While reading through the book of Proverbs in the
Bible, I came across a deep and amazing verse in chapter 14 which says "The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers
down" (New international version). I stopped to ponder on this verse
and the words. I was left with a lot of questions about wisdom and how a woman
builds her house by it and another tear hers down due to lack of it. Because the Bible is filled with a lot of
answers, I decided to look at the women that exhibited great wisdom and
understanding. Although there were a lot of figures in the bible to get
practical example from, the perfect woman that I chose to learn and reflect on when
it comes to this concept was Abigail.
In order to avoid very long write-up, I decided to omit the
whole account as recorded in the Bible in First Samuel 25 in this Blog. You can
read it from this link (https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Samuel+25&version=KJV).
The lesson of wisdom from Abigail can be summarized into
these salient points:
Intelligence: The
Bible described her as a woman with Beauty
and Intelligence. Although outward beauty is a gift from God that we really
do not ask for but being intelligent requires intentional effort to acquire. It
is a combination of faith (asking from the giver, God) and action which can be
inform of reading, hearing, and gleaning from the experiences around you. For
her to build her home wisely, she knew the importance of intelligence and she
acquired it.
Approachable: Following the foolish and wrong decision made by Abigail’s husband, it
became important to act fast and correct the situation before it could lead to
deadly consequences. She was approachable and willing to listen to the servant
and so she got a detailed explanation of what had transpired between her
husband and David’s men.
Discretion: She applied discretion because she knew the height of the problem that
would have befallen her house and so she made haste, sent some gifts, sent a
servant, rode on her ass immediately and most importantly, she did not inform
her husband who might have deterred her from pleading on his behalf. She
combined good and wise decisions to SAVE her home. I see Wisdom in her approach!
Mediation with humility: The bible says that she knelt before David and interceded
on behalf of Nabal and her household. She accepted his wrong doings and with
humility righted it with her gifts, gentle words and humility.
Courage: Abigail exhibited courage by informing her husband about how she saved
the situation. She knew that his reaction may not be the best but she was
determined to submit to what is right in the sight of God and so, she boldly
told him what she had some to prevent her home from being destroyed by the
wrath of David.
The lessons above show how a woman mediated in conflict and preserved
her household. She applied wisdom from when it came to her knowledge until the
end of the conflict. Women of today can also glean from Abigail’s personality and
wise approach in dealing with daily issues of life. When rightly applied, it
will not only preserve their household and community but the world at large.
Comments
Post a Comment