VIRTUOUS WOMAN
On Sunday, at about 5pm, Patience and Onome arrived at the Conference hall for the 'Women of Excellence' programme. The cherishes were already singing in the hall but some women were outside the hall, chatting with friends, making phone calls, while more women trooped into the conference hall.
Patience stopped to greet Mama Franca who like herself, worked as a cleaner in the Government Primary School in their area. Patience's daughter, Onome, left her mother after greeting Mama Franca and walked into the conference hall to join Njideka, her friend.
'Mama Onome, I hope you have paid your dues o'. Mama Franca asked as they talked.
'Which of them? Is it the one for Pastor's wife's birthday gift or contribution for Deacon Mary's mother's burial or for the wrapper we will sew to welcome the District Pastor's wife next month, or which other one abeg? The dues plenty Jare. The one I could pay is what I have paid'. Patience replied.
'My sister, me sef wey dey ask, I have not paid anyone, apart from our monthly contribution to the Women's Fellowship account. And that one sef is just part payment. I have not finished paying my children's school fees. We are still struggling to feed. When I get, I go pay', said Mama Franca.
As they talked, Mama Rita waved and smiled to th em as she walked into the conference hall. They waved and smiled back. Immediately Mama Rita stepped into the conference hall, Manma Francs turned to Patience and said,
'Behold the virtuous woman! A shining example of a woman of excellence! With a mischievous glint in her eyes.
Patience caught the glint and said, 'Mama Franca, what are you getting at sef'? She looked puzzled.
' Ha! You mean you don't know? All those words women fellowship meetings have not opened your eyes? When you have a very wealthy husband who is a serious giver in the church and ensures that his wife not only pays the numerous dues, but sows dangerous and heavy seeds into the life of our women leader and the women's fellowship account, she is automatically a virtuous woman, a shining example to her fellow Sisters-in-da-lord? Mama Franca asked with mock horror on her face, her hands on her mouth.
'Mama Franca! Naughty unvirtuous woman like you'!
They both laughed as Mama Franca continued:
'Thank God it's a guest minister preaching today. If not, I have a feeling that if Mummy were to be preaching, half the time, church rats like us will be crying, feeling sorry for all the meat we have denied God's house.
Mummy was what the Pastor's wife was called.
'May God forgive you',Patience told her friend. Oya let's go inside the hall. I think the guest speaker will come up soon,judging from the silence in the hall'.
Together they walked into the conference hall.
Bishop Mrs. Gladys Kenneth, the guest speaker had just been introduced. She was the wife of the General Overseer of the church and was fondly called 'big mummy'. The nickname was rather appropriate because she was tall and fat.
'Virtuous women'! She called our with a clenched fist.
'Jesus women'! The women responded.
'My sisters in Christ', she began. Her voice dripped with humility. The humility of which she was famous in the church. It was the kind of humility of a person who knew how powerful they were.
'We have to hear God's Word so that we can be moulded into the kind of women God wants - Women of excellence.
I thank God my maker, and my husband, our very own Daddy, without whose permission I would not be here today.
Look around you. There are do many broken marriages. And children going wayward. All these happening in a time when there is supposedly so much advancement in knowledge. A so-called civilized era. This is all because women no longer know their role as women anymore.
They think because they are educated and have thriving careers, they have become men and are thus competing with their husband's. Very shameful'!
Some of the women in the hall shook their heads sadly.
Big Mummy continued:
'Anywhere you see an unhappy husband, a cheating husband, wayward children, there is an irresponsible woman who no longer knows her place. Our so-called illiterate mothers and grandmother's were virtuous women, that was why divorce in their time was unheard of.
Our fathers in their wisdom did not allow their daughters to be too educated. They were not lawyers and doctors and accountants but they knew how to maintain their homes: something today's women with all their knowledge and money have been unable to do. That is why some of them refuse to marry. They already know they cannot come under a man. The ones who want to marry find it hard to see suitors because would men are scared of these unwomanly women.
A woman who cannot come under a man is not a real woman. Whoever saw a headless human being?
Women of God! Arise and do your duties. Our men are crying, because the virtuous woman is almost extinct, like an endangered species.
A wise woman builds her home. Emulate Sarah, who called her husband Abraham 'lord'. Young girls in our midst, take note. The Proverbs 31 woman does her husband good all the days of her life.
Virtuous women! Arise!
Let She who has an ear hear what the spirit says today!
At this point, I will give you all an opportunity to ask questions so as to learn better'.
At this point, Njideka raised her hand.
'Please ma, I have a question. The Bible says that the man is the head of the family,meaning he is in charge.. Every organization or association has a head who is responsible for the welfare of the organization. If anything goes wrong, he is held primarily responsible. Please correct me if I am wrong'.
'Yes, you are right', Big Mummy replied.
Njideka continued. 'but why is it different in marriage? If he is the head, why do we hold the wife responsible for whatever happens in the marriage'?
Some women nodded their heads.
' Good question '. You see, the man may be the head of the family, but his wife is the neck. It is wherever the neck turns that the head will turn. Besides, it is the role of the woman to build her home. That is what the Bible says in Proverbs.
' but na, when Adam and Eve sinned, God punished both of them. He didn't exclude Adam from punishment'.
'My daughter, ask the holy spirit to guide you as you read your Bible, so you can understand it very well. Also ask God for a submissive, teachable spirit. A woman charts the course of her home. A good wife makes a good husband and by extension, good children'. Big Mummy spoke with what appeared to Njideka to be an exaggerated patience.
Njideka, obviously dissatisfied, was about to get up from her seat and sat something when Onome pulled her down quickly. As Njideka sat down, she looked at the Pastor from headquarters who had accompanied Big Mummy, and the instrumentalists, all male, and the host Pastor's wife, nodding and smiling as if Big Mummy had uttered the most profound words they had ever heard in their lives, and she felt the contents of her bowels rise to her throat.
Patience stopped to greet Mama Franca who like herself, worked as a cleaner in the Government Primary School in their area. Patience's daughter, Onome, left her mother after greeting Mama Franca and walked into the conference hall to join Njideka, her friend.
'Mama Onome, I hope you have paid your dues o'. Mama Franca asked as they talked.
'Which of them? Is it the one for Pastor's wife's birthday gift or contribution for Deacon Mary's mother's burial or for the wrapper we will sew to welcome the District Pastor's wife next month, or which other one abeg? The dues plenty Jare. The one I could pay is what I have paid'. Patience replied.
'My sister, me sef wey dey ask, I have not paid anyone, apart from our monthly contribution to the Women's Fellowship account. And that one sef is just part payment. I have not finished paying my children's school fees. We are still struggling to feed. When I get, I go pay', said Mama Franca.
As they talked, Mama Rita waved and smiled to th em as she walked into the conference hall. They waved and smiled back. Immediately Mama Rita stepped into the conference hall, Manma Francs turned to Patience and said,
'Behold the virtuous woman! A shining example of a woman of excellence! With a mischievous glint in her eyes.
Patience caught the glint and said, 'Mama Franca, what are you getting at sef'? She looked puzzled.
' Ha! You mean you don't know? All those words women fellowship meetings have not opened your eyes? When you have a very wealthy husband who is a serious giver in the church and ensures that his wife not only pays the numerous dues, but sows dangerous and heavy seeds into the life of our women leader and the women's fellowship account, she is automatically a virtuous woman, a shining example to her fellow Sisters-in-da-lord? Mama Franca asked with mock horror on her face, her hands on her mouth.
'Mama Franca! Naughty unvirtuous woman like you'!
They both laughed as Mama Franca continued:
'Thank God it's a guest minister preaching today. If not, I have a feeling that if Mummy were to be preaching, half the time, church rats like us will be crying, feeling sorry for all the meat we have denied God's house.
Mummy was what the Pastor's wife was called.
'May God forgive you',Patience told her friend. Oya let's go inside the hall. I think the guest speaker will come up soon,judging from the silence in the hall'.
Together they walked into the conference hall.
Bishop Mrs. Gladys Kenneth, the guest speaker had just been introduced. She was the wife of the General Overseer of the church and was fondly called 'big mummy'. The nickname was rather appropriate because she was tall and fat.
'Virtuous women'! She called our with a clenched fist.
'Jesus women'! The women responded.
'My sisters in Christ', she began. Her voice dripped with humility. The humility of which she was famous in the church. It was the kind of humility of a person who knew how powerful they were.
'We have to hear God's Word so that we can be moulded into the kind of women God wants - Women of excellence.
I thank God my maker, and my husband, our very own Daddy, without whose permission I would not be here today.
Look around you. There are do many broken marriages. And children going wayward. All these happening in a time when there is supposedly so much advancement in knowledge. A so-called civilized era. This is all because women no longer know their role as women anymore.
They think because they are educated and have thriving careers, they have become men and are thus competing with their husband's. Very shameful'!
Some of the women in the hall shook their heads sadly.
Big Mummy continued:
'Anywhere you see an unhappy husband, a cheating husband, wayward children, there is an irresponsible woman who no longer knows her place. Our so-called illiterate mothers and grandmother's were virtuous women, that was why divorce in their time was unheard of.
Our fathers in their wisdom did not allow their daughters to be too educated. They were not lawyers and doctors and accountants but they knew how to maintain their homes: something today's women with all their knowledge and money have been unable to do. That is why some of them refuse to marry. They already know they cannot come under a man. The ones who want to marry find it hard to see suitors because would men are scared of these unwomanly women.
A woman who cannot come under a man is not a real woman. Whoever saw a headless human being?
Women of God! Arise and do your duties. Our men are crying, because the virtuous woman is almost extinct, like an endangered species.
A wise woman builds her home. Emulate Sarah, who called her husband Abraham 'lord'. Young girls in our midst, take note. The Proverbs 31 woman does her husband good all the days of her life.
Virtuous women! Arise!
Let She who has an ear hear what the spirit says today!
At this point, I will give you all an opportunity to ask questions so as to learn better'.
At this point, Njideka raised her hand.
'Please ma, I have a question. The Bible says that the man is the head of the family,meaning he is in charge.. Every organization or association has a head who is responsible for the welfare of the organization. If anything goes wrong, he is held primarily responsible. Please correct me if I am wrong'.
'Yes, you are right', Big Mummy replied.
Njideka continued. 'but why is it different in marriage? If he is the head, why do we hold the wife responsible for whatever happens in the marriage'?
Some women nodded their heads.
' Good question '. You see, the man may be the head of the family, but his wife is the neck. It is wherever the neck turns that the head will turn. Besides, it is the role of the woman to build her home. That is what the Bible says in Proverbs.
' but na, when Adam and Eve sinned, God punished both of them. He didn't exclude Adam from punishment'.
'My daughter, ask the holy spirit to guide you as you read your Bible, so you can understand it very well. Also ask God for a submissive, teachable spirit. A woman charts the course of her home. A good wife makes a good husband and by extension, good children'. Big Mummy spoke with what appeared to Njideka to be an exaggerated patience.
Njideka, obviously dissatisfied, was about to get up from her seat and sat something when Onome pulled her down quickly. As Njideka sat down, she looked at the Pastor from headquarters who had accompanied Big Mummy, and the instrumentalists, all male, and the host Pastor's wife, nodding and smiling as if Big Mummy had uttered the most profound words they had ever heard in their lives, and she felt the contents of her bowels rise to her throat.
I love this oh
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