Isaiah 47:7

A Lady For Ever

Thou saidst, I shall be a lady for ever. Isaiah 47:7.

A friend of mine used to teach a Sunday school class of girls in a very poor district of a Scottish town. One Sunday she asked them what they were going to “he” when they were a little older. Some of them hoped to sell in shops, some intended to work in a factory, others were going into domestic service. At last she came to one girl of twelve “And what are you going to be, Maggie?” she asked. “I'm going to be the first lady in a' broad Scotland,” said Maggie.

I have often wondered what happened to Maggie. Perhaps she is just working in a factory from early morning till evening; perhaps she is just selling ribbons and laces, or tea and sugar over a counter; perhaps she is just busy cooking somebody's dinner, cleaning somebody's grates, or dusting and sweeping somebody's rooms; and yet she may still be “the finest lady in all broad Scotland.”

For you may be a lady though you are dressed in rags and do the humblest work; and you may be a great deal less than a lady though you are dressed in silk and velvet and live in a mansion.

Someone once asked a little ragged street boy what was the meaning of the word “gentleman,” and he replied, “A fellow who wears a watch chain.” And many people make much the same mistake about the word “lady.” They think it stands merely for someone who is in a certain social position, someone who is wealthy or well-born, or has nice manners. But the word “lady” has really a much grander meaning. It stands for all that is noblest and best in woman.

Long ago the word “lady” just meant the “loaf- kneader” or “baker,” and “lord” meant “loaf-warder” or “loaf-keeper.” Later “Lord” came to be a title given to a nobleman and the “Lady” was his wife or daughter. While we still use “lord” and “lady” in that sense, “lady” has come to have a wider meaning, and it is now applied to a woman in much the same way as “gentleman” is applied to a man.

And so, in the first place, a true lady ought not to be ashamed to work. The very first meaning of the word was one who worked with her hands to supply bread for her household. And every true lady is proud to be a helper at home and in the world. Never think that when you are doing work that is rough or hard you cannot be a lady. You are all the more a lady just because you are doing it.

And then the second meaning of “lady” was “one of noble birth or state.” Now we can't all be of noble birth. We are just born into the place God puts us, but we can all be noble in character, and it is nobility of character that counts.

You know that long ago in the days of chivalry men were very often sent on difficult missions or had to accomplish deeds of daring to win their knighthood; and a great English writer (Ruskin, Sesame and Lilies) has said that he wishes “there were a true order of chivalry instituted for our English youth of certain ranks, in which both boy and girl should receive, at a given age, their knighthood and ladyhood by true title; attainable only by certain probation and trial both of character and accomplishment; and to be forfeited, on conviction, by their peers, of any dishonorable act.”

Supposing, then, that an “order of ladyhood” were set up in this land, what are some of the qualifications of character that would be necessary to win it.

1. First, a true “lady” must be honorable. A lady does not behave in one way when you are present and in another when you are absent. She is not fair to your face and disagreeable behind your back. She does not pretend to be your friend before you and then speak ill of you when you are away. She scorns to tell a lie or do anything mean. She is fair, and true, and faithful.

2. And second, a true lady must be courteous. That word “courteous” is a far finer word than the word “polite,” and means far more. It means being polite in the very nicest way, putting your heart and your mind into it. And it means being polite to everyone, high and low, rich and poor.

The other day I read a story about an old gentleman who was walking down a road, when out of a gate in front of him came a young girl. She was beautifully dressed, and on her hands were a pair of cream-colored gloves. “Ah, my dear,” said the old gentleman to himself, “I wonder if you deserve your fine clothes.”

Presently the young lady had to stop, for there was an obstruction right across the pavement. A man was trying to wheel a barrow of coals in at a gate. He had only one hand, and he was vainly attempting to wheel the barrow and to hold the gate open at the same time. Perhaps you would expect such a nicely dressed girl to step off the pavement and pull her skirt aside lest it should touch the coal. The old gentleman watched to see what would happen. With a gentle “Let me open the gate for you,” the girl held open the gate with her white-gloved hand until the coalman had his barrow safely inside.

And the old gentleman said to himself, “That girl is worthy of her beautiful clothes, for she has a soul even more beautiful.”

And remember, too, that courtesy, like charity, should begin at home. A great many people keep their fine manners for the world and are very disagreeable and rude at home. They seem to think that any kind of manners will do for the home people. A true lady is courteous everywhere, but if there were any choice at all, it would be better to be courteous at home and discourteous abroad than courteous abroad and discourteous at home.

3. Again, a true lady must be considerate. And what does being considerate mean? It just means forgetting yourself and putting yourself in the place of another. It isn't an easy thing to learn to do that because it often requires a good deal of self-control, and unselfishness, and thought. But it is well worth while trying to learn it, for there are few people who do more good in a quiet way than just those who are considerate of others. They are the oil-cans of the world who make the wheels run smoothly. The work they do is not always visible, but we should all be a great deal less happy and peaceable without them.

4. Once more, a true lady must be gentle. Being gentle doesn't mean that you mustn't be happy, but it does mean that you must be kind and tender to the old, and the sick, and the little weak things. And being gentle also means that you must control your temper.

Once some boys were sledding down a hill when one of them by mistake ran his sled into an old lady and tore her dress. He was very sorry, and he immediately got off and apologized, “Oh, never mind,” said the old dame, “it doesn't matter.” “Not matter,” replied the boy, “but I thought you'd mind having your dress torn!” The lady smiled, “Well, you see,” she said, “it's better to have a torn dress than a spoiled temper!” That old dame was a true lady at heart.

What is the secret of true nobility. It is just getting the love of Jesus into our hearts. It is He alone who can take the discourtesy, and the selfishness, and the unkindness out of your hearts and make you each “a lady for ever.”