Now the name of the man was Nabal; and the name of his wife Abigail; and the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance: but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was of the house of Caleb - - - 1 Samuel 4: 1 - 42
This story relates a story of a woman by the name Abigail. She acted proactively to save her household and eventually got into the Kingdom. The bible makes use of words such as beautiful countenance, good understanding to describe this wise woman. I’d like to take some extra time to review some truth from the word of God regarding women. We will look at each of these words words to understand and highlight the wonderful aspects of you – Woman. The first word is Beautiful. Beauty has and I guess will always be a connotation to womanhood. God; in his wisdom created a creature to be so beautiful that all a man could say when she was presented is: Whoa-man! I was asking myself this question: Why do people put up flowers in the middle of the room? The common answer will be: Decoration. They are making the room to be vibrant, attractive, inspiring, interesting – They are beautifying it. It’s also interesting that people who put do decorations are usually woman. You’re happy with your couch and TV but she thinks you need a table and a flower pot as well. Why? She’s beauty. Really – Beauty is her name (Do you remember that Dru-Hill song: Beauty). Every man I know seems to think his wife is more beautiful than any other woman alive. I think they are all right – every woman is beautiful. They are beautiful in different levels. Amongst other reasons we also marry women because of some element of beauty that we have seen in them. It might be the smile that literally lights up the room or perhaps her voice that you’ve associated with tranquility or maybe her choice of words that always bring about hope. As I’m sure you know; beauty is not restricted to external looks but also (in my experience) internal attributes. Abigail was blessed to have both aspects of beauty and I personally think one influenced the other. She was a Beautiful Woman. If you’re a woman and are reading this…please reflect and project. Make it your mission to make a difference and introduce your charisma, beauty..in every situation. Similar to the way you smarten up the room with the flowers, do likewise for other situations. If you see people fighting – call peace. If you notice a sad face, tell them a joke. If a little child is crying for any reason - lean to their level and give them a kiss. Okay – I’m trying to say this one thing here: Make a difference, where you are!
The 2nd quality that was exhibited by Abigail is countenance. Countenance is defined as a look or expression indicative of encouragement or of moral support. This has an element of power to it. I think it’s a blessing for any person (especially woman) to possess countenance .i.e. the power to encourage others to dare to be different, to open closed doors, to tread on virgin territory, to open untapped potential. Countenance is that ability that allows you to be a blessing to others.Have you ever noticed how kids always look for an assuring smile or even an encouraging embrace? They sometimes need for their care-giver to say Go ahead! I’ve come to realize that most of us are human, like these children. We sometimes are in desperate need for some sort of support from our loved ones. That someone will normally be a care-giver. A person whom you naturally trust and depend on for comfort. To some it’s a spouse but to most it’s a parent (usually a mother). This is why countenance is associated with women. Are you a woman of ‘beautiful countenance’?
Abigail not only exhibited beauty or countenance but also Goodness. This word will always have a connotation of creation for me. One thing that God kept observing during/ after creation is that: ‘It was good’. On the contrary; there was also a time when He turned and noted that something was not good. After God created the male-man; He looked at him and said: “It is not good for man to be alone, I will make him a helper suitable for him”(Gen.2:18). This was the inception of a matrimonial union between two individuals that are a perfect fit to each other. I’m tempted to delve into this further but let’s rather reserve it for some other time. God created man and saw that it was good, likewise after the woman was presented to the man he (the man) saw that she was good and started prophesying on her that 'this is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh'. He saw himself in her. A quality that made him glad. She was good enough for him to even want to cleave (v19)…there I go again…What I’m trying to say is that the woman was good, Abigail was good, you and every other woman are good. What is this goodness that I’m talking about? In layman terms, good is defined as ‘morally excellent; virtuous; righteous; pious: a good woman’. I now understand what mama meant when she said: “We must find you a good woman”. She meant… a woman of morals, a virtuous woman, a woman that has right-standing with God – A good woman!Do these characteristics mirror you? If yes; you’re a good woman…but if for some reason, no is your answer – then you’re well on your way to being that Good Woman you were created to be. A good woman is not necessarily in relation to a husband (or man) but rather your service to mankind and your purpose as defined by God. I believe that God called and created every woman you can think of, to a ministry of Good!
Back in High School we developed a terminology for expressing the concept of being too understanding even to your detriment and that was over-standing. We used this word for almost any situation and it was fun…come to think of it though – we were on point. Overstanding can be detrimental to all of us…so where do we draw the line? Perhaps a good place to start would be to define what Understanding is. According my exclusive dictionary understanding is defined as superior power of discernment; enlightened intelligence: In a sentence. ‘With her keen understanding she should have become a leader’. It separates the Leaders from the Followers…Hebrews 4:12b says this about the word of God: ..it is “quick to discern the thoughts and intentions of the heart”. We can therefore conclude that Abigail (as a woman of understanding) had the word/ wisdom of God inside her, likewise both you and me can gain the superior power of discernment (Understanding); through the word of God. In the preceding verse the word good was used as an adjective to understanding; she did not just have understanding but good understanding. According to the previous point the word good means morally excellent. This woman had a Morally Excellent Understanding. She used her enlightened intelligence morally. She stood for what is right both in the sight of God and automatically of man. That’s why she could save her household. After realizing that her husband made a fatal mistake to a just man; she put a plan in action to remedy that. She acted with understanding.To answer the question of where do we draw the line…I’d say; On morality; If it’s not ethical we should not condone it. So the lesson really is: We all need to and can develop an enlightened intelligence or power of discernment that can be used morally to people and offices/societies around us.
Be a little more Understanding!
Make a difference!
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