Abigail was an interesting lady who seemed to be in a bad situation, being married to a man with an ugly attitude whose name means "fool." Her livelihood was threatened because of her husband's foolishness, but she interceded to David on his behalf. David saw her to be intelligent and spared her and her family, letting her supplications soothe his anger at her husband. He credited God for letting Abigail influence him not to attack her homeland.
I am not very good at being gentle or sensitive to others' feelings. It is in my nature to be outspoken and assertive, but it has also been my experience that when others are that way to me, it persuades me to do the opposite of what they want, even though they might want the best for me. I know I have the ability to be thoughtful - it just seems like this whole summer and year have been about people testing my boundaries, and I have less opportunities to express that part of myself. I have to be careful so it doesn't disappear.
I feel less peaceful and more warlike these days. However, when an intervention is necessary, it is so important to find areas to connect, even though there is an obvious area of disagreement. Lately I feel really distressed about political differences. I feel attacked and deliberately misunderstood, judged for having my own opinions, and in retaliation I form my own judgements. This kills relationship.
Lord, help me find gentle words for people I disagree with. Help me have understanding and compassion for others as I have for myself. Help me see the humanity of my friends and family that I am having struggles with. They are your children too. Help me learn not to be threatened by idealogical differences. Help me be less angry; help me have -and share- peace. Love, Mandy.
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