks. We could be here a while, God never lets me know when I'm leaving a spot.
Just sayin'....
I think she senses 3 things that are profitable
- Rising while it is still night
- Keeping her lamp full of oil during the night
- The night itself. It may be hard, but it will be worth it when the morning comes.
Rises, doesn't mean just getting out of bed. It means taking a stand. In the night, in the time of adversity, she takes a spiritual stand! This ground is yours, Jesus is already victorious over it.
Stand up!
While it is still night, my friend, it is profitable, you will GAIN if you RISE up.
If you are in a night, let me share an illustration with you that I heard just yesterday on a radio broadcast of pastor Robert Jeffres of First Baptist Dallas. He said we often envision times of adversity like being in a deep pit that we struggle to get out of, but really we should see these times as a "tunnel" that we are going through. The tunnel may be dark, but we know we eventually will come out of it. We will pass through it.
You aren't in a pit, sweet one, it's just a tunnel. Rise, while it is still night, take a stand, and travel on through.
I'm so sorry, I have lied to you. At the beginning of this post I told you that this would be the "end" of a "mini-series", but I can't stop here. I just can't. I told you the keys on this keyboard were His, and in the time spent in the rocking chair writing this post, He's been nudging further, and I must be obedient and give him the keys.
You would be surprised what goes on between paragraphs as I write these posts. I look up a verse, He talks. I cry. I get goosebumps. My mouth drops open in awe. I type.
Repeat.
And something happened today between these paragraphs. What takes you minutes to read, takes a lot of time on His part shaping my heart, and boy has He been busy with me today.
Would you care to join me for more from this chapter? You should probably bring a change of clothes and some snacks. We could be here a while, God never lets me know when I'm leaving a spot.
Just sayin'....