Today's Scripture Reading (June 11, 2025): 1 Samuel 25
I was recently at a business
establishment when I encountered a man helping an older woman, likely his mom,
who was struggling to get around. The business I was leaving had a double-door system,
and one gentleman decided to hold the outer door for this man and the older
lady. She was moving relatively slowly, even with the help of her son, so
arriving at the outer door was not a swift process. I was at the inner door,
and I could have slipped through the outer door long before the woman arrived,
but I decided I would wait and hold the inner door. Just a note: there was a
button that would have held both doors automatically, although I am not sure they
would have held the doors long enough for this woman to enter; sometimes, a
human touch is needed. The son thanked the person on the outer door and then
addressed me on the inner door. He commented, "Well, we are still Canadian;
we still care for each other." I smiled and commented, "We aren't the
fifty-first state yet," with as big a smile as I could muster (with
apologies to all of my American readers. Please understand, this is not about
you.) The gentleman holding the outer door smiled and said to me, "Hey, I'm
already here; I might as well hold it for you, too." It was an interesting
exchange. And it was good to know that we really do care for each other. That
is not to imply that people from other places don't take care of each other.
This idea about the compassion we have for each other is a critical part of
what it means to live in a civilized nation, whether that nation is located in
North America, Europe, or other places on our globe.
A social media post a few
weeks ago declared that there was an island over which Canada and Denmark were
in dispute. This arctic island has been the site of a fifty-year "Whisky
War." The war's name is derived from the weapons used by the two nations
as they fought over the uninhabited island. The conflict involved one side
coming to the island, removing the flag of the opposing nation, and leaving the
combatant's flag. It also involved a trade of liquor. Denmark would leave a
bottle of Danish Schnapps for the Canadians, and the Canadians would leave a
bottle of Canadian Whisky. Unfortunately, I can't believe I am writing that
word about a war, and despite the point made by the social media post, the "Whisky
War" on Han Island actually ended in 2022 when Canada and Denmark agreed
to divide the one and a half square kilometer Island down the middle. The
social media post proclaimed this is how civilized countries wage war.
David's men approached a
ranch owner named Nabal, hoping for some support. The hope is based on the
service David had provided Nabal by ensuring nothing bothered his sheep and the
shepherds in Nabal employ who were charged with caring for the sheep. The
shepherds had enjoyed such favor that they had tried to stay close to David and
his men. David hadn't minded lending Nabal's shepherds a hand, but he hoped his
boss would be willing to return the favor.
However, not only was Nabal
unwilling to help David, he decided to respond with insults. The word we have translated
as insult means "to treat with contemptuous language." One shepherd
didn't believe that David's men deserved the contemptuous response or that the
soldiers were likely to respond positively to Nabal's insulting words. So he
goes to Abigail, Nabal's wife, with the story of what happened before David
responded. His hope might have been that she could talk sense to Nabal before
David responded. Unfortunately, Nabal was not a man whose opinion could be easily
swayed.
Tomorrow's Scripture Reading:
1 Samuel 26
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