Give her the fruit of her hands and let her own works praise her in the gates. (Proverbs 31:31)
As women, the concluding words of Proverbs 31 gives us something to ponder. What does the fruit of our hands look like? Will it bring praise when our time here on this earth is over? Will the legacy we leave behind for our children, grandchildren, and family be a beautiful legacy of a faithful and fruitful life?
I often think about the legacy my own dear mother left behind. Her example is still teaching me things 22 years after she left this world. We've all heard the saying, “actions speak louder than words." My mom's life was a perfect example of this. She never preached to us, but her example spoke volumes.
Mom never had a job outside our home, never pursued a career, or went back to school. She didn’t belong to any clubs or Bible study groups outside the home. She didn’t even attend church on Sunday. Dad did not go to church, and mom did not want to go without him. I found it rather ironic, after mom's death, when a neighbor commented that my mother was more of a Christian than anyone else she had ever known. Several other people in our small town made the same statement in the months following her death - all part of mom’s legacy of faith she left behind.
Mom’s entire life revolved around her home and family, period. In light of the world’s way of thinking, mom would've been thought of as unsuccessful, wasting her time, not making anything of herself, or perhaps even looked down on as someone without a life. The opposite was true. Mom had something few women, who are considered successful according to the world’s standards today, will ever experience - real happiness and true contentment.
The reason mom never pursued activities outside the home was she had no need for them. She was happy and content to accept her calling as wife, mother, and homemaker. Her family and home were enough. We never wondered what place we held in mom’s life, and we never had to compete with a career or outside activities for mom’s affection and attention.
We didn’t have structured family devotions either. She taught us about God as we walked beside her and picked flowers on warm summer days, as we worked beside her in the garden and kitchen, and as we fed newborn calves and helped with farm chores. We learned how to treat neighbors and loved ones, how to have compassion on other people, and even how to love our enemies at mom’s side - all by the example she set. She taught us how to find joy in the simple things in life, and she always found good in every person, even those who at times were difficult and unloving.
The journals she kept faithfully during her years as a young wife and mother are another reminder of how much she loved her family and home. Beautifully handwritten in dime-store notebooks, they are a joy to read - filled with the wisdom of a Godly woman.
And, it’s not just my mom. I’ve heard other women share similar stories about their mothers and grandmothers. All women who left behind priceless legacies of faithful lives lived out before their children and grandchildren. It makes me wonder what legacy our generation will leave behind.
The amount of discontentment among women today is astounding. It seems we are always busy, seeking more, searching for more things to become involved with, rushing from one place to another, never satisfied, never content. Feelings of being overwhelmed and stressed out have taken up residence where quietness and gentleness were meant to live.
Are we diligently working on our legacy of faith for future generations? Life is short, and we only have a limited amount of time to build our legacy. The choices we make daily will be part of our legacy, whether good or bad.
When our time on this earth is over, will the fruit of our hands bring us praise, or will our legacy be marred with discontentment and selfishness?
