Journey to Biblical Beauty

As I have mentioned before, I'm doing this "Beauty by the Book" Bible study.  My mom gave me her DVDs so that I could have something to do for the last 7 weeks of my stay in OKC.  She just asked me if I wanted to do a study on Proverbs.  I said sure, not really thinking anything about it.  Well, I got the book and I started the series.  


The women that Proverbs describes are:
1.  The Immoral Woman
2.  The Indiscreet Woman
3.  The Irritating Woman
4.  The Captivating Woman
5.  The Ideal Woman


Did you know that Proverbs talks about all those women?  Neither did I.  I did, however, know about the Ideal Woman, hence the name of my blog.  It has really opened my eyes to the different types of women that Proverbs describes.  I'm only on week 3 and have finished studying the Indiscreet Woman.  The first three women are considered "Beauty Don'ts" and the last two are considered "Beauty Do's."


I would love to share a little bit about what I've learned and how I've been challenged.


The Immoral Woman is given the most text in Proverbs.  This is because God is warning us about her.  He's warning women not to become her and he's warning men about staying away from her.  Everywhere we look these days, we see this Immoral Woman.  She's on college campuses, in Hollywood, in our neighborhood, at church.  Yes, she is at church.

• This woman plans what she is going to do (Proverbs 7:14-20).  Her sin is premeditated.  
• She does not dress modestly (Proverbs 7:10).  
• She uses her speech to lure men in (Proverbs 5:3).
• She makes the first move (Proverbs 7:10).
• She goes out looking for love (Proverbs 7:12).
• She acts out in sexual sin and doesn't believe she's done anything wrong (Proverbs 30:20).

So, I definitely do not consider myself this woman.  But I have definitely learned some things by studying this woman.  There are things in my life that can be definitely be considered immoral, and I've been challenged to flee from any immorality.

• I need to turn off the television when something immoral comes on.  A lot of shows these days are all about sex (outside of marriage), and that isn't something that is admirable or praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8).
• There are also lots of magazines that are awful!  Instead of reading those, I can choose to read something that's uplifting.
• Lastly, movies these days are seriously becoming trash.  Tyler and I now check Plugged In (thanks to my cousin, Cara) before we go see or rent movies.  I had a relative say that "Contraband" was a fantastic movie and that everyone should go see it.  I decided to look it up on Plugged In to find out that it's rated R.  I also found out that the F-word is used over 135 times in that movie.  I do not want to fill my head with that trash.  Needless to say, Tyler and I did not go see that movie.

These are just a couple of ways that I can keep immorality from my home.  This study has challenged me to think about what is going in my head.  What goes in, must come out.  Immorality begins in the heart and I don't want it to be rooted in my heart.

The Indiscreet Woman is the second woman that I've studied.  I could, unfortunately, relate to this woman.  She is only given one verse in Proverbs, but she is definitely worthy studying.  This week has been focused on being discreet, prudent, and wise (these are synonyms).

I have learned:

• Discretion will protect and guard you.  It will save you from the ways of wicked men and the adulteress (Proverbs 2:11-17).
• Discretion will be life for you.  It will be safety (Proverbs 3:21-26).
• Discretion will give you patience.  It will overlook an offense (Proverbs 19:11).

Well, I need work.  I'm very opinionated.  I could possibly have an opinion about everything.  I also let my opinions be known a lot (not all, believe it or not) of the time.  I would definitely have to say this is a "Bunton trait."  We all like to talk, and sometimes don't know when to shut up. :]

Through this study, I've been challenged to:

• discern when to hold my tongue and when to speak up.
• overlook insults.  This is a tough one for me, because my love language is Words of Affirmation. When someone insults me, it cuts deep to my core. But I've been challenged.
• act out of knowledge, rather than just giving my opinion because I can.

Abigail, Joseph, David, and Daniel are all great examples to learn from.  They each possessed the attributes of discretion, prudence, discernment, and wisdom.  As I'm on my journey, I will keep them in mind.

I want to leave you with a couple of verses that have been stuck in my mind:

"Be wise in the way you act towards outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.  Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone."

Colossians 4:5-6