During a family reunion many years ago, my mother shared some words she’d written. She honored her grandmother, a woman I’d never met but had heard her spoken of often. Mom wrote that she recalled Mama Susan getting up “before dawn” and praying over her household. What a distinct memory that impacted my mother’s life—one I cling to even today although I never met my great-grandmother.

This description reminds me of the woman described in Proverbs 31. She cared for her family in many tangible ways, and she got up “while it [was] still night” (v. 15). She had plenty to do to care for her family, such as providing food, purchasing land, planting a vineyard, making profitable trades, sewing clothes, and finishing many other tasks—all in the name of caring for the ones she loved. And she even extended her resourcefulness to “the poor and . . . the needy” (v. 20).

Helping to care for a household during the time of the writing of Proverbs 31 was no easy feat, as demonstrated from the long list of duties described in this passage. And it wasn’t an easy feat for my great-grandmother, who was born in the 1800s. But prayers whispered early in the morning—as well as throughout the day—kept these women focused and encouraged as God helped them live out their calling to care for their family and others.