Proverbs Woman (song)

I am always ready to talk about Hell and Heaven and how to avoid the former and gain entry into the latter (it's all through faith in Jesus' death and Resurrection- trust and follow Him!)- but today I wanted to do something different and special to honor mothers on Mother's Day! I am so thankful to God for the wonderful mother He blessed me with and I think she fits well the qualifications of Proverbs 31. I'm sure King Lemuel's mom was an inspiration to him when God inspired him to write down the words of that chapter. There are many descriptions of an excellent wife in this chapter- hardworking, takes care of her family, provides food for them, strong, wise, dignified and above all, she fears The Lord. Such a woman is to be praised. And praise The Lord for giving us mothers who do all these things for us and so much more. Happy Mother's Day!

"Proverbs Woman"
(parody of "I Am Woman" by Helen Reddy; copyright by Nathan Ludwick 5/10/2015)
(Proverbs 31:10-31)

Verse 1

Proverbs Woman- 31
Verse numbers 10 through 31
And I know jewels are worth far less- verse 10
A woman who fears The Lord
She'll get praised (and) crowned as her reward
Go and let her husband praise her as do their kids

Chorus
Oh, yes, she is wise
And with wisdom opens to say
Teaches how to be kind
And look how much she gains
And she has food 'cause she is hardworking
She is strong (strong)
And she wears dignity (wears dignity)
Proverbs Woman

Verse 2

Makes linen outfits for Ebay
Clothes her family, serves and takes care
She determines, buys a field and plants and sows
And her arms, she makes them stronger
No idleness ever found in her
While we're sleeping, she is fixing food for household

(Repeat Chorus)

Verse 3

Many women do well, ya'll
But she's standing above all
And she spreads her loving arms out to the poor
She looks well to her household
And she laughs, no fear of snow
I feel God made my mother in her form

(Repeat Chorus)

Oh, Proverbs Woman
Yes, she wears dignity
She is strong
Proverbs Woman
Yes, she is God's blessing
She is strong
Proverbs Woman
............................................................

A Word to the Wise (Proverbs 1:1-7) :-)

Just a side note-you may know this already, but I always find it funny when I hear people use that phrase (somewhat) out of context- "Out of the mouths of babes".
      This is a common saying we have in the English vernacular but I wonder how many know that it comes from Psalms 8:2, which Jesus quoted in Matthew 21:16. "Out of the mouths of babes and infants, You have ordained praise." Jesus quoted it to the Pharisees when they were balking at how the kids were saying Hosanna to Him.
Of course, we shouldn't be that surprised that out of children's mouths we hear praise to God, perhaps even ahead of and louder than the adults. After all, as Isaiah 11:6 tells us, a child shall lead them. :-) And as Jesus tells us in Luke 10:21, God The Father has hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to little children for His good pleasure. Because as 1 Corinthians 1:27-29 says, God uses the vain and weak things of the world to confound the wise and strong. He uses the lowly and despised things of the world- the things that are not- to nullify the things that are- so that no one can boast before Him.
               There are a lot of other ones like this- for instance, do you know where we get the phrase, "A little birdie told me"? Check Ecclesiastes 10:20- "Do not revile the king even in your thoughts, or curse the rich in your bedroom, because a bird of the air may carry your words, and a bird on the wing may report what you say." (That verse may also be the origin of the phrase, "bird on the wing".) What about when you say that someone is the "salt of the earth"? Well, Jesus said that we who are His followers are in fact, the salt of the earth. "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men." (Matthew 5:13) And in Matthew 5:38-42, Jesus gives us a ton of idioms and phrases we use today- "An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth."? - That's from Exodus 21:24, Leviticus 24:20 and Deuteronomy19:21- which Jesus quotes in Matthew 5:38. What about "turn the other cheek"? That's from when Jesus told us not to resist an evil person but rather, if they strike you on the right cheek, turn the other cheek as well. (Matthew 5:39) If someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. (Matthew 5:40)- Wow, someone like that sounds like the kind of guy who would "give you the shirt off his back". If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. (I have to admit I didn't always employ this one at Cross Country practice, but technically I wasn't forced to go those miles; I chose to join the team. But nonetheless, there were some times when I went above and beyond in my high school CC and Track and Field days. :-)) So yeah- don't just do the minimum- "go the extra mile."
     I have tried to compile a list of these somewhere. I will come back to this and add some more as time allows. I mainly mention these for a few reasons. On an educational point, I like to remind people that the majority of idioms and references in the English vernacular and language come from two main sources- Shakespeare and The Bible. :-)  For another point, it's just fun and interesting to me to consider the origin of these phrases. Thirdly, it's a reminder to our culture of the influence of The Bible that is still prevalent whether we realize it or not. It's a good reason why students in school should read The Bible in order to better understand our language. (For the record, I also encourage education in Shakespeare. :-) If it comes down to "To be or not to be", like Hamlet, I'd rather you be both.)
       The most important reason I like to mention these things is because whenever I hear one used, it's a great entry point to share with someone the Biblical origin of the phrase- and why we should get to know The Author if we want to understand the meaning of the phrase and His whole Book better. :-) And of course, God's Word never returns to Him void, but it accomplishes the purpose for which He sent it out. (Isaiah 55:11)
     So don't miss the boat! (Noah's, that is. ;-) Genesis 6-9) Get on the cruise ship that's the real Love Boat- ride with Jesus, the Master and Commander of the seas (Matthew 8:23-27), who has paid our passage through His death and Resurrection- which we receive on faith-and He gets us safely home to Heaven- and it's all through His Love because He is Love. (1 John 4:8) Welcome aboard, it's Love- God's Love. :-)