Beauty by the Book: Summer Bible Study – Week Six

You did it! Welcome to the last week of our summer bible study!

Thank you so much for joining me on the journey to becoming a biblical beauty. You made it to the end and the payoff will be with you for years to come!

Week Six: The Ideal Woman

Laurie did save the best for last didn’t she? The Ideal Woman is every beauty-do rolled up into one amazing woman. It’s hard to read about her without having an even mixture of admiration and intimidation. Let’s hear more about the Ideal Woman during Laurie’s final teaching on becoming a biblically beautiful woman!  (Click one of the links below for this week’s FREE online video lesson).

Beauty by the Book: Week Six (The Ideal Woman) – Listening Guide: Pg. 129

Beauty by the Book for Teens: Week Six (The Ideal Woman) – Listening Guide: Pg. 125

Reflecting

How can anyone measure up to the 21 verses of praise that are given to the Ideal Woman? She has an adoring family, a warm, well stocked house and a successful business. She’s the queen of crafts, she’s a master chef and an expert gardener. Seriously! Everything she does is perfect with a capital “P”. It’s kind of overwhelming isn’t it?

Wouldn’t it have been easier for Proverbs 31 to just stop at verse 10?

“Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? She is more precious than rubies.” Proverbs 31:10 NLT

Then we could all focus on becoming virtuous and capable. Just two things. We could conquer those adjectives, right? Maybe we could.

But God chose to lay out the BIG list for a reason. Yes, all these qualities by themselves are really good to have, but I have a feeling that God wanted to show us once again just how much we need him. It’s kind of like reading through the ten commandments and realizing that you have never been able to keep every single one to a T. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try, it means you can only succeed with God’s help.

The Ideal Woman prospers not because she’s perfect, but because she’s purposeful. Every move she makes has a noble motivation behind it. She is a woman who fears the Lord and her commitment to Christ becomes obvious as she seeks to serve those around her. But she wasn’t born that way!

As Laurie reminded us, even the Ideal Woman had to go through the process of “becoming”. I like to imagine she faced a lot of the same emotional struggles that we do today. Like when her husband stayed late at the city gates and missed the dinner she brought from afar. Or when she dyed the children’s clothes the wrong color of purple… again. And she keeps running out of lamp fuel because she uses it every single night and honey, that is never on sale. But instead of loosing it like we can sometimes – she laughed.

“She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future.” Proverbs 31:25 NLT

I want to grow into the laughing biblical beauty that is the Ideal Woman and I hope you do too!

Let’s Chat

In the comments, answer one or more of the following discussion questions: (This is your last chance to win a $100 gift card to our store by leaving a comment! The winner will be contacted and announced next week!)

1. Whether you’re a Messie or a Cleanie, how did God speak to you about the condition of your house through your study?
   1. If you still live with your parents, what are you doing today to help around your home? What homekeeping skills do you need to learn and practice in order to take care of your own home someday?
   2. If you run your own home now, what changes do you need to make to become a Successful Average Housekeeper?
2. In this season of your life, who is God primarily calling you to reach and teach?

Parting Words

Thank you so much for joining me this summer! It has been a fantastic vacation though the Proverbs and I loved relearning all the biblical beauty truths with each of you! I pray that God will continue to remind you all the beauty-do’s and don’ts throughout the rest of your life. Don’t keep it to yourself – pass them on to your daughters and other women in your life!

The Beauty by The Book videos have been free on our website for some time and will remain that way until further notice. So, please feel free to watch the ones you missed or send your favorites to a friend. We love that we can be generous with our resources thanks to an incredible group of people who partner with us. If you’ve been blessed and would like to know more about how you can give back to Priority Ministries click here to DONATE NOW.

Hope to see you soon on the blog!!

Stephanie