Why Proverbs 31?
Proverbs 31:10 says “A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.”
Most of us know this scripture, but I’m not sure if it changed your life like it changed mine. Hi, I’m Jasmine, and I’m the founder of Proverbs 31 Exclusive. Most of the Weekly Words will be all about the Word of God. But in this post, I wanted to tell you a little more about myself.
So how did Proverbs 31:10 change my life? For you to get the complete picture, I have to tell you a bit about what I was going through back then. I was in an extremely toxic relationship with a narcissist. I plan on diving into my testimony at some point. For now, I’ll just say if you think you may be with a narcissist, research the term. If you discover you are – RUN. I wish someone would have told me to run all those years ago. Actually, I wish anyone would have told me anything besides “that’s just how men are” or “you aren’t the first woman to go through that and you won’t be the last”. But most of the people whom I got my advice from put so much worth in simply HAVING a man, I thought my life was much more on track than it really was.
Still, something felt wrong. I knew there had to be more to life. I wasn’t nearly as close to God as I am now, but I knew He had to create me for more than being some man’s punching bag and sex toy. Thankfully, my ex never physically abused me, but his words and coldness felt like a knife that I couldn’t ever pull out of my back. There were so many nights I cried, wondering how I got there. Then, when my family and friends made me feel stupid for considering single parenthood, I thought maybe I had all that I deserved. Maybe I wasn’t worth any better.
And in a long line of heart-shattering events, God allowed me to rediscover Proverbs 31. I grew up in church, so the words from the last chapter of this book weren’t new to me, but they felt realer than ever before. Though my ex had refused to make me his wife, this single verse made me question those feelings of worthlessness I’d been dealing with. Despite a close relative calling me a concubine for living with my children’s father before marriage, the verse wouldn’t allow me to accept that as my identity.
As I studied Proverbs 31, I realized something – a wife is found, not made when she signs her name on the dotted line. Her value lies in who God called her to be. Her rarity is defined by her decision to walk in that calling. A man’s affection, or lack thereof, has no bearing on her worth. The Proverbs 31 woman’s identity wasn’t in what people said about her or her relationship status. She chose to be a woman of noble character. It was her decision to lean into God and let Him work through her. And since God doesn’t pick favorites, I knew I could make the same decision too.
I knew then that I was rare. Not because I was in a rare situation. Many women have been broke, talked about, lied to, cheated on, etc. Not because I had a rare beauty that could make me stand above other women. I was rare because, right then, right there – I committed to being who God called me to be.
I created Proverbs 31 Exclusive because the love of God literally changed my life. I’m still not where I want to be, but I’m certainly not where I was. For the first time in my life, I feel free to do more than just survive. I know God created me to thrive. I know the same about you too! You are valuable and I hope to help you walk in that truth.
