As long as it is day, we must do the works of Him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. John 9:4

The last few weeks, I have been focusing on building a working routine for my new chapter in life. All glory to God, things today are not the same as they were one year ago. The things that I once prayed for are now my day to day and I am so grateful.

Routines have always been hard for me. I will do fine for a short period of time, but something always comes up, and that is the end of that. This morning in my time with God, I asked for help with this, and I jotted down some things that will help me immensely in the coming days. I hope it does the same for you.

Let’s get into it.

Purpose through Routine

When you read Genesis 2:15, you see that work and routine were a part of the original design and plan of God, meaning that it was established before the Fall, making it a good thing.

Colossians 3:23-24 shows us that the most mundane of daily tasks can glorify God. We are told to work as unto the Lord in all we do. This makes routine work an act of worship.

The Bible says that every single word found within Its pages is breathed by God, profitable unto all things, and for our instruction.

For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope and overflow with confidence in His promises.

Romans 15:4 AMP

That is why a daily habit of being in the Word is so important

There are many examples of people in the Bible who had routine:

• Daniel in Daniel 6:10.
• Paul in Acts 17:2.
• And even Jesus in Luke 4:16.

If you are like me, building a routine can be daunting. That is when I found the best advice:

Seek God’s guidance in all you do

That seems like a no brainer, but sometimes we have a knack to overcomplicate things. He is a very present help in times of need, great or small.

When I read that, I prayed right there, “Lord, help me with building a meaningful, productive routine.” That is when I stumbled upon an interesting video by Ashley Hetherington. She did a five-day challenge where she put the Proverbs 31 Woman traits to work in her daily life. I will add the video at the end of this post for your viewing pleasure.

It was encouraging watching her navigate her day to day. With her triumphs and setbacks, her life looked a lot like mine and helped me be gracious to myself about my routine journey.

Ten things to learn from the Proverbs 31 Woman

If you have never read Proverbs 31, I encourage you to do so. It is the blueprint to become a woman of excellence and something that I have followed since I was young in my pursuit to be the best woman.

1. Verse 15 “She rises while it is yet night”.
   • I am not an early riser, primarily because I like to stay up late. However, watching her journey with it gave me so much hope, assurance, and much needed guidance.
   • Her notes on how she felt were what stood out the most. She said when she got up early to read her Bible and work out, it changed her whole day for the better. It almost felt like she already lived a whole day all before starting her workday. That is exactly how I feel when I successfully wake up and start my day with the Lord and getting my blood pumping.
   • As the week progressed, there were nights where she did not go to bed at a decent time then slept in a little more. How she rebounded from it was inspiring and the grace she gave herself is what I needed. I tend to get down on myself with failure. This motivated me to keep going.
2. Verse 30 “Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.”
   • This shows to build habits around being a godly woman. Your looks will fade, but who you are on the inside will remain.
3. Verse 15 “She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens.”
   • Here the Proverbs 31 woman rises early to make her family breakfast and plan or prep the other meals of the day.
   • The second part, prepares portions for her maidens, signifies that she plans out her day. She identifies what needs to be done and creates a plan how to complete the tasks at hand.
4. Verse 17 “She dresses herself with strength and makes her arms strong.”
   • She makes her arms strong. She is hitting the gym. You don’t need to be doing HIIT for hours on end but get moving! Start a Pilates class or hire a personal trainer. Go for a walk every day.
   • Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit. It is where He lives, and we need to do our part to care for His home.
   • Also, when we workout, we feel better and operate at a greater capacity, which allows us to be ready to serve where needed. Family, friends, strangers.
5. Verse 10 “An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels.”
   • This verse speaks of her character. We are instructed to be imitators of Christ, who was perfect. Perfection is unattainable, but if we aim for it, we will hit excellence.
6. Verse 19 “She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle.”
   • These items are not as common as they once were. The spindle and distaff are used to spin wool into thread, so this verse is speaking about a woman knowing how to take raw materials and change them into something useful or necessary.
   • Think of making a cake from scratch, finding appliances that make life better and easier, or how to build a website.
   • It also emphasizes working with your hands skillfully.
7. Verse 20 “She opens her hands to the poor and reaches out her hand to the needy.”
   • She has a heart for those that are in need.
   • In order to help the poor, you cannot be poor yourself, so this speaks to her being well off enough to help the people around her in need.
8. Verse 18 “She perceives that her merchandise is profitable. Her lamp does not go out at night.”
   • She has a mind for business, and she works late into the night to ensure her success.
   • This is a common theme with the Proverbs 31 woman, that she is a hard worker.
9. Verse 22 “She makes bed coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple.”
   • She is a homemaker, working to beautify her house and make it a home for her family.
   • She dresses for success. Her clothes are in good condition (fine linen) and maybe even flashy (purple color).
10. Verse 26 “She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.”
    • When she speaks, there are no idle words or ignorance coming from her lips.
    • Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and she lives this out. The kindness on her tongue builds up the world around her.
      

Time to put it to practice

The things which you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things [in daily life], and the God [who is the source] of peace and well-being will be with you.

Philippians 4:9 AMP

One of the things that I came across in my research was that whether we realize it or not, we do in fact follow a routine. After meditating on this the last couple of days, I feel more confident than ever in this journey.

What does your routine look like?

What is your favorite part of your routine?

What advice would you give?

Until next time, my friends.