How far will you go?

Proverbs 31:14 “She is like the merchant ships bringing her food from afar.”

Where do you go to get your groceries? How far do you go to get your shopping done?

This scripture is comparing the Proverbs 31 Woman to a merchant ship. A Merchant ship is a ship that was used to bring in many different kinds of cargo to the port (bringing such things as dyes, fabrics, spices, oils, foods, and pottery). This woman is willing to go as far as she needs to for her family to make sure that she gets the best of the best. She doesn’t just walk down the street to the nearest store or the cheapest store out of convenience for herself. She is willing to go the distance because of her love and care for her family. Back in scripture times, women couldn’t get all their supplies at the same store like we do now (ex: Walmart or Target), they would have to go to many different merchants, sometimes in different towns in order to get everything for the family.

The questions I posted above are something to really think about, how far are you willing to go for your family? And it’s important to change your perspective on what grocery shopping really is, don’t tell yourself that it’s just a mundane shopping trip. Tell yourself that you are doing it to glorify God and it is your way of showing your family how much you love them.

Some other questions that I want you to consider (and ask yourself) that were given out of my study book, The Proverbs 31 Woman: One Virtue at a Time, can help to give you more insight, in order to become more like the Proverbs 31 Woman:

• If someone was describing your style of shopping how would they describe you?

If someone were to describe my shopping style I think they would say that I get in and get out when I know what I want (or have a list in hand) otherwise they would say that I like to see what there all is to offer and get the best value.

• Are you like a merchant ship? Or Are you willing to go to great heights to find the best, most cost effective and healthiest ingredients for your family?

I certainly don’t go to faraway lands to get the best of the best for myself, I usually settle for the cheapest brand, depending on my mood that is. I can sometimes justify spending a little more if it means I am going to wear it more or if I am feeding more than just myself. I think in some ways I am comparable to a merchant ship in the fact that I don’t settle for just anything, I like to get a good value in what I buy. I do not always try to get the healthiest foods out there, at my stage in life, I usually try to get what’s cheapest and best value along with something that can be made quickly, and doesn’t take a large amount of time to prepare.

• Do you work hard at your shopping?

If I am shopping for someone other than myself (friends, family, significant others, etc.) then yes I think I work hard to get something that I consider to be “perfect”. I want to get something that I consider to be fitting for the other person and something I know they will enjoy/appreciate. When in this situation I don’t settle for the cheapest or easiest find.

• Are you more into convenience foods that are fast or are you willing to cook from scratch?

I rarely cook from scratch, this is a skill I am not good at. Deep inside, I have a shy cook who is scratching at the walls to get out and try to cook from scratch more often but I rarely let her out. More often than not, I settle for something microwavable, that takes a few steps to make, or easily prepared on the stove top. This means I am not feeding myself the healthiest options. Which in turn, makes me feel like I am not doing glory to my body which God gave me…but that’s for a whole other blog post on another day.

• Do you take special care to get a good price on your goods or do you stop at the nearest corner store and just get something quick?

I do try to get a good price on the foods I buy. Every once and a while I will drive to Aldi’s to get good prices on certain grocery goods. I definitely am not a “couponer” by any means. It’s rare that I use coupons for things. But I refuse to just go to the nearest store out of convenience, I usually try to go to decent value stores.

Now ask yourself the above questions, and feel free to post your thoughts/opinions/ideas in the comment section below. I would love to hear how you all do with this. Don’t compare yourself to me (mainly because I’m sure you all are way better than me when it comes to this trait) but remember, we are all blessed with different skills and different traits. And remember this, by shopping for your family you are caring for them, you are providing for them, for their basic needs, it’s a necessary thing…not something to go half-way on. Be willing to go the distance, to take care of your family, because in the end it is God you are glorifying, and he will repay you for what’s truly on your heart.

Love Always,

Stefanie :) 

R&R

Proverbs 31:13 "She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands"

I want to add onto Proverbs 31:13 with a very important tip. In order to work every day with an eager attitude, there is one VERY important thing to remember to fit into your day: REST.

If you are working a full time job, plus coming home to a family, preparing a meal for a family, cleaning up after a family, being there for them, comforting them, teaching them, etc….that can all wear a person out. How productive can a woman really be if she’s got no energy to take care of her family plus work a job (if she has one)?

Sometimes we can feel bad or discouraged if we take a break from working or taking care of the family to rest, as if it means we can’t handle it all or makes us feel like less of a woman somehow. But God doesn’t condemn rest. After all, God created a day of rest, the Sabbath day. He wouldn’t have created it if he didn’t think we needed it. Resting or taking a break doesn’t make you lazy, it just recharges you so you can go tackle your next load of work whether it be another work shift, another job, another load of laundry, giving the kids a bath, etc.

This can sometimes be a hard lesson to learn, as I am finding out. Now I may not be married, with kids, but I am out in the working field. A few months ago, I was dealing with some stomach pain, so I called my doctor up to try and find out what might be wrong with me. My doctor thought it might be an ulcer so encouraged me to start taking some medicine to help that go away and heal itself. As I was taking the medicine each morning, the pain went away and I sort of forgot about it. Then after one long day of working, I came home with a terrible stomach pain and light-headedness. After dealing with that for a day and a half I then decided to take myself into the hospital to get checked out. The doctor in the ER told me it was more than likely Gastritis, which is when the lining of your stomach is inflamed due to stress. My doctor asked me if I was overly stressed at the time, I explained what I do for a living and that from time to time, yes, it can be stressful but nothing I don’t think I can handle. My doctor then asked me if I was taking some time for myself. At the time, I thought I was! I had my coping skills that I resorted to each week: swimming, hot tub time, or time with friends. My doctor then said, “Are you doing something for yourself EVERY DAY?” That I couldn’t necessarily answer because I didn’t think I was.

Unlike most people, it’s hard for me to just leave my work at the office, especially since my office is at home. I do in-home counseling for children and families, so often my work comes home with me. I do my casenotes at home and all my paperwork at home, so it’s hard to just “leave it at the office” as some people do. So I found myself not letting things go at the end of the day, I would continue to think about that one stressful case in the day or what more I could do for a client if I felt like things weren’t handled well during the session. It was almost like I was working 24/7 (except for when I was sleeping). Do you see where the problem is?? I wasn’t getting that one important thing God expects us to get….REST.

So naturally, my body was getting warn out from the lack of rest and the stomach pain was my body’s way of telling me to REST. Take it easy. Let it go. Let go and Let God! That can be a hard skill to master…I’m afraid I will never master it actually. I tend to over think things, or over analyze the situation.

So what’s the key to being an eager worker? REST. Find a coping skill that relaxes you, recharges you, and puts you at peace. It’s not just scheduling something relaxing in every weekend, but every day. What can you do every day? You shouldn’t be anticipating something relaxing every weekend or the next extended holiday weekend, you need to be doing something daily so you can wake up the next day and tackle it all over again. Right now I am trying to get out and work out more (easier said than done), I would like to be running at least once a day or at least walking once a day. Every week I go to the beach at least once which is my happy place, my chance to relax, recharge, and feel at peace with things. It’s where I do my deepest thinking and it’s where I feel most at peace. I talk to a different friend almost every day of the week. I will randomly schedule in “ice cream runs” once a week which helps too. Sometimes I will take a bath to relax. I also love to just sit on the porch with my latest book and read for an hour. Find what works for you, though. If you truly want to be the best wife you can be, the best mother you can be, and the best at your job…you need to make sure you are taking that time to REST.

When you add REST into the equation, your “eager hands” will be more of a blessing to everyone around you, therefore fulfilling that Proverbs 31 Woman role more successfully.

Love Always,

Stefanie :)