Cycling season in to full swing and the Tour De France has just begun! That means exciting stages, unexpected wins and crashes and more stories to share. Every year God uses the Tour De France to weave some amazing lessons into my life. I have written numerous posts inspired by this cycling race, you can find them over here - Cycling Songs.
As the tour pulled out today, we briefly watched the opening chats and celebrations and I started to think about the reality of legacy. After 102 years of this race, the Tour De France is still going strong. It all started with an idea and a belief, a belief in the innocence of an army general, whose guilt versus not guilty, divided the nation of France. Some took to open activism and others took to starting a rival newspaper and birthing a small cycling tour that eventually morphed in to one of the biggest cycling races in our modern world. I marvel at how after 100 years of kicking it in high gear in the mountains and on the flats, this tour is still going strong and the legacy of its pioneers is still celebrated even if their memory has been eclipsed by all the new fancies of the Tour. Could the men who started this race have ever known that in 100 years time we would still be celebrating what they begun? And I wonder now about our own lives, are we leaving a legacy behind for those who come after us, in particular, are we investing in spiritual intimacy with Messiah, so that our spiritual legacy will be left for the next generation?
It works like that, Moses left something for Joshua, Elijah for Elisha, David for Solomon, Abraham for Isaac and so on and so on.
Recently Father has led me back to studying Proverbs 31 in a completely different way and I am so engrossed with the strength of the Valiant Woman described!
Proverbs 31: 17 "She girds herself with strength And makes her arms strong"
Translations lose essence and often truth, digging in to the original Hebrew found in verse 17, a completely different picture emerges of verse 17. In the original it reads the following, she girds her loins with strength and makes her arms or shoulders strong.
The word for loins is a particular word used to describe a particular part of the body, it refers to the waist area, or the thigh, the loins. The word used for gird is a word describing the action of putting a belt or armour on and the word for strength speaks of might, power, force, security and strength in various applications. These words describe a deep action, she is providing for her seed, for the loins speak of that area of the body (the same area where Abraham's servant put his hand when he swore an oath to find a bride for Isaac). It is for the generations after her, she is girding her strength, her belt of truth and armour of might so as to pass it on to the generation of women who will come after her. The Valiant woman of Proverbs 31 makes sure they understand that strength is theirs, for both her spiritual children (vs 15 - 16) and her physical children. She empowers them with truth and the law of kindness (vs 16). She leaves behind "heroine talk, heroine might and true strength." How she does this, only God leads her and so too, what we leave behind need only be what God leads us to.
We do not have to strive to seek out God's best for purpose for our lives, we only need to surrender in to the calling and the embrace of Heaven's Glory. Have you ever thought about it - what are you leaving behind that will be rememebred in a century's time? What has God called you to today, that will last for eternity?
Matthew 6: 18 - 19"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal."But
store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor
rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal....
Set-apart indeed! Thank you, as He teaches us to gird our loins and make our arms strong. Powerful image.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing on DanceWithJesus. Susan
Good to find you here from coffee for your heart. The music was a nice surprise and I see we have some things in common from your about me. God bless you in your writing and ministry journey. <3 a
ReplyDeleteAmen!!! What a beautiful take on this Chapter...certainly provides much to think and pray about...
ReplyDeleteHey Ariete, dear friend. Thank you! May God bless you and keep you this week, nice to see you again :))
DeleteInspiring blog!Thank you. visiting this week from The Jesus Code. Feel free to visit back anytime. Bless you Shandra
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