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

Motherhood is one of the highest callings in life, filled with many sweet moments to cherish forever. But then there are times we can feel so all alone, battling one giant after another, especially the invisible giant of the unknown. I don’t know about you, but sometimes feelings of inadequacy can rise to the surface whenever we read how effectively the Proverbs 31 woman managed her household. 

She can be a little intimidating because she sounds like a super mom, a super wife, a super business partner, a super everything … doesn’t she? She seems so skilled, so talented, so organized, so capable, so perfect, so ________ (you fill in the blank!)

But the Lord never meant for us to walk this motherhood journey alone nor does He want us measuring our weaknesses against the apparent strengths of other moms.

Instead, He desires for us to glean the ONE thing that the Proverbs 31 woman had that we can have for ourselves, too. She had wisdom …

The entire Book of Proverbs is filled with godly wisdom and Chapter 31 is no different.

How do we “put on strength and dignity”?

Well, we can find our answer in Proverbs 9:10: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight” (ESV).

The phrase “the fear of the Lord” appears more than a dozen times in Proverbs and it is pretty much the theological concept for this entire book.

And I believe the Proverbs 31 woman had this healthy fear of the Lord!

But what exactly does it mean to have a healthy fear of the Lord?

It means we take God seriously. We go beyond just believing in Him but we believe Him and take Him at His Word. We seek to include Him in all our decisions because He is very real in our lives.

And this is where our key focus verse comes in …”She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future” (Prov 31:25 NLT).

Just as we “put on” the Armor of God everyday, we can “put on” the Lord’s strength and dignity by having a healthy fear and respect for Him. 

The King James Version uses the word honor in place of dignity. And the Hebrew word for honor is וְהָדָ֥ר, pronounced wə·hā·ḏār, and it means: Magnificence, ornament, splendor.

The opposite of wearing strength, dignity and honor is to be clothed with shame and dishonor. When we don’t have a healthy fear of the Lord, we will have an unhealthy fear of everything else because we give the enemy a foothold into our lives.

 The demeanor of the Proverbs 31 woman is wrapped up in joy. She is free of worry and anxiety when it comes to the future of her family because she knows Who writes her story and it is one of grace and victory. Her heart is unburdened and she is able to laugh and enjoy her family now because she knows Who holds her tomorrow.

I love how the Amplified Bible words it:“Strength and dignity are her clothing and her position is strong and secure; And she smiles at the future [knowing that she and her family are prepared].”

Applying Proverbs 31:25 to Motherhood

I wish I had this healthy fear of the Lord when my girls were little. I would have been able to steward them from this place of rest in His love and strength instead of fretting about the future.  

Rather than trying to be strong in my own strength, I could have found and meditated on Bible verses like these that spoke into my situation:  

• We can trust GOD knows the good plans He has for us … Jeremiah 29:11

• We can cast our anxieties on Him because He cares for us … 1 Peter 5:7

• We can be assured our LORD is fighting our battles for us … Exodus 14:14

• We can be comforted that in our weakness, He is made strong … 2 Cor 12:9-10

Sweet Mama … in Christ you don’t have to have it all together! In fact, He longs for you to acknowledge your weaknesses to Him so He can be strong for you! You don’t have to have all the answers because you abide with the One who does!

Search for and write down His promises that speak personally to your current circumstances and post them all over your home, reminding yourself that the One who fights for you will be faithful and true. And you can lovingly sprinkle those words of life over your children as if watering a beautiful and well tended garden because you know and trust the Master Gardner Himself.

God does not define you by your mistakes or your ability to manage the illusion of a perfect home, so no more comparison, which only serves to drain you! Instead, invest your energy into practicing less of you and more of Him. Instead of mustering up courage in your own strength, put all your confidence in Him by putting on His strength and His dignity.

As we begin to flow in this sweet rhythm of rest with Him, we will be better equipped to trust Him with our tomorrow while fully relishing the beautiful and sacred in the midst of the loud and messy of today. 

Closing Prayer

 Father God, I lift up the precious Mama reading this right now. LORD, help her to find relief for her emotions by putting on Your strength and dignity today. Help her to sweetly surrender herself and her children into Your care. And LORD, help her to tap into Your hope, peace and joy because the future of her family is secure in Your hands. It is in Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen.

Find more Wisdom in Proverbs for Moms devotions here.

Guest Blogger Bio.

Donna loves God’s Word and is very passionate to see women fall in love with Jesus. Join her at ‘fresh grace for today,’ a faith blog that encourages women of all ages to grow stronger in their identity in Christ and to live in God’s grace, which is new for us each and every morning. Donna is married to her wonderful hubby of 40 years, mother of two beautiful grown Daughters and Nana to four sweet G-Babies that she is crazy about. She likes spending time with friends & family, hiking, painting, swimming, reading and writing.