Join this HeartCry Prayer- Every Wednesday 11.30am-1.30pm (UK time)
1 Samuel 25
Travail is a painful or difficult work/effort.
It is a difficult experience or situation.
It is a difficult experience or situation.
Abigail was a
travailing woman. She was married to Nabal
who was described as follows:
“But the man, who was a
descendant of Caleb, was uncouth, churlish, stubborn, and ill-mannered.” –
Verse 3
“He’s such a stubborn
lout that no one can even talk to him!” – Verse 17
Abigail was described
as a woman of :
Beauty – 1 Peter 3:4 (NKJV)
Wisdom –
Ecclesiastes 9:18; Matthew 11:19; Proverbs 14:1
Despite being married
to such a man as Nabal, and herself being wise and beautiful, she stood in the
gap to prevent David destroying Nabal’s (her) home and staining his hands with
blood. She forestalled two great calamities.
What can we glean from the life of
Abigail that is relevant to us today as women in travail?
- David’s decision to kill the males in the house of Nabal was going to affect Abigail. She had a stake in the matter at hand! She therefore did not stay silent as “woman”; she took active steps to forestall the calamity.
- Nabal was obviously a difficult man (as described in the Bible) – even his servants knew this too and boldly complained to Abigail his wife.
- Abigail did not just present provisions to David; she also bowed herself at David’s feet. (Verse 18)
- Abigail knew the one she appealed to (Verses 29-31); she knew that he would be king. Her knowledge of the one she cried to was detailed.
- Her intercession brought heaviness to the heart of Nabal who eventually died (Verses.37 – 38).
- After she married David, the next record is that she bore him a son – Chilead (Daniel) 1 Chronicles 3:1; 2 Samuel 3:3 - after which there was no further mention. There was however a lot of calamity in the house of David, for he had several wives who bore him sons. What happened to Abigail’s influence in David’s life subsequently? What happened to her beauty and wisdom?
Prayers
Lord, make us deliberate as we labour/travail for the knowledge of the complete Gospel of Jesus Christ to cover our homes, nations, etc. As women in our own time, use us to thwart the plans and strategies of the enemy to lead people away. Make us sensitive.
Lord, help our lives, that as we labour, we will take active steps that You will require of us as part of the process.
Lord, remove doubt or unbelief, remove weariness, no matter how complicated or difficult the situation of things today, ours is to stand in the gap – just like Abigail did. Let wisdom guard our hearts and lips (Verse 17).
Lord, let our offering to You not just be our substance, but our very selves. Verse 23 says she “quickly” dismounted and bowed. Is our submission to Him quick, or do we still negotiate obedience and total surrender?
Lord, continue to deepen our knowledge of You even as we travail. Abigail knew David, even as him being the proposed King. Lord, let the finished work of Calvary be in our remembrance continually. Keep us in reverence of You.
Travail is not arbitrary, it has a mission. I must continue to travail until we see answers, until ransomed souls are saved.
Lord, keep the fire burning in our hearts, so much that even our children, the youth, all those connected with our lives are affected. The young servant saw the foolishness of his master, but thank God he knew that Abigail was wise.
Lord, let our travail as long as we are on this earth; let it be continuous, even for our youth and generations to come – the youth in David’s house were consumed (Ammnon, Tamar, Absalom, etc).
Lord, make us deliberate as we labour/travail for the knowledge of the complete Gospel of Jesus Christ to cover our homes, nations, etc. As women in our own time, use us to thwart the plans and strategies of the enemy to lead people away. Make us sensitive.
Lord, help our lives, that as we labour, we will take active steps that You will require of us as part of the process.
Lord, remove doubt or unbelief, remove weariness, no matter how complicated or difficult the situation of things today, ours is to stand in the gap – just like Abigail did. Let wisdom guard our hearts and lips (Verse 17).
Lord, let our offering to You not just be our substance, but our very selves. Verse 23 says she “quickly” dismounted and bowed. Is our submission to Him quick, or do we still negotiate obedience and total surrender?
Lord, continue to deepen our knowledge of You even as we travail. Abigail knew David, even as him being the proposed King. Lord, let the finished work of Calvary be in our remembrance continually. Keep us in reverence of You.
Travail is not arbitrary, it has a mission. I must continue to travail until we see answers, until ransomed souls are saved.
Lord, keep the fire burning in our hearts, so much that even our children, the youth, all those connected with our lives are affected. The young servant saw the foolishness of his master, but thank God he knew that Abigail was wise.
Lord, let our travail as long as we are on this earth; let it be continuous, even for our youth and generations to come – the youth in David’s house were consumed (Ammnon, Tamar, Absalom, etc).
Join this HeartCry Prayer- Every Wednesday 11.30am-1.30pm (UK time)
