Legacy

             Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: “Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.” (Proverbs 31:28-29)

One of the problems immediate family members have is that, quite often they know the others in their family too well. Oh, if we are polite or loyal, we’re likely to be mildly positive or silent about those we know best. Some of us might even heap on praise because their looking good makes us look good or our praise makes us look good. See what good relatives we are? Granted, some people consider me jaded or cynical, but what would you think about someone who regularly told you what a bad job their parents did in raising them, or that they were rather pathetic?

Now, the king’s mother may have been one of those perpetually positive, over-the-top sorts, especially when giving advice, but let’s go with it. What is needed to earn this sort of praise – honestly? Let’s start with an obvious aspect for those of Christian worldview. She must love God because that will influence everything else. She must love those around her, whether family or not. This means she must seek what is in their best interest – not that she gives them everything they want and makes them into entitled narcissists. I have  no doubt that the Proverbs 31 woman taught her daughters to weave and market their products, to keep house, to oversee staff, evaluate land, and a range of other skills.

In these verses, we see that the Proverbs 31 woman builds a legacy. And what that entails interests me as a future topic.