She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet. (Proverbs 31:21)
A few months ago I got to fly a small airplane! The owner/pilot was giving a few of us a birds’ eye view of Northern California, and he turned to me and said, “Wanna take over?”
I eagerly did. But I was nervous. My few flying lessons were decades ago. My few opportunities to take the yoke were in the distant past. I hadn’t even flown virtually in years. I not only had forgotten the details of flying, but I didn’t even remember the basics.
I did ok.
But when the pilot took control again, I noticed (because I was thinking about it) that HE was not nervous. His confidence was founded in his knowledge of the basics AND the details.
Just like the woman in Proverbs 31. She is not afraid of inclement weather for two reasons.
First, she has taken care of the details of her family’s well-being. That is what the ‘scarlet’ indicates. It is not just a color, but probably refers to the quality of the clothing that she has been able to provide for her family.
So perhaps I could write, “Fear Not, Because You’ve Covered the Details.”
But I don’t think that is really the point here.
Because second, if you look at the rest of Proverbs 31, you will see that this woman is Wise. She is not afraid because she is Wise.
Today, the world has kidnapped that word. The world says that wisdom is common sense. The world says that wisdom is applying knowledge. The world says that wisdom is gained through experience and time.
But the Bible says that Wisdom is following God’s path, instead of any other way.
Any Christian can be Wise. Simply choose to do things God’s way instead of your way. It is not gained by experience, or being old, or having common sense. It is gained by asking God what to do, and then doing what He says to do. In His Word, usually.
We can be Wise. And when we do, fear slips away into the dark. Because God has told us to not be afraid. Many times.
Fear not, because of Wisdom.