Are you an Abigail?

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Abigail is an example of a Biblical woman who takes action with respect & humility.  She was married to a rich yet evil man, Nabal, who refused to pay the king's security guards for protecting his personal sheep.  When Abigail heard that King David had set out with 400 of his mighty men to wreak havoc on Nabal, she determined to bring him gifts and meet him along the road to beg for mercy.

This may sound trivial to us, but not to women in her culture. She took matters into her own hands and stepped up when her passive and prideful husband would do nothing to protect his property or family. 

The part of Chanski's interpretation (Womanly Dominion) that strikes me most is that he states, "she knew how to tell time".  He continues, 

"There's a time for a woman to resignedly sit back and wait for the Lord to change her husband's mind. And there's a time for a woman to assertively rise up and take matters into her own hands."

Telling time suddenly gets a lot harder when you're married.  Is it time to wait and bring it up later? Or, is it time to talk and act now?  Abigail got it right. She had "tactful boldness" combining perfectly "bold assertiveness with humble sweetness".  (p.77)

This is the tricky part for me.  It seems easy to either say something really bold & assertive without the sweetness...or just be sweet and not have the courage to say something bold.

This example of womanhood from the Bible is really encouraging.  It does not mean that we rule & dominate our husbands.  But it also doesn't mean we are mindless robots that can't have opinions to express.  The importance is balance and playing our position. We are called to respect our husbands (Eph 5:33) and be subject to him.  Abigail's husband was evil and harsh and not leading her or her family to protect or defend them.  So, Abigail needed to decisively act in a tactful manner in order to defend herself, her family and her husband's name.

 What do you learn from Abigail? 

Are you a good time-teller like her?