OUTSTANDING !!!

As I mediate on the word noble, with the prompting on my heart to write about I don’t even know where to start!  Lord please use my hands to convey what you have placed on my heart and please let people only see you as they read the words from this note!

Yesterday the word noble came up three times throughout my day and it had truly pierced my heart! The three instances are: my pastor spoke about the noble characteristic of Ruth, while reading Proverbs 12 during my devotional, and a facebook posting on Proverb 31:10. Uncoincidentally (which is not a word according to the Oxford English Dictionary, but I am sure you catch my drift) the three times I heard or read about the word noble are the only three times the word is used in the Old Testament in relation to women! (If that sentence didn’t make sense, I can rephrase) the word noble as a characteristic used in relation to women is mentioned ONLY three times in the Old Testament (Ruth 3:11, Proverbs 12:4 and Proverbs 31:10). 

  I looked up the word noble. Noble is an adjective, typically describing someone’s character. My favorite definition was “possessing outstanding qualities”! When I read the word outstanding the first thought I have is a memory of elementary school; receiving my returned assignments with a sticker on it that reads OUTSTANDING!!! In order to get an outstanding sticker I believe one must spend a lot of time and effort on an assignment!

  As believers we need to live outstanding lives! As women of God we need to posses outstanding qualities! I am sure so many would say during these times to live a life possessing outstanding qualities takes a lot of time and effort and it is difficult! We must desire to posses these characteristics as women and men of God! Many times we focus more on our education, careers, and the lifestyles we desire than on developing our character so God can use us in our areas of education, careers and daily lives. The word of God commands us “to set our hearts on things above”(Colossians 3:1). A man I truly respect once told me “character over career! How can you ever get where you want in life if you are not the person God wants you to be? In order for God to use you must have character. Fulfilling your purpose is order by God! As a woman in a growing relationship with the Lord, I have experienced developing those characteristics today during these times where there is so much exposure is can be difficult! However, praise the living lamb God

• we don’t have to figure it out on our own or do it on our own(because we can’t and if we try we will fail so don’t! WARNING- you will be wasting your time!)
• And we have a love letter the word of God! The freedom to read it! To help us become women with outstanding qualities-Noble!

As I mentioned earlier there are three places in the Old Testament we can focus on which we can use as a tool to help us become women of noble character! 

The first place in the bible where noble is used in relation to women is in the book of Ruth. In Ruth 3:11 Boaz describes Ruth as a “women of noble character”. My pastor’s sermon on the book of Ruth focused on three attributes of Ruth’s noble character, which are a good recipe to use on how to live during these times!  These attributes are loyalty, hopeful and humble.

  Ruth was Moabite woman, and she turned from her idolatress ways and refused to go back home to the comfort and familiarity of her people. She didn’t know what was going to happen, she didn’t have the plan in front of her but trusted in the Lord and was loyal to her mother-in-law and to God. The attribute of her loyalty was clearly demonstrated when she says to Naomi “…Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me”(Ruth 1:16-17). My father used the word loyal all the time while I was growing up! He would tell me one of the most important aspects of our relationship is our loyalty to each other! The way my father describe Loyalty to me as a youth was: to be loyal means to act the same way while you are with me when you are not with me! Basically we know God knows are thoughts and actions even before we do them! However we must behave the same way always! Because he is always watching us! Not acting one way sometimes and then acting another way other times! (***Quick Note: One way we as women fail in this is when we buy a piece of clothing and say I could wear this but I can’t wear it to church! If you can’t wear it to church then you should not wear it at all!-I am guilty of this!)

  Upon returning to Bethlehem Naomi and Ruth had nothing, they were poor, and widows. Naomi felt shamed! However, Ruth had a spirit of hope! Ruth told Naomi she would glean after the harvesters in the fields so they could have food! Because the Lord is faithful and the steps of the righteous are order by the Lord Ruth just so happen to glean in a kinsman field, and he found favor with Ruth! Many times we can always have a negative attitude and truly be the cause of not feeling blessed or fortunate! “We must constantly trust in the oncoming favor of God, because a good God will always bring us something Good!” Ruth stood strong, she was HOPEFUL, and was diligent!

  Nowadays it is easy to follow the ways of those around us! My pastor always says sin is free that's why it is so easy to do it cause you don’t have to work for it! To not sin takes work, and it is not easy! So remember that God is always watching, we must stay loyal and also hopeful knowing that even though times are tough we must remember the word of the Lord and his promises. He will never leave us or forsake us!

When Naomi told Ruth what to do so she may find a home for her, Ruth responded, “I will do whatever you say”. Ruth could of easily disagreed with Naomi’s requested! However she trusted her wisdom! She humbly listened to authority without hesitation. “To have faith-filled humility is willing to submit to the process of God again!” As I have grown older, and have become a stronger believer, I submit to authority so much quicker now than ever before! As a younger believer I truly remember learning my lessons the hard way! REAL HARD WAY! I believe they are learning experiences and truly apart of my testimony! However I don’t think I needed to learn them in a hard way! I urge you to pray a prayer my mentor told me to pray for myself “Please God show me the way, may I learn the lesson without difficult!” The quicker you humble yourself the less havoc you will experience! Pride comes before the fall! He who humbles himself shall be exalted. It is easier to discipline a child, teach a child and the word of God promises “unless you become like little children you will never enter the kingdom of heaven”(Matt 18:3).

  As women we must be loyal, hopeful, and humble to be apart of the kingdom of heaven! Ruth was an exceptional woman! Not ever noted for her beauty but because of her noble character! So much so she was part of the genealogy of Christ! How amazing is it that a woman not even from the descendents of Judah, the Lord found favor with her because she was loyal, hopeful and humble! She was the great great great (many times)-grandmother to Jesus! Our Lord and savior! We need to desire these attribute as women and focus on our character and not things of the earth that will perish! Like beauty and material possessions!

The second place noble is mentioned in relation to women is in Proverbs 12:4. As I read Proverbs 12:4 I felt so blessed, it reads, "A wife of noble character is her husband's crown".  What an amazing simile!!!  It is a prayer to be a wife of noble character and such a privilege that I would be compare like a crown for my husband! At the end of Proverbs 12 in my bible it gives a brief commentary discussing the good that comes from a wife of noble character, “A man who is fortunate enough to marry such a woman will be much more likely to reach his potential and be admired by others…a good wife is far more than a social appendage or domestic helper. A wife who pursues wisdom and godly character can be the most important influence in her husband’s life. A wife who doesn’t can be his downfall”.  Do you desire a husband? If you do you do not want to be his downfall! I truly encourage all ladies to seek the Lord for wisdom and godly character! Every good gift comes from above! It is a good gift to have wisdom and godly character, which means the only way we can posses these attributes, is by seeking the Lord! The word states ask and you shall receive! Seek God! Ask him to give you wisdom and start living a life as a woman who fears the Lord! The Lord knows the desires of your heart and he will answer in his perfect time.  However, you must be constantly seeking him and be in a growing relationship with him!  We can never be perfect but we can be Women of God by the Grace of God!

The third place noble is mentioned in relation to women is in the famous Proverb loved by most women, Proverbs 31. “A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband…lacks nothing of value”(Proverbs 31:10-11).

The first part of this epilogue the question “A wife of noble character who can find?” implies that women of noble character are rare!

This is SO SAD!

Why? A woman possessing outstanding qualities should be the standard! It should not be rare to find a woman of noble character! But it was rare in the times Proverbs was written and probably even more rare nowadays!

The lines proceeding states she is worth far more than rubies…her husband…lacks nothing of value. A woman of noble character is in invaluable, far above rubies- no quantity of precious stone can be equal to her worth!  Women we are invaluable that is huge! We need to start acting like we are invaluable! I agree that men should be Men of God and respect us and treat us like Jesus loves the church and God however we can’t make it so difficult for them to do that and we do!  We make the excuse “oh he should of been man enough…stood up…took a stand!” Stop playing the role of a victim! Take accountability! Being accountably for your actions! Unfortunately men have huge weaknesses not an excuse for them but if we can have the extreme effect to be the downfall of our husband when we are married if we lack a noble character we can have an even larger effect as single women to men who are single or married! We must have outstanding qualities! Being aware of what we say, how we dress, and what we are focused on! FOCUS on God! If you believe that you are worth more than rubies than you must behave like you are invaluable cause you are! Belief and Behave must coincide! The God of Heaven and Earth gave his ONE and ONLY Son, to die on a cross, and he rose again! For the atonement of our sins! The atonement was the price he paid for our redemption! His blood on Calvary should be a reminder to us that we are worth far more than rubies-a zillion rubies could never be equal to our worth so we must act like it!

The Noble Character is not easy! However we were not called to live easy lives! Stop complaining! Nothing free is worth keeping! However, we have a helper, the Holy Spirit that lives in us! The Holy Spirit can prompt our hearts! Transform our minds, guide our footsteps, and keeps us in line! A demonstration I perform once for children’s church was we must be like a heart shape cookie dipped in a cup of milk. We must have softened hearts!  Humble, loyal, and hopeful! Look to God! Seek God, ask him to help you and show you how to love him! He is the way the truth and the light!