With a little help from my friends

David said to Abigail, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who has sent you today to meet me. May you be blessed for your good judgment and for keeping me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself with my own hands.”

- 1 Samuel 25:32-33

Blessed are those who have friends who can talk them out of doing stupid things. David – the warrior-poet-king of Israel – had a conflict with a man named Nabal.

David was insulted and reacted immaturely. He grabbed his soldiers and started riding to Nabal’s house for a fight.

Have you ever been in a state like this? Your emotions are raging, your pride is hurt and your enemy is clear. Your actions may be out of character but you’re out of control.

David was a few minutes from becoming a murderer when Abigail intercepted him. She helped him shake off the offense. She reminded him of who he was supposed to be. She pointed out to him the consequences of the course he was pursuing. And David listened.

When you look at your friendships, do you have people in your life who can intercept you when you’re about to make a bad decision?

We rarely know we’re about to make a bad decision before we make it. That snappy email or Facebook post always sounds great before we wing it out into the world. Decisions made in the heat of the moment always look great in that moment. It’s only later that we regret our decisions.

Abigail was only able to help David because she heard in advance what he was about to do, because she had the maturity to know how to help him, and because he paused to listen.

To benefit from the wisdom of your friends, try running things by them in advance. Try surrounding yourself with at least a few people who have the maturity to provide you with wise counsel. And try listening to them.

Who in your life can talk you out of doing stupid things? How can you better equip them to help you?

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