My Journey...Part 11

First off, the picture above is Stephen at his first soccer practice last Saturday! He did well (for a 2 year old), and we are looking forward to the start of his games. We went to the zoo later that afternoon, and he HAD to wear his "uniform!" He is so proud of that "Carolina blue" shirt!=)
So, I guess my comment that I was on Matthew Henry's last commentary page made it seem like this journey was done. That's not completely true. Each page I've studied has taken me 3-4 entries to explain. I'm guessing that since I'm now on the last page, I may have 1 or 2 more parts of this journey to post. We'll see.=) Regardless, here's another portion of what I've learned from my study of Proverbs 31:
Proverbs 31:28 says, "Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her." The virtuous woman has commendation in her work, her home, her relationships, but that's not all. She even has commendation in her husband; we've talked about how much he loves her. But...the virtuous woman can also find commendation in her children! What an amazing thing! Do others look at our boys and "commend" me? Will the boys look back on their lives and "commend" me? I'm not sure. While everything the Proverbs 31 woman does is ultimately for the glory of God, she still receives the praise of others. I pray the boys find this in me! Henry writes, "They (her children) are ready to give great commendations of her; they pray for her, and bless God that they had such a good mother. It is a DEBT which they owe her." We've talked about money so much already in Proverbs 31 that it's almost strange to read the word "DEBT" in this commentary. It's been all about save, save, save. Debt doesn't sound appropriate to this passage but consider this: When the virtuous passes from this world to the next, she will have no debt. No debt, that is, but the gratitude and love her children "owe" her! I love this thought! It has been one of those "Wow" ideas for me, and one that I think I will always remember. The only debt I want to leave this world with is the debt of love my boys can never repay their Mom! Incredible! And this, will undoubtedly, only be done through the grace of God!
To finish this part, we look at the second part of verse 28, which talks about her husband praising her. Henry writes, "Her husband thinks himself so happy in her that he takes all occasions to speak well of her. It is no indecency at all, but a laudable instance of conjugal love, for husbands and wives to give one another their due praises." I love it when Jeremy "praises" me. I pray I give him reason to. May we be so enamored with our Savior and each other that our love and appreciation overflows! And may it start in front of our boys!