Proverbs 31 as a professional woman - Part 1

The topic of ‘Proverbs 31 as a Professional Woman’ under the theme ‘Embodying and manifesting godly wisdom, success principles and effortless femininity in the workplace’ is not about reading the professional woman into Proverbs 31 because this will produce an absurd result. To counterbalance any perceived absurdity, I have extracted key principles from Proverbs 31:10-31 that may be applicable to any professional woman – regardless of her age or status. For further context, I urge you to Google last week’s introductory article on ‘Proverbs 31 as a professional woman’.Today, I’m unpacking how Proverbs 31 seeks to embody and manifest godly wisdom in the workplace.

Embodying and manifesting godly wisdom

In principle, a Proverbs 31 professional woman embodies and manifests godly wisdom in that she fears the Lord (Proverbs 1:7, Proverbs 31:30) and diligently seeks His wisdom (Proverbs 2:2-12, Proverbs 3:5-7). She recognises that godly wisdom depends on her continued relationship with Him, as it is accessed from Him (James 1:5) and manifested through Him (Isaiah 11:2).

She knows that godly wisdom will only bring glory to Him when it is revealed and demonstrated in her words and her actions. Through the application of wisdom, she exemplifies excellence, virtue, nobility, worthiness, competence, capability, valiance, goodness and strength – see the various translations of Proverbs 31:10.

A professional woman knows that wisdom is incomparable (Proverbs 3:13-18) because it helps to keep her in right standing with God and has the power to lead her in living a godly life, bring good judgment and correction, and increase her joy. To lead her to greatness, disconnect her from foolishness, bring peace, guide, guard, govern, direct, provide insight, and increase discernment. To expose deceptions, increase her intelligence, guide her speech, control her emotions, make good investments and associations, make her more charitable and helpful, make her more prudent, bring honour, unlock knowledge, bring her profit and wealth, keep her humble, reveal understanding, save her from enemies, and have the power to shape her world for victory and success.

Daily, she reads the Book of Proverbs for more wisdom.

Through wisdom, she knows her job is not just a title. It is a calling from the sovereign Lord to serve others (John 12:26). Her success formula involves being bold (Acts 14:3, Joshua 1:9), operating in godly power, love, a sound mind and discipline (2 Timothy 1:7).

As successful as she is, wisdom reminds her to remain humble and that the sovereign Lord hates pride, arrogance, evil and corruption.

Accordingly, in her work, she seeks God’s wisdom: To do His will (Ephesians 2:10), glorify Him (1 Corinthians 10:31, Proverbs 16:1-3), serve Lord Jesus enthusiastically (Colossians 3:23-24, 1 Corinthians 15:58 NLT), honour her employer (1 Timothy 6:1-2 TPT), know that she carries the hope of Christ’s glory (Colossians 1:27) and not be shy or embarrassed about being a child of God.

Why is godly wisdom needed in the workplace?

Like many professional women, I was great at relying profoundly on my experience, technical knowledge and skill to get the job done, but sometimes I faced some challenging assignments that tested the strength of my law degree.

By surrendering my work to God and doing His will, I learnt to do it all for His glory and to let my work speak for itself (Proverbs 31:31), because I recognised that my job was from Him and that it requires Him to help me succeed.

This gave me a broader understanding of success because it wasn’t my success; it was His success – expressed through me. Today, I do my work with a bold understanding of knowing whose I am and who I am. I’m not afraid of who I am or what I carry.

*For more context about who I am and why I’m writing this column, I encourage you to Google my previous articles titled ‘A New Season’ as well as ‘Seeing God’s Glory Through My Tears’, both published in Namibian Sun. I welcome your comments, inputs, queries or concerns. Kindly address them to [email protected].