Confident Laughter

Read Proverbs 31

[The virtuous wife] is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future.

Proverbs 31:25

Many women today find it hard to understand their roles and identity. On the one hand, they are expected to be 100 percent female and fulfill all the typical female “norms” and responsibilities. On the other hand, they are also expected to be just like men, competing, working, and living like men. The result is doubt and fear and confusion. It’s hard enough to live up to one set of expectations, but to live up to two sometimes opposing expectations is impossible.

A woman whose life is planted firmly in the Lord’s hands is able to live free from these societal constraints, and instead live according to the way God made her. A life built on Christ’s redeeming power and the wisdom of the Lord opens the heart to a source of strength that comes only from a relationship with God. True dignity comes from a firm belief in God’s love for each one of us. And such a woman can indeed laugh at the future—not in mockery, but with confidence, for there is nothing to fear when she is walking with the Lord.

A WORD FOR TODAY

A wise woman is comfortable with herself in the present.

Today, Lord, I give you all my fears and doubts. You created me. You love me. You alone know what is best for me. I put my life in your hands and seek your will.