Our Favorite Proverbs: Proverbs 31:25, Dress for Success

by Marilynn Chadwick

“Strength and honor are her clothing.”

Proverbs 31:25 CSB

The woman of valor in Proverbs 31:10 (CJB) is also described as a woman of “honor” (v. 25). Throughout the Bible, valor and honor go hand in hand. David's Mighty Men of Valor were an elite group of roughly 37 warriors in the Old Testament (2 Samuel 23, 1 Chronicles 11). They were renowned for exceptional loyalty, strength, valor, and honor.

To honor someone is to treat them with admiration or respect. Honor conveys dignity, honesty, and integrity. Years ago, I wrote an editorial in our local newspaper honoring my husband’s legendary basketball coach, Dean Smith, at his passing. Along with great basketball, Coach Smith taught David about honor. Responses to my article, some from well-known leaders in our community, caused me to wonder if our culture is thirsty for honor. Perhaps it’s because honor is sorely lacking in many of our homes. Marriages are breaking up at an alarming rate. Sadly, the percentage of wives leaving their husbands has risen significantly.

Over the years, I’ve discovered that honoring my husband in today’s culture requires something of a fight. It helps to realize that we have an enemy. Not just of our soul, but also of our marriages. In addition to waging a war with the devil, our battle for a strong marriage is also against our own selfish tendencies. Honoring our husband or wife sometimes goes against the grain of our flesh.

If we truly want to honor our spouse, we’ll find ourselves resisting a world that degrades and disrespects marriage. I’ve learned I can best fight for my husband and honor our marriage most powerfully by interceding for him in prayer. The tone we set in our homes when we honor our husband or wife inspires our children to honor their parents and each other.

It feels good to get respect. To be honored. But it also feels incredibly good to honor someone else. We find that as we give honor, we get it back. But giving honor, especially in a world that has largely forgotten this concept, doesn’t come easy. It takes practice. David and I have written companion books exploring ways this lost art of honor can be reclaimed in our marriages, our families, and our culture.

I believe our world today is thirsty for honor. Honor requires self-sacrifice and humility. I’ve learned that home can be a wonderful laboratory for cultivating honor. My hope is that the culture of honor we create will spill over into the culture around us.

Click here to download a free copy of 8 Great Ways to Honor your Wife by David Chawick and 8 Great Ways to Honor Husband by Marilynn Chadwick.

Our Favorite Proverbs: Proverbs 10:5, This Book is Alive

by Marilynn Chadwick

“Every word of God is flawless.”

Proverbs 30:5a NIV

I was around fifteen when I concluded God did not exist. I was not angry or rebellious. I simply no longer believed God was real. I had grown up in the church, attending Sunday School and Vacation Bible Schools. I was “confirmed” as a twelve-year-old. I even went on a couple of high school retreats. But over the years, I gradually stopped believing, and by college, I had stopped going to church altogether. I would occasionally attend our family’s church out of respect for my parents when I was home from college. Out of curiosity one day, I picked up the Bible to try and read a few words. Nothing made sense. From then on, I saw the Bible as nothing more than a “dead book.”

I had a dramatic encounter with Jesus as a 21-year-old college student while reading C.S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity. I accepted him as my Savior and have never looked back. Suddenly, when I began to read the Bible, it was as if words jumped off the page. They were true, and they were speaking directly to me. This book is alive!

I began to seek the Lord wholeheartedly, engaging in Bible studies and learning from Christian mentors. One thing became clear: God’s Word is the truth and every word in the Bible is true. Or as Proverbs 30:5 puts it, “Every word of God is flawless.” Other versions say “tried,” “tested,” or “pure.”

A friend wisely encouraged me. You can’t believe one part of Scripture but throw out the parts you don’t like. If you do that, you’ll never be able to confidently stand on God’s promises when you need them.

I began to lead a group of young wives in a Bible study, all recent college graduates like me. They knew even less about the Bible than I did but were eager to learn. “Hey girls,” I said, “it says we are supposed to tithe, so let’s do it!” Or “the Bible tells us to respect our husbands as spiritual leaders of our home.” “Well, if the Bible says it,” they chimed in, “let’s do it.”

Thus began a life-changing Bible journey. I’ve learned firsthand Paul got it right when he instructed young Timothy: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Friend, it takes time to become “fluent” in Scripture. But let’s remember, once we accept Jesus, we have the Holy Spirit as our indwelling teacher who promises to make all things clear (1 John 2:27).

Our Favorite Proverbs: Proverbs 13:20

by David Chadwick

“Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.”

Proverbs 13:20

Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but if you walk with fools, you will become foolish. 1 Corinthians 15:33 has a similar teaching, which says, “Bad company ruins good morals.” If you have never heard this principle before, hear it today: who you choose to work with, spend time with, marry, and be influenced by really, really matters.

Once again, I have to give a nod back to my dad, who said it this way, “Your friends are like elevators; they will either take you up or bring you down.” What a profound truth this is!

It is so important to be discerning and careful as you choose companions. The book of Proverbs is so clear. One option will make you wiser, and the other brings destruction and harm.

The people you keep company with will either propel you toward greatness or tear you down. Your friends and your companions will either make you foolish or wise. There really is not an in-between, lukewarm option to this principle.

For those of you who are parents, you should seek to implement this truth with your kids and teens. Peer pressure is real, and you, as parents, have every right and responsibility to guide your children in choosing their friends. Intervene when necessary! Talk to them. Be honest with them about what you notice in other people. Use Proverbs 13:20 as a guide to help teach your children this very important life lesson so that they can lead lives of wisdom.

Too often, parents hesitate to interfere with their children’s decision-making because they don’t know how it will be received. But healthy stewardship of the children God has given you is not control. Remember you have been called to lead your children in the wisdom and instruction of the Lord (Deuteronomy 11:19).

No matter what age you are, walk with wise people. Avoid fools. And encourage others to do the same. This principle will keep all of us safe and growing in wisdom.