She Is Far Precious Than Rubies

Proverbs tells us that as precious as jewels may be, an excellent wife is worth even more. What could an excellent wife possess that makes her more precious than diamonds or rubies?

What are these indestructible jewels? What names do they go by? There are many, but a few are truth, holiness, knowledge, faith, obedience, hope, love, joy, humility, wisdom, prudence, fortitude, gentleness, patience, kindness, calmness, diligence (as in not lazy), discipline, and compassion. 

A good and godly woman is “more precious than jewels,” so we need to do some soul searching and find out where our character is lacking, what jewels are dulled due to neglect or are missing altogether. It is easy to end up feeling overwhelmed and discouraged.

A woman whose worth is far above precious jewels is a woman whose soul is dripping with the jewels of godliness. Pick one ornament and dedicate yourself to making it a part of your godly character.

So how do you train yourself in godly character traits?

1. Find it in Jesus

Your hope and confidence before God is Jesus’ holiness, not your own. You must first see that you lack the godliness God desires, and must see that Jesus’ righteousness is yours as a gift. Secondly, you must realize that your growth in godliness is also wholly dependent on Jesus. Your growth in these areas will not come about by mere will-power. You must look to Jesus and depend on him for all of this, working in the power he supplies.

2. Deal with them one at a time

Examine your life and see which jewel you would like to polish. Pick one at a time and then devote yourself to it by praying, studying and working hard and praying.

3. Pray about it – a lot

Did I mention that you should pray? Pray that God would send you encouragement. Pray that he would change you as you work on developing these Christ like ornaments for your soul. Pray for perseverance and wisdom.

4. Read all about you can about it

Read every Bible verse you can find, brainstorm with friends or look online for practical ideas. Find books that cover that particular character trait and read. When we read a book it is like having someone come alongside you to help, to teach, to encourage, convict and train. We can have the voice of someone long dead help us grow in our walk with Jesus. That is exciting and great grace.

5. Practice, Practice and Practice

We have all seen little babies learn to walk. It is not easy for them. They wobble, trip and fall but over time and with much practise, walking becomes second nature. When we start working on some of the character qualities described in Proverbs 31 it may seem awkward, slow and frustrating but don’t give up. Maybe you are going to work on getting up early, being more patient, speaking kindly or being more organized.  The more you put into practice the more second nature they will become. Don’t let a bad day (or even a bad week) get you down.

Written By Jen Thorn