A Warrior's Wife

"Houses and riches are an inheritance from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the Lord."---Proverbs 19:14 (NKJV)




"One should choose a wife with the ears, rather than with the eyes."--- French Proverb




Prudent: wise or judicious in practical affairs; sagacious; discreet or circumspect; sober; careful in providing for the future; provident; frugal; economical; not extravagant; sagacious in adapting means to ends; circumspect in action, or in determining any line of conduct; practically wise; judicious; careful; discreet; sensible.




Synonyms: advisable, balanced, canny, diplomatic, discerning, far-sighted, gingerly, judgmatic, level-headed, politic, reasonable, SANE, shrewd, sound, tactical, thrifty, vigilant







OK. I don't know how long or short this is gonna be (I rarely do), but I do know that this is something that God wants everyone on this list to read, so if it's now or later, please make sure to bookmark it. There is something in here for each and every one of us, and as I tell my friends, "I don't prophesy much, but when I do, I am dead on it." (That's not bragging, that is just being aware of the gifts that God has given me!) Anyway, at 2:40am, the Holy Spirit (John 14:26) woke me up with a message. It was short and to the point, but with five simple words, he totally blew my mind:




You are a warrior's wife.




Huh?




Now, go look up wives in the Old Testament.




The Bible tells us that he who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord. (Proverbs 18:22) If you are married, I want you to accept right now that just in the title alone, you are a good thing. Regardless of your looks, status, income bracket, or even how your "spiritually blind" husband may be treating you at present, start looking at yourself---and expect to be treated---as A GOOD THING. If you are single, catch what the Word says. HE WHO FINDS A WIFE. It doesn't say, "He who finds a WOMAN". Just because you may not be joined to your helpmate yet, that doesn't mean you aren't in wife preparation. As a matter of fact, I can promise you, just from the phone calls and emails I get alone, that many of a wife who is married wishes that she took greater advantage of her GIFT OF SINGLENESS, the time when we are supposed to be concerned with the things of the Lord (I Corinthians 7:32) so that she could better understand the purpose of both marriage and the role of a wife. (Check out Matthew 19, Message Version)




So, anyway, unsure of where God was taking me, through scripture, he showed me the characteristics of five Old Testament wives. These gals were somethin' else.




ZIPPORAH: "As Moses was on his way to Egypt, he stopped at a resting place for the night. The Lord met him there and tried to kill him. But Zipporah took a flint knife and circumcised her son. Taking the skin, she touched Moses' feet with it and said to him, 'You are a bridegroom of blood to me.' She said, 'You are a bridegroom of blood,' because she had to circumcise her son. So the Lord let Moses alone."---Exodus 4:24-26(NCV)




ACSAH: "Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb's brother, captured the city, so Caleb gave his daughter Acsah to Othniel to be his wife. When Acsah came to Othniel, she told him to ask her father for a field.





So Acsah went to her father. When she got down from her donkey, Caleb asked her, 'What do you want?"

Acsah answered, 'Do me a special favor. Since you have given me land in southern Canaan, also give me springs of water.' So Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs."---Joshua 15:17-19 (NCV)




JAEL: "'Of course I will go with you,' Deborah answered, 'but you will not get credit for the victory. The Lord will let a woman defeat Sisera.' So Deborah went with Barak to Kedesh. At Kedesh, Barak called the people of Zebulun and Naphtali together. From them, he gathered ten thousand men to follow him, and Deborah went with him also.

Now Heber the Kenite had left the other Kenites, the descendants of Hobab, Moses' brother-in-law. Heber had put up his tent by the great tree in Zaanannim, near Kedesh.

When Sisera was told that Barak son of Abinoam had gone to Mount Tabor, Sisera gathered his nine hundred iron chariots and all the men with him, from Harosheth Haggoyim to the Kishon River.

Then Deborah said to Barak, 'Get up! Today is the day the Lord will hand over Sisera. The Lord has already cleared the way for you.' So Barak led ten thousand men down Mount Tabor. As Barak approached, the Lord confused Sisera and his army and chariots. The Lord defeated them with the sword, but Sisera left his chariot and ran away on foot. Barak and his men chased Sisera's chariots and army to Harosheth Haggoyim. With their swords they killed all of Sisera's men; not one of them was left alive.

But Sisera himself ran away to the tent where Jael lived. She was the wife of Heber, one of the Kenite family groups. Heber's family was at peace with Jabin king of Hazor. Jael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, 'Come into my tent, master! Come in. Don't be afraid.' So Sisera went into Jael's tent, and she covered him with a rug.

Sisera said to Jael, 'I am thirsty. Please give me some water to drink.' So she opened a leather bag of milk and gave him a drink. Then she covered him up.

He said to her, 'Go stand at the entrance to the tent. If anyone comes and asks you, 'Is anyone here?' say, 'No.' "

But Jael, the wife of Heber, took a tent peg and a hammer and quietly went to Sisera. Since he was very tired, he was in a deep sleep. She hammered the tent peg through the side of Sisera's head and into the ground. And so Sisera died.

At that very moment Barak came by Jael's tent, chasing Sisera. Jael went out to meet him and said, 'Come. I will show you the man you are looking for.' So Barak entered her tent, and there Sisera lay dead, with the tent peg in his head.

On that day God defeated Jabin king of Canaan in the sight of Israel."---Judges 4:9-23 (NCV)

MANOAH'S WIFE (SAMSON'S MOTHER): "There was a man named Manoah from the tribe of Dan, who lived in the city of Zorah. He had a wife, but she could not have children. The angel of the Lord appeared to Manoah's wife and said, 'You have not been able to have children, but you will become pregnant and give birth to a son. Be careful not to drink wine or beer or eat anything that is unclean, because you will become pregnant and have a son. You must never cut his hair, because he will be a Nazirite, given to God from birth. He will begin to save Israel from the power of the Philistines.'

Then Manoah's wife went to him and told him what had happened. She said, 'A man from God came to me. He looked like an angel from God; his appearance was frightening. I didn't ask him where he was from, and he didn't tell me his name. But he said to me, 'You will become pregnant and will have a son. Don't drink wine or beer or eat anything that is unclean, because the boy will be a Nazirite to God from his birth until the day of his death.'

Then Manoah prayed to the Lord: 'Lord, I beg you to let the man of God come to us again. Let him teach us what we should do for the boy who will be born to us.'

God heard Manoah's prayer, and the angel of God came to Manoah's wife again while she was sitting in the field. But her husband Manoah was not with her. So she ran to tell him, 'He is here! The man who appeared to me the other day is here!'

Manoah got up and followed his wife. When he came to the man, he said, 'Are you the man who spoke to my wife?'

The man said, 'I am.'"---Judges 13:2-11 (NCV)

MICHAL: "Saul sent messengers to David's house to watch it and to kill him in the morning. But Michal, David's wife, warned him, saying, 'Tonight you must run for your life. If you don't, you will be dead in the morning.' So she let David down out of a window, and he ran away and escaped. Then Michal took an idol, laid it on the bed, covered it with clothes, and put goats' hair at its head.

Saul sent messengers to take David prisoner, but Michal said, 'He is sick.'

Saul sent them back to see David, saying, 'Bring him to me on his bed so I can kill him.'

When the messengers entered David's house, they found just an idol on the bed with goats' hair on its head.

Saul said to Michal, 'Why did you trick me this way? You let my enemy go so he could run away!'

Michal answered Saul, 'David told me if I did not help him escape, he would kill me.'"---I Samuel 19:11-17 (NCV)





So, what did you get out of this? What characteristics do you see in these women?

I looked again. I was amazed and astonished.

Zipporah was actually an agent in sparing Moses' life...in getting him to his purpose.

Ascah was a savvy businesswoman. She knew enough about her father's real estate and had enough confidence not to settle for less than what she thought she and her soon-to-be husband deserved.

Jael was gangsta. God said there would be a woman who would defeat Sisera and she calmly and effectively set him up for the kill...literally.

Monoah's wife was a woman God has so much respect for that he went to her directly with the word about her son, Samson. He didn't go to her husband. As a matter of fact, when she told him what thus saith the Lord and Monoah asked for confirmation, the messenger came to her again and she went to get her husband.

Michal brought a whole new meaning to "leave and cleave" (Genesis 3:24) Her father, Saul asked her to set up her own husband...she set him up instead. She put her husband's life before her father's desires.

Even now, I get chills as I am writing this, and it's for a couple of reasons. One, it shows just how bold, how focused, how driven these women were---something that is not preached nearly enough when it comes to the characteristics of a wife---with purpose. That is why I listed the definitions (and synonyms) of "prudent". The Word says that a prudent wife is from the Lord. Do you see all of the things that describe this kind of blessing?

Now men, hear me when I say this: Indeed the Bible calls a wife to submit (Ephesians 5:22, Colossians 3:18), and yes, it does say that we should be honored (to confer distinction on) as the weaker vessel (I Peter 3:7), but if, no since, we are prudent and from God, do you know what that means? If we are WEAKER than you, do you see how much STRONGER you need to be? If you've found a wife who is "advisable, balanced, canny, diplomatic, discerning, far-sighted, gingerly, judgmatic, level-headed, politic, reasonable, SANE, shrewd, sound, tactical, thrifty, vigilant", your character needs to be superseding that...or at least you should be diligently working towards it! Now, I'm gonna tell you right now that has perked me up and raised my spirits on a whole new level. Contrary to some people's assumptions, yes, I do have a strong personality, but I take no issue with submission. Personally, I don't want to have to answer to God in the way that a husband will have to when it comes to how he is called to take care of me. (Genesis 3:17-19, Ephesians 4:25) But, because man(kind) has so misled a lot of women on the point and purpose of submission, for years I feared that I would have to change who I was to be a wife.

Don't get me wrong. A contentious wife? I know God ain't feelin' that. (Proverbs 21:18) A vain wife? She's the absolute worst. (I Peter 3:3) The quiet and gentle SPIRIT (not mouth, necessarily, but spirit), yep...I still have a ways to go. (I Peter 3:4) But, before the womb, I was called and chosen (Jeremiah 1:5) and the way God made me, strong personality and all, is for a purpose. (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

For awhile now, people have been pretty consistent in what they have been speaking over my life. One thing that several men have shared is that I am on the front lines of battle (when it comes to spiritual warfare). I've heard it before and trust me, as of late, I have felt it up close and personal. (I Peter 3:14) But, it wasn't until this morning that it really hit me...that God was setting me up for a miraculous revelation by having them share that with me.

This year, more than ever, I have found myself very interested in the Hebrew/Jewish culture as it relates to biblical truth. Because I know that God moves in an orderly fashion (I Corinthians 14:40), while I wasn't really sure how all of the wisdom/knowledge/understanding (Proverbs 4:5-7) that I was getting would line up, because I know that God is a God with a plan (Jeremiah 29:11, Proverbs 16:9) and if I acknowledge that, he will direct me (Proverbs 3:6), I knew that he was taking me somewhere, and for a purpose.

I can't express to you just how full I was when this year, God had an Israeli woman reveal to me that my name (Shellie) was Hebrew and it meant "Mine. Belonging to Me." I always knew that my middle name (Renee') meant "Reborn" and Warren meant "Protector; loyal" (which explains my "chihuahua spirit" when it comes to taking up for my friends). But as God is healing my human trinity (mind, body and spirit), I am almost in shock with how certain things are all lining up. Isaiah 43:1 (NKJV), for me, now has such a greater sense of meaning and spiritual affection from my God, my father, to me:

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine."

He has called me his. (Shellie) He has redeemed me (Renee'). GOD HAS REALLY GOT THIS.

I have always loved (and found great comfort) in Jeremiah 33:3, "‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know'", but I must admit that when it came to my mate (who he was, where he was, if he was), I was getting a little weary. (Galatians 6:9, 2 Thessalonians 3:13) I was getting sick of kissing so many frogs, if you know what I mean. But, as God has been restoring me (Joel 2:25), I've noticed that he has taken the focus less off of who he is, where he is, even if he is and more on me. THAT is what amazed me so much when it comes to what was spoken to me this morning. I wasn't told anything about a man. I was told about who I am, on another level, as a woman: I AM A WARRIOR'S WIFE.

Warrior: one who is engaged in or experienced in battle; one who is engaged aggressively or energetically in an activity, cause, or conflict.

Those who know me...really know me, will know that although I've never thought about it, this is so my personality. I am aggressive. I am energetic. I am all for a cause and ain't too scared of conflict, and as God's messengers have been telling me, when it comes to my own calling, even outside of a mate, I am on the front lines of battle. But to have God, through the power of the Holy Spirit, reveal that this me when I wasn't even asking. Shoot, I don't even know the last time I've thought about, let alone looked up, the word "warrior". And then, to reveal women, many of them Hebrew, in the Word? AND THEN, to see them also, "engaged in battle", "aggressive and energetic in an activity, cause or conflict"...and for it to be a part of God's will, mission, and purpose?!? When I tell you that I stand in awe of what God can do, how detailed he is, how much he cares about my life and how much he wants me to live it in abundance! (John 10:10) Now, more than ever, I find a real peace in Luke 12:7 (NCV):

"But God even knows how many hairs you have on your head. Don't be afraid. You are worth much more than many sparrows."

As it relates to my husband, I don't know who he is or where he is, but God has given me a glimpse of what he is and it gives me such a feeling of exhilaration because to be "bones and flesh" with a warrior doesn't bring about fear or hesitation or confusion. Due to my personality, lifestyle and experience (Romans 8:28), it brings about peace. Complete and total peace. (I Corinthians 14:33) And, it shows me how to pray and better how to prepare. (As wife preparation should be!)

Which is why I am sharing this with all of you. It may appear like a "me, me, me" devotional, but it's really not. If you are single, I want to encourage you to take the focus off of who he/she is, where he/she is or even if he/she is going to come into your life. Instead, ask God to reveal more about who YOU are and where he wants YOU to be at this stage in your life. All year, God has been showing me just how purpose-minded he is and how he doesn't do or give anything if there is not a purpose attached to it. You want a husband? WHY? You want a wife? WHY? The HONEST answers that you give, I guarantee will reveal a lot of why you are where you are at this time (if you are open to listening---James 1:5) Every single marriage in the Bible had a point/purpose attached to it. If we claim to be followers of the Word, we must take that as a sign, not a coincidence.

And for the married folks, just yesterday, I was eating at a Cracker Barrel with one of my "love brothers". I was looking at all of the old-er couples and how so few of them were speaking to one another during their meal (indeed a long marriage does not equate a happy one). I thought, "50 years of that? No thanks." But then, on the other side of the room, I noticed an older couple who were chatting it up non-stop. I was so intrigued that I went to their table and asked them how many years they had been married."

"44," the wife said with a smile.

"Yeah, she puts up with me," her husband said, with a smile as well.

I told them about how they seemed to be the only couple in the room that really enjoyed one another's company. The wife replied with a well-timed and unexpected sermon. "Well, we have Jesus as the center of our life. We go to him, first and then he shows us what to talk about."

I thought to myself, "And what does the Word say?"

"Where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am in the midst of them." (Matthew 18:20)

On their way out of the door, they came and spoke to us. They briefly talked about their children, 14 grandchildren, their love for God and how they are the best of friends. It was wonderful (and refreshing) to see a couple who were not merely hearers of the Word, but doers as well. There are so many couples who are deceiving themselves into thinking that so long as they know the Word, they don't need to live it and that people don't see that they are not applying it. (The worst lie that you can tell is to yourself!---James 1:22-24)

You may not be a warrior's wife (specifically in the way that God revealed to me), but as a single person, God has purposed you still, specifically, for such a time as this to carry out a certain plan that only you can do. And, if you are a married woman, I pray that you will spend some time looking for God to show you just what kind of wife, through the revelation of his Spirit, you are called to be. A prudent wife has got it goin' on...more than a little bit. It's time you got hip to it.

And husbands, it's time that you honored it...just like the Word says. You need your wife more than you might think you do. Just ask the Old Testament wives...and their husbands, who, through the help of their wives, lived (a full life) to tell about it!

©Shellie R. Warren/2008