Wonder Woman? I think NOT!

Some of you, as Old as I am, might recall the television series that aired in the late 70's anyone older will recall it was based on a Comic Book Series.
First of all I neither look like Linda Carter nor do I resemble the Comic Strip drawing, that being said...

Any woman in America today can relate to this title since we as women are supposed to be Wonder Women!
Work all day, clean, cook, take care of kids (if you have them), laundry, look perfect, dress perfect, be ready at a moments notice to entertain unannounced company, volunteer in our community, volunteer for one or more things at Church, volunteer at school, then if you still have free time spend it with your kids, husband, extended family, neighbors doing quality memorable things. Oh I almost forgot you need to squeeze in exercise at least 3 times a week if not more, so you can live a LONG healthly life.
ARE THEY KIDDING? Who wants to live like this for another 30-60 years? NOT ME!

Don't get me wrong, I love my family, friends, customers, chuch, job & home I however don't have that much time or energy to give each day to all those things & people.

I have heard & seen the Proverbs 31 woman, touted the last 10 yrs as the example we should live up to as women.

Well I am not a Bible scholar by any means (when would I have time to attend seminary??) Don't get me wrong I pray daily and most days ALL day I could never make it through a day if I didn't.
I, for the majority of the year, try to spend at least 15 minutes of quiet time reading my Bible & studying with the help of a devotional monthly magazine.
However there are few things that aren't 'blantantly' stated in this passage that need to be considered.

1. Her husband is repsected & sits among the elders he must be a GODLY leader & provider for his household. vs.23
2. She has servant girls to help her with her duties and jobs around the home. vs15
3. She is a business woman & is an artisan, she shops vs 24, 13, 16, 18, 19, 22 & 14
4. She manages the home. vs 27
5. The only mention of her children is that when they awake she has provided breakfast & they call her blessed. vs15 & 28
6. Her husband praises her and calls her blessed. vs 28

Now I don't know that much of Jewish Cultural History, however I am pretty sure her children weren't at public school. There is no mention of what they do all day long, however I assume they are being taught and helping around the home to some extent.

She has someone fueling her work by encouraging her daily. Her husband & childrens praise.
VS 31 states "Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate."
So she should be compensated appropriately and given kudo's by the town.

Was she wonder woman? No, she had help, she had encouragement & praise, she was paid (in money or materials) but she was paid.

We need to stop saying yes to everyone who asks something of us. We need to put the things we are good at doing and the things that bring us joy, praise & reward ahead of the requests of everyone who asks. We need to put our family's needs (not wants) at the top of our lists.
If we put our heart into the things we set out to do GOD will bless them and then we can give to others out of our abundance.

Will every day be perfect & gratifying? Probably not, this is life & there is not a single place in scripture, I can find, that says it is fair or smooth sailing. If Christ had to suffer so horribly to redeem our sorry butts, then why do we think our lives are going to be a walk in the park?

The key to everything is balance, when we forget our time with The Engineer each day, things will quickly get out of balance.
Just like when our diet isn't balanced (no two cookies in each hand is not balanced) our body starts getting thrown out of whack & we start suffering. When our car tires aren't balanced the car will start to shake or pull to one side.

No I am not Wonder Woman, I can not save the world. I am however a woman and I can touch the lives of those around me in a postive way each day.

Say a word of encouragement to someone, smile at a stranger, hug a loved one & let them know you LOVE them!

blessings 2 U friends
Tammy