Verse 13: "Works with willing hands."

Proverbs 31:13 "She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands."

I have seen some "translations" take this passage to mean only that a woman should be "craft"-y, in that she does arts and crafts, like spinning, crochet, or knitting and the like. As with all Scripture, it means so much more than that! One way that I read this, is that a good wife looks around her for the work that needs to be done, she seeks it out, and the "works with willing hands". Back in the day, some of the most tedious and time consuming work that always needed to be done, was the production of cloth and clothing for one's household. There was cleaning and carding the wool and flax, spinning, weaving, cutting, sewing and so forth. To make the finest threads, which are also the most comfortable to wear, was rather tedious work. And then all the work to manipulate these materials into all the household linens was nearly as tedious. But a good wife seeks out these jobs that need to be done and no one really wants to do and then does them willingly!
Nowadays, we can buy these things cheaper than we can make them, but there are still jobs for all of us that fall under that "ucky" category that no one ever wants to do. For me, this is generally any job that requires me to get out a wet rag and scrub various things around the house, like the bathtub, the floors, the windows, or even the toilet. For you it could be laundry, dishes, dusting, sweeping, or a whole host of other household chores. But remember, a good wife seeks these out and "works with willing hands"!

The Second Mile

by Ruth Gardner

"When there is a task to do,

Do it with a smile.

Do more than you are asked to do

And go the second mile.

In your work and in your play,

Try it for a while.

You'll find that you'll be happy

When you go the second mile."