Written by Amanda Hawkins
"Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.
The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil.
She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life."
Proverbs 31:10-12
I recently found out that our next door neighbors are having some issues.
As I was getting ready to leave the house this morning, I could hear the couple arguing loudly through the wall that connects our apartment to theirs.
The husband was cursing at the wife, and her likewise at him, which they rarely do. Then I heard him say something that made me very sad for them.
"I work all day to provide for you, and then I find out you're cheating on me, sleeping with my buddy."
(The vocabulary choice was a little more harsh, but you get the idea.)
As I left the house they were still yelling at one another, and all I could do was pray for them. I was almost in tears.
The husband was not able to lean on his wife, to safely trust in her and have no need of spoil. This husband was betrayed by his wife, his helper, his other half.
This wife was not a virtuous woman, though not many of us are. As king Lemuel implies in Proverbs 31, that finding a virtuous woman is rare, and her price is far above rubies. We all have something we need to work on, and many of us fall short of being Godly virtuous women, but praise the Lord, he is full of Grace and gives it abundantly when we need it most.
I prayed that the couple would come to the Lord, and that they would be able to work it out. I prayed that the Lord would change both of their hearts, if it be in His will.
Cheating is one of the worst things you can do to your spouse. It will wreck the family, it will destroy trust, and it will break down every individual involved. It is a toxic, lust. It does not please the Lord. It doesn't even truly please the flesh once all is said and done. It leaves you unsatisfied, and does not bring true joy. Lust. That is all it is.
As husband and wife, we are created for one another, but we have to work hard to stay together. You can not simply put away your husband or your wife every time the going gets rough, or every time someone else is more sexually attractive for some reason or another.
As Christian wives, we should be virtuous, as our husbands are supposed to be able to trust in us, and our children are supposed to call us blessed.
Do you think you can be called blessed if you are cheating on your husband?
Do you think that your husband can trust in you?
Though these verses are not about cheating, they are simply about giving your husband a reason to trust in you, doing him good and not evil all the days of your life.
Even if you are not cheating on your husband, but you are constantly nagging him, or you are talking bad about him to a friend, or if you are taking over a job that he is capable of doing and enjoys, then you are then doing him no good, and his heart will not safely trust in you.
Contemplate these verses and write them on your heart. Because it is imperative that we be virtuous women in this sinful world. If we are daughters of God, and wives to men of God, or even if we are unequally yolked, we must be virtuous women.
Women of Proverbs 31, and of Titus 2, and of 1 Peter 3, and of 1 Corinthians 11.
Women like Sarah Abraham's wife, who even called her husband Lord.
Women like Abigail, who offered her own life and humbled herself in front of King David to save her wicked husband Nabal from death.
Women like Ruth who are hard working, faithful, trustworthy, and honest.
Women like Esther who fulfill the role that the Lord gives them, without grudging complaint, and without disdain.
Husbands need wives that they can trust in.
The world needs more virtuous women of God.
