David is charging over the landscape, thirsty for the blood of Nabal. He's determined to avenge the insults that have been hurled at him. Out of nowhere, Abigail - Nabal's wife - intersects him on the road, the last valley separating David from his unsuspecting foe. Abi's donkey is loaded with gifts. As soon as she sees David, she jumps off the donkey, falls to her knees, and bows head to the ground.
She cries, "Please stop! Listen to me! I have something to say to you!"
David halts the four hundred men who are with him, all seeking revenge for the bad-mouthing Nabal.
Abi says, "Don't dwell on what that fool Nabal did! Foolishness oozes out of him. I wasn't there when it all went down, but if I was I can assure you it would have been different."
Then, Abi starts building David up, reminding him of his purpose. Not to mention, Abi is in the same posture that David was in before Saul - on her knees. I'm sure this simple posture stood out in David's mind as he listened.
Abi says, "You're trying to fight God's battles! You don't have to do this. God has a plan for you, and is developing you into a good and dependable leader. Your enemies will be tossed aside like a rock from a sling. Your God-honored life is bound in God-protected life. As long as you live, evil will not stick to you."
When Abi finishes speaking, David realizes that God has sent Abi to stop him in his tracks. God's kept David from avenging Nabal. He tells Abi, "God has sent you to keep me from wreaking havoc on your family and hurting you. If you wouldn't have come so quickly, Nabal would have been dead meat by the morning. Thank you for taking charge of telling me the truth and watching after me. Thank you for stepping in and being the voice of God for me. You will be remembered."
David accepts the gifts Abi gives him and his men, and they depart ways. When Abi gets back home, she finds Nabal hosting a huge banquet. He's belligerent, so Abi decides to wait until morning when he's sober to tell him the story. In the morning, she tells him every bit of it. After hearing, Nabal's so shocked at what could have happened to him that he has a heart attack. Ten days later, he dies.
When David hears about this, he remembers Abi. He sends some servants out to Abi's place to pick her up. David's ready to marry her. Once again, Abi falls to her knees in reverence. She says, "I'll do anything you want. I'll even wash your feet. I'm ready for an adventure."
Abi stepped into David's life and kept him from committing homicide. Even as good of a leader David was, he was flawed. He was ready to avenge Nabal. Without some outside help, he was going to commit murder. He was determined and focused.
As good of a leader I think I am, I usually think my flaws are limited. They're next to nothing. I don't need people to step into my life to tell me where I'm about to commit spiritual or emotional suicide. I can just stay in my God zone and communicate that way.
To break out of the box of not listening to other people speak the truth in my life, I have to get over myself. I have to be able to get stopped in my tracks and listen. I may have my mind made up, my plans in action, and dust rolling behind me. I'm well on my way to avenge whatever distractions and annoyances there are in the world around me. I seek revenge through writing. My actual life is built around revenge. The way I live is an outward sign of an inward rebellion against opposing views. As long as it stays in check, I'm good.
Who am I listening to? Who is the voice of reason in my life? The truth is, I'm scared of everyone's advice but my own. I cringe at the thought that someone else may have a better idea, better course of action than I do. After all, I am the king right? I'm the king of my own fictitious world, where everyone and everything acts the way I order it. I'm the director, the principal, the owner . . .
But for the grace of God, I have a different director. I can choose to listen. When I start living like a child and not a demanding parent, an agent and not the angry director, a friend and not a ruler, I can hear that voice of reason. I can stop in my tracks. I can listen. I can change my course of action.
In this story, the right person stood in the way of David, and changed his mind. He was on his way to chaos, and she changed the course of history with a few simple words of affirmation.
We're not the chaos-creating, avenging, rebellious fools we think we are sometimes. It's just hard to think otherwise when we're in the heat of emotional fire. We have purpose, and God is developing us. We're being formed and shaped into leaders who have the opportunity to change the world in ways we could never imagine. It doesn't mean we don't have flaws though. It doesn't mean that we don't get into our own heads and listen to the stupid emotions that tell us we need to pay back all those people who don't do what we want them to do. We need people with the voice of reason, who are willing to step in and tell us when we're about to commit homicide.
There are people around us who represent the voice of God when we can only hear our own devils screaming. It's in those moments where our histories are on the brink of change. Sometimes these moments make or break us. Sometimes, we let the voices in our own heads, what I like to call the "shitty committee", rule our day. But, when they start to manifest into action, we've got to be able to hear the voices of God around us. What are they saying?
Today's Action: Ask one person for advice today about something that seems insanely trivial in our own heads. Are we repulsed by the answer we receive, or are we open-minded enough to give it some good consideration?
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