With yesterday having been Mother's Day, I got to thinking about Proverbs 31. You know the chapter. The one that outlines this perfect wife and mother who seems to be super woman. She takes care of her home, she takes care of her children, she takes care of her husband, she makes money, she makes everything from hand - blah, blah, blah, blah

This leaves me again with the question, why is it in the Bible. God surely had something He wanted me to learn from it. At first thought I guess it was to see how far I am from the Proverbs 31 woman. This led me to ask myself what the does the Proverbs 31 woman look like today?

As I began searching the internet for an answer to this question I came across the following website: http://avirtuouswoman.org/10-virtues-of-the-proverbs-31-woman/

What initially got my attention was at the very beginning of the article. Here is the very simple statement that helped me to begin to feel like being a Proverbs 31 woman might actually be obtainable. "Being a Proverbs 31 woman is not about being “perfect.” It’s about living life with purpose, diligence, forgiveness, and repentance." 

Well Praise the Lord, cuz Lord knows I am far from perfect! 
I then got to thinking about how a lot of what is said in the Bible is written with the culture in mind. If King Lemuel were writing this today, it would look much different. So below is the Proverbs 31 woman, 2015 style...

10 Who can find a wife of good character? She is priceless.

11-12 She respects her husband, is trusted by her husband and seeks the good of her husband. 

13She works hard to take care of her family. Her focus is on her family. She uses her time wisely.

14She takes care of her body and helps her family do the same. She spends her money wisely realizing it is actually God's money entrusted to her and her husband.

15She creates a loving home that nourishes her family and builds them up. She is a servant just as Jesus was a servant. 

She does everything as if doing it for the Lord without complaining. She takes joy in taking care of her family. She focuses her mind on God and leads her family to do the same. She is compassionate to all she comes into contact with. Her family loves her and know how much she loves them. Her husband is proud to claim her as his wife. She possesses an inner beauty that can only come from God. She respects God and models that respect to all around her.

See now that I can strive to achieve!

As I begin this post, I will admit that yesterday's Sunday School lesson lacked spiritual meat. I was really disappointed. Maybe the problem isn't with the lessons themselves as much as it is that I just want more. Any way, as I studied the lesson I began praying and searching. Whenever I read the Bible I try to focus on why did God lead me to read this passage.

I love to watch the program NCIS New Orleans. In this show, one of the characters will give assignments to his team and then dismiss them with the directions to "go learn something." This is my attitude when I read the Bible; I want to learn something.

The passage we read in Sunday School is found in Daniel 9. It is Daniel's prayer to God concerning his people and their exile in Babylon. He pleads for forgiveness. The thing in, Daniel had not turned his back on God. In fact, Daniel had been thrown in the lion's den because he would not stop praying to God. He repeatedly worshiped God and would not apologize for it.

As I read over and over this prayer, realizing Daniel was taking on the sin of his people, much like Jesus did, I came to realize that this is not just Daniel's prayer. In fact, with just a little rewording, I propose that this prayer is very relevant to what we are going through in the United States. So, below is my modern day interpretation of Daniel's prayer. It is the prayer that I plan to fervently pray daily for the United States.

Lord, you are a great and wonderful God. You keep the covenant you made with all those who love you and obey your commands. You show them your love.
(okay, let's pull over and park! This does not say He shows love to all. It doesn't say He makes all rich. What it does say is that if I love Him and walk in His righteousness, He will love me! Praise the Lord - who could ask for more!)
We have sinned and done what is wrong. We have been evil. We have refused to obey you. We have turned away from your commands and laws. We haven't listened to Your leaders, Your Words, or Your Holy Spirit. We are the people of the United States. All of us are Americans, no matter where we live. But we weren't faithful to you. Lord, we and our leaders, our pastors, our churches and people are covered in shame. We have sinned against you.
You are the Lord our God. You show us your tender love. You forgive us. But we have turned against you. You are the Lord our God. But we haven't obeyed you. We haven't kept the laws you gave us through your Holy Spirit, your written Word, your leaders. All the people of America have broken your law and turned away from it. We have refused to obey you.
We have paid the consequences of our disobedience. We have received nothing but trouble and it is our own fault, yet we continue to blame others and to blame you. You are the Lord our God. But we haven't asked for your favor. We haven't turned away from our sins. We've refused to pay attention to the laws you gave us. In fact, we are guilty of changing those laws to meet our own selfish needs. You always do what is right. But we have not obeyed you and then question why you have left us.
Lord, you made a name for yourself once in our fine country. But we have sinned. We have turned away from You. Forgive us, Lord. Hear my prayers. Pay attention to the appeals I make to you. Listen to us, Lord. We don't deserve your favor. We don't deserve your blessings but Lord, I ask that you would lavish them on us again even though we don't deserve them because you love us.
Lord, please listen! Please forgive! Please hear our prayers. Take action, Lord, and bring this nation to its knees before you in repentance. Bring a revival in this nation such as we have never seen. Do it for your glory!Amen!

If you are reading this, I give you a challenge. The same challenge I gave myself.
Remember that we are God's public relations agents. Our job is to make Him look good. How are you doing? When people see you do they see God? Begin each day asking God to help you be the best public relations agent for Him that you can be.

Now Go! Learn something and reflect Him well!

Psalm 51:1-17 NIV

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge. Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place. Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you. Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, you who are God my Savior, and my tongue will sing of your righteousness. Open my lips, Lord, and my mouth will declare your praise. You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.

This is David's prayer after the prophet Nathan confronted him about his sin with Bathsheba. As I  studied this passage for my Sunday School lesson this week, I was struck by a few thoughts.

1. In  the New Testament David was called "A friend of God." Now think about this~ he had just had an affair. Fathered a child as a result of this affair.  Then in an effort to cover it up, had her husband killed. So why was he considered a friend of God. I think the answer can be found in this prayer from Psalm 51. David could have responded to Nathan in anger. He could have had him put in jail or killed but instead he repented. He could have made excuses, but instead he simply repented. He took responsibility for his sin and repented of it. We don't have to be perfect to be a friend of God, we simply need to desire to be His!

2. In verse 4, David says that he has sinned against God and only God. This confused me at first because his sin involved Bathsheba and Uriah. But in this verse David is admitting to God and telling us that  sin is not simply a violation of the law. It is disrespect for God Himself. I don't know what that does to you, but that convicts me. It ignites a fire, a passion in me to seek Him more fervently so as to not disrespect Him again. In verse 4 we also see very clearly that authentic confession is prepared to accept the responsibility  for the just consequences of our sin.

3. As we see in David's prayer, there is hope. We may have been born in sin, but we don't have to be held captive by it. The wisdom David spoke of in verse 6 is available to each and every one of else if only we ask. He wants a deeper relationship with us. He doesn't want to simply forgive us of our sins. He wants us to be single-mindedly, whole-heartedly devoted to Him and living in His ways. This is an inward transformation that changes our hearts. It calls us to a relationship of total devotion. One where we allow Him to change our hearts, to change our desires, to change our will until it matches His! When we allow Him to do this, it will affect how we think, how we act, how we talk and our attitudes. You see being changed from the inside out will affect our outward appearance.

This is what I want - to be cleansed by Him. To be transformed from the inside out into His image and then to inspire others to have the same passion!