Faith Fridays: What Am I Called To Be As A Woman?

As much as I truly enjoy sharing my passion for beauty and lifestyle topics, the main goal of this blog was always to create a safe environment where women (regardless of age) could uncover their worth and true beauty.

Often times I struggle to create a balance between all of these topics on the blog but I guess that will come with time. If you remember my post about who you really are, I spoke about our identity as daughters of God. As it was more generally speaking about discovering who you are in Him, this month I want to make Faith Fridays based on a specific topic that deals with identity. So for the month of January I'd like to dig deeper in what we as women are called to be. I personally think that women have a very special purpose in the Lord's eyes and being sensitive to that will allow us to grow spiritually and reach our full potential. 

Today I want to really meditate on a common verse that is quoted by young women. I see pictures with this verse all over Instagram and I think we've forgotten to truly comprehend what it entails. You guessed it, I'm talking about Proverbs 31. It's the one chapter that women read and strive to emulate because it describes "the wife of noble character". So why are single girls trying to become like this woman? Well, there's a lot to be learned. It's quite a long chapter so I'll focus on verses 25, 26 and 30.
"She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue"
This is probably the millionth time you've read this but hopefully I can shed some light on it and reveal something you may have let slide. Like I said before, you may not be a wife yet but you certainly can't expect to one day get married and suddenly be this wife that Proverbs 31 is speaking of. As a young woman who is single it's necessary to start allowing God to shape you into the framework of this woman and slowly build up to it. 
She is clothed with strength and dignity, how beautiful! I picture these words visually as if the garments covering you were strength and dignity. What does that mean? I feel like both these qualities are so necessary in a woman of God that she must be clothed in them from head to toe. It's not just a veil, you should let strength and dignity shine through in everything so that you may embody them. I love that strength is mentioned here. I feel that as women we think that we are weak and can only do so much but the Lord knows that because of this we need a double portion of strength. Strength to deal with situations men might not have to deal with, strength to push forward despite opposition, strength to fulfill the role of a Godly woman. Being a Proverbs 31 woman takes some serious strength! And dignity goes hand in hand as this verse suggests. A definition of dignity states that it is the "quality of being worthy of honour or respect". How important it is to be a woman that is worthy of honour and respect, especially as the daughter of the King. In all that we do, we are representing Jesus. If we truly let that principle guide our lives, we would probably make some drastically different decisions! To be worthy of honour and respect means carrying yourself differently. Keeping your head up in the face of adversity, knowing your place is found in Him, and being a constant reminder to those that look at you that you are made in the image of God. Those are only some things that constitute being worthy of honour and respect. The most important fact is that your worth is not found in the people around you but only in Christ and don't you ever forget that! So, why is this woman able to laugh at the days to come? Because she is clothed in strength and dignity!!! She doesn't worry because she is strong and knows her worth in her Father. 
You are also called to speak with wisdom and give faithful instruction. It seems like a daunting task but there's one easy way to overcome that. The Bible! I know, it seems like that's the answer to everything but it truly is. How do you expect to speak with wisdom if you are not filling yourself up with the wisdom of God? How are you to find this wisdom..... by reading His words of course! It should be our desire to learn from God in His word each day and put them into action in our daily lives. Sure you may not be perfect but that's not what God is interested in, He's interested in a heart that is willing to search and work to be nearer to Him. The only way you'll be able to speak with wisdom and give faithful instruction as you have been called to do, it to firstly find wisdom in the Word and then share what has been revealed to you by the Holy Spirit as you have read, meditated on it and put it in practice!
"Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised"
Main point of this verse? When you look back on your life and you analyze what makes you worthy of entering into the Kingdom, it won't be your charm or beauty that gets you in, it'll be the fact that you feared the Lord. That's not to say that you should let go of yourself and not care what you look like because that is another way of representing Jesus, but it shouldn't be your main focus. The brand of clothes you wore, the extent to which your skin was flawless or how much people liked you on Earth will not get you a standing ovation. Your reward will come because you were a woman who respected the majesty of God. Fearing God doesn't mean you need to be scared of Him like He's a monster, remember that He is the perfect embodiment of love! Fearing Him means that you are in awe and respect how beautiful and perfect He is, that you will work to do what He is calling you to do. If you have these basic principles in your heart and strive to take the necessary steps to get closer to exemplifying these qualities in your life, you will be well on your way to being the woman God has made you to be! Strong, with dignity, wise and God-fearing. 
There ya have it folks. My first instalment of Faith Fridays for 2014! I hope these words have been a blessing and that it opened your eyes to what God is saying to young women of today's generation!  Happy Weekend.