It’s International Women’s Day – I don’t know the origins of the day or what it’s entirely about, but I know a lot of women worth celebrating.
“A woman of noble character, who can find? She is more precious than I can describe.”
She is a craftsman and an artist, making the world a more beautiful place.
Without compensation, she leaves her corporate job to rescue women and children entrapped by abuse and violence.
She provides shelter and food for the homeless, and tells them of their worth.
She actively raises funds to support this good work. She raises funds wherever she can find them.
She teaches thinking skills and reasoning to women who would be incarcerated.
She sells jewelry and teaches vocations, rescuing women from trafficking.
She works with children and teens who are at risk or who have attempted self-harm.
She doesn’t rest until they are safe.
She is a missionary in a foreign land. Indeed, two-thirds of all missionaries are women.
She works with refugees in her own community, teaching English and coping skills for their new land.
She files, she copies, she orders, she figures. She sings in the mundane.
She works long hours, unrecognized, unrewarded. She does it for the satisfaction of doing the right thing.
She cleans toilets, classrooms, and smudged-up glass. Her laughter is heard from down the hall.
She extends her heart counseling others, whether she is paid or unpaid.
She is an influence wherever she goes, and promotes others ahead of herself.
She sets aside her career to nurture her newborn or her aging mother.
She watches over her own, and they find rest as she selflessly chooses to serve them.
Out of the great compassion and love in her heart, she raises children she did not birth.
She is an intelligent entrepreneur. She makes deals and decisions. She invests her earnings in projects that will bring an even greater return.
From her own earnings, she supports God’s work.
With children around her knees, she grades papers and runs her online business when she’d rather get down on the floor and play.
She gets up in the middle of the night to comfort a child, or to clean sickness from beds and carpets.
She creates places of safety and refuge for others.
She gives to others before she takes for herself.
She is trusted by those close to her. Their lives are better for knowing her.
She serves many hours a week as a bible study leader because her Savior is worthy of the investment.
She fills Sunday school rooms on Sunday mornings, and recruits others to join her.
She is a strong leader, and very capable, though she may lead with more tears than her brothers.
She stands beside her husband, especially when it seems hardest.
“Faithful instruction is on her tongue.” She does not hesitate to teach what is right.
As her family matures, they acknowledge her sacrifice, a forgotten virtue in a self-focused world. Her loved ones know her strength.
Her commitment to good lasts a lifetime, and that good is focused on others.
“Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. Give her the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her.” – of this she is worthy.
She understands her strength does not come through power or equality. She inherently possesses these things. She is the “Ezar,” a strong warrior, used most often in Scripture when God helps mankind. And she is Worthy, created in the image of God, valuable because of the Image she bears. Her strength comes through the laying down of her life for others, and through the bettering of lives because she loves deeply. In this way, she images Jesus and advances His kingdom on earth. She sees people restored, rescued, valued and loved. And she thinks in her heart, “it is good.”
References: Proverbs 31:10, 20, 26, 30, 31 (paraphrased); Genesis 1:27, 2:18