Proverbs 31:13 - She Works With Eager Hands

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

As I read this, I feel empowered! Wait, empowered you may ask? Yes! Here the woman is "selecting" her wool. This means the decision is hers! Since, as we learned before, her husband is able to trust her and because her interest is in his good, she is given responsibility. This responsibility is to select (and I am assuming purchase) things her family needs. In this case, she is finding clothing materials for her family. Woohoo! So if I don't like that one shirt my husband is always wearing (not true, just an example), then I can go buy him a new one! Hold up. I don't think that is what this verse is saying, nor would it be responsible or caring. If my hubby likes his shirt, and if it is decent, then it would be a waste of our money and possibly hurtful of his feelings to replace it. Instead, we need to keep in mind that I am only given the freedom here because I am trusted and my husband knows I have his best interest in mind. Equally so, when I am at the store and see a great new pair of shoes, and buy them even though I don't really need them, I am not using our money in a responsible way. When I act this way, I am not being the kind of woman mentioned here, who is carefully selecting items her family needs.

Ok, so we have the freedom and responsibility of finding necessary items for our family. What about the second part of this verse, "and works with eager hands"? When my son wants something, say a shave ice from the stand down the street, I use it as a reward. So right now, we have a calender and he gets a sticker each day when he helps with a chore. Once he gets enough stickers, we get to go to the shave ice stand. I have never seen his little hands so eager to pick up toys, clean the windows, or help with the laundry. I know he can almost taste the yummy shave ice as he works. We are to always work with that same fervor. Whether it is dishes, laundry, or mopping floors, we are to go about it all remembering the prize at the end is a family who is well cared for. Ultimately, we are working for even more than our family. Colossians 3:23 tells us, "Whatever you do, work at it with all our heart, as working for the Lord, not for men".

So I ask myself. How am I treating the wonderful freedom and responsibility I have been given to gather items my family needs? Do I take it lightly and purchase unnecessary items, wasting the money that God has provided? Am I working with eager hands? Do I look forward to all those dishes and laundry, knowing my family is taken care of because of me?