5 Ways to Be a Woman Who Fears the Lord
- Alisha Headley iBelieve Contributing Writer
- Published Nov 15, 2021
Fearing the Lord is so important as believers, as we are taught in Proverbs 9:10 that "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." To fear the Lord is described in the Bible as "to be in awe [reverence]" (1 Kings 3:28), "to have respect." (Leviticus 19:3) In other words, to have wisdom and live a life of wisdom starts with fearing the Lord. While fearing the Lord is important for all of us believers, Solomon takes it a step further. He talks about the beauty of a woman who fears the Lord when he describes what it takes to be a virtuous wife of noble character. Proverbs 31:30 says, "Charm is deceitful, and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised."
Understanding what it means to truly fear the Lord is something we women should strive to do. And because fearing the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, we may live a life led by foolishness over wisdom without it. Do you choose wisdom or foolishness in your life? Are you full of wisdom in choosing a career that could dictate where you live and how you live? Do you have discernment in choosing friends and who you spend your time with? Do you have wisdom in how to raise your children in a fallen world with access to everything? Do you have wisdom as you choose your husband and partner to walk this life with?
We would all hope that we have wisdom. Because without wisdom and understanding, we may make a decision in foolishness that could dictate the course of our life. Where does your wisdom come from?
Since wisdom is important and begins with fearing the Lord, let's first determine where your wisdom is coming from. It's essential to know the source of where we turn to for advice and knowledge because we live in a world full of lies. The ruler of the world, the devil himself, is deemed as "the father of all lies." (John 8:44) If we are not receiving wise and true advice from the Bible, which is truth, then who are we getting it from?
Where are you receiving your wisdom?
• Google or God?
• A blogger of the Bible?
• The Word or the world?
• A pastor or through prayer?
• A stranger's voice or the Shepherd's voice?
• Instagram or the great I AM?
The alternatives just mentioned are not wrong. Hear me when I say that. Turning to a pastor, parent, or Christian influence is acceptable, and sometimes we need to rely on others' faith and guidance when walking through difficult seasons. But if we are turning to them over God's wisdom and His One True Word, that is what we need to recognize and determine if our wisdom comes from others or God Himself. I John 4:1 says, "beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world."
So, if fearing the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and wisdom is absolutely crucial for us that could impact the direction of our life, how do we first learn to fear the Lord as women in today's world full of lies? Here are five effective and helpful ways to help guide you in becoming a woman who fears God.
Photo credit: ©Unsplash/Natalia Figueredo
-
![1. Be a Woman Who Knows the Lord]()
1. Be a Woman Who Knows the Lord
Slide 1 of 4To be a woman who fears God, we must be a woman who knows God. Simply put: if you don't know the Lord, how can you fear Him? How can you show honor and respect and be in complete admiration for someone you do not know?
Ask yourself: do you know God personally, or do you just know about who God is? I don't say this to condemn you. I say this to encourage you that the One who created you longs for a deep personal relationship with you. He is a God of love and wants your heart. Jesus taught about He is the Good Shepherd and how important it is to know His voice as His sheep in John 10:27 saying, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them…"
To be a woman who fears God, we must know who God is. We do this by spending time with Him, praying, listening, and reading His Word. I encourage you to open up your Word daily and ask the Lord to show you who He is. He will show up for you, as He is always "near to all who call on Him" (Psalm 24:18). He will show you in those quiet solitude times in seeking Him that He is a provider, He is all-knowing, faithful, loving, forgiving, and wants nothing but the best for you and so much more! Be a woman who fears the Lord by becoming a woman who first knows the Lord.
Photo credit: ©GettyImages/Digitalskillet
-
![woman bible journal journaling study pen highlighter coffee table]()
2. Be a Woman Who Seeks Him First
Slide 2 of 4To be a woman who fears God, we must become a woman who seeks Him first. Not your spouse, not the internet, not your mother or father, not your own understanding, or your own opinion. Matthew 6:33 says, "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you."
As mentioned earlier in this article, we tend to seek wisdom and advice from others before seeking God first and foremost. We often run towards every other option and opinion until all options are exhausted. We tend to run around frantically, thirsting and grasping for answers elsewhere, causing constant worry and chaos.
To be a woman who fears the Lord, we need to run to Him as our first resort and not our last. For it is there we will find peace, and wisdom will develop as we fear Him first. Philippians 4:6-8 says to "be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God, and then the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Let's begin fearing the Lord by seeking Him and His understanding first, eliminating our constant worry and trading it in for his perfect peace. Be a woman who fears the Lord by becoming a woman who seeks Him first.
Photo credit: ©Unsplash/Kelly Sikkema
-
![A woman holding a fabric heart, Why generosity is the ultimate form of worship]()
3. Be a Woman Who Is in the World, But Not of the World
Slide 3 of 4To be a woman who fears God, we need to see how God fulfills His purpose in this world. We do this by becoming a woman who is in this world but does not live according to this world. We must recognize that we are set apart from this world even though we reside in this world. Romans 12:2 says to "not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind..."
This Scripture passage calls us to fear God and commit our lives to Him through our lifestyle. This woman who fears God will live her life as holy or set apart to please Him. Her lifestyle is to express complete devotion to His purpose in this world rather than be molded by the pressures of this sinful world.
Take inventory of what in the world is consuming you. What is distracting you and keeping your mind focused on the matters of this present world? Is it TV and social media, the apps on your phone, or the noise of all the news and politics polluting your mind distracting you from living out God's purpose?
To be a woman who fears the Lord, we need to live with the mindset of making "His Kingdom come, His will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven." (Matthew 6:10) God wants to use women who fear Him to accomplish His will, to have His Kingdom will to be done on earth.
So, let's turn off our endless buffet line of distractions in this world. Be a woman who fears the Lord by becoming a woman who is in this world, but not of this world.
4. Be a Woman Who Guards Her Heart
To be a woman who fears God, you must be a woman who guards her heart. Proverbs 4:23 says, "Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it." We are told to do this above all else. The verses continue to shed light on how to practically do that in verses 24-27 saying to guard everything that allows your heart to be tainted. Protecting the heart involves what is said (verse 24), what is seen (verse 25), and what is done (verse 26,27).
Guard your heart against what you allow into your mind, into your house, into your most important relationships. Guard your heart against where you go and who you associate yourself with. Guard your heart by protecting what thoughts you speak out loud and protect your heart by speaking truth.
To be a woman who fears the Lord, we must protect the one thing where everything flows from, and that is our heart. Ask the Lord to reveal anything tainting your heart, remove the black tar from it, and guard it with your life as it is the source of your life. Be a woman who fears the Lord by becoming a woman who guards her heart above all else.
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Irina Vodneva -
![5. Be a Woman Who Lives in God's Love]()
5. Be a Woman Who Lives in God's Love
Slide 4 of 4To be a woman who fears God, you must be a woman who lives in God's love. If you're a believer, one of the first things you probably learned is that God loves you. A Scripture verse commonly memorized in Sunday school is John 3:16 that says God loved us so much "that He sent his very own sign to die on the cross for us."
It's all great in theory to know that God loves us. But what would life look like if we didn't just know God loves us, but if we began to live loved? Living and making every decision from a place of love is a way to honor and fear God in one of the most remarkable ways. It's trusting His love for us. It's making decisions based on His love for us. It's loving ourselves the way He views us as we fear Him - the Creator who created us.
A way to practically immerse yourself into His love is to study His Word so that His love jumps off the pages into your heart. For His world is "alive and active" like that. (Hebrews 4:12) Reading His Word allows it to become alive and active in your heart and your life. For as "a woman thinks in her heart, so is she." (Proverbs 3:27) In other words, what you believe in your heart, is how you will live it out. We must believe that God truly does unconditionally love us. We will then live out love in our lives from this place, and it will bleed into the lives of those around us.
His love is so amazing that Paul prays that we can learn to comprehend just "how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is" for us. (Ephesians 3:18)
Let's be women who fear God by holding onto the love God has for us. To accept His love fully by accepting how He feels about us and sees us as His beautiful daughter. Be a woman who fears the Lord by being a woman who doesn't just know about God's love but actually lives out God's complete love in our everyday lives.
Photo credit: ©iStock/Getty Images Plus/ipopba
Previous
