Battling Misunderstanding
Sword of the Spirit
Some time after this, King Nahash of the Ammonites died, and his son Hanun became king. David said, "I am going to show complete loyalty to Hanun because his father, Nahash, was always completely loyal to me." So David sent ambassadors to express sympathy to Hanun about his father's death. But when David's ambassadors arrived in the land of Ammon, Hanun's advisers said to their master, "Do you really think these men are coming here to honor your father? No! David has sent them to spy out the city so that they can come in and conquer it!" So Hanun seized David's ambassadors and shaved off half of each man's beard, cut off their robes at the buttocks, and sent them back to David in shame. 2 Samuel 10: 1 – 4
David's Battle:
Man! David just couldn't seem to win for losing! King Nahash had always been especially nice to David. When he died, David felt really sad. He sent a sympathy message to Nahash's son, Hanun. Nothing unusual about that, right? But when David's men arrived with the message, Hanun's advisors misunderstood why they were coming. They assumed that the men were there to spy on their city, not to offer their sympathies. There was nothing David's men could do to clear up this misunderstanding. Things just got worse and worse. Hanun's men kidnapped David's guys and did something really bizarre to humiliate them. They shaved off half of each man's beard, (that's pretty weird), and then they cut off their robes in a very embarrassing place. All of this over a misunderstanding. Can you imagine how David felt when his men returned home in such a messed-up state?
Strategic Questions:
Why didn't Hanun's men believe that David just wanted to offer his sympathies?
Has anyone ever misunderstood your intentions?
What can you do when someone misunderstands you?
Putting On Your Armor:
Wow! This is a tough one, isn't it? It seems like we are misunderstood a lot! We do something or say something, and people take it a different way than we mean it. They assume something, or maybe they just don't trust that what we're saying is the truth, so they come to their own conclusions. Just like David and his men, we have to learn to deal with the embarrassment of having others misunderstand us. That's tough, but it works both ways! Sometimes we're the ones who misunderstand others. We take our friends' comments too personally or we can't figure out where they're coming from. Instead of trying to understand them, we often just get our feelings hurt or get mad. But where does misunderstanding lead? Sadly, it always leads to division. That's why it's important, as Christians, to respond like David. He always tried to make the best of every situation. He didn't assume. He tried to use reasonable thinking skills at every turn.
S.O.S. (Speaking to Our Savior in prayer)
Dear Father,
It's hard to figure people out sometimes. Maybe I'm just too sensitive. Please help me not to make a big deal out of misunderstandings. Please also help me not to be the one to create misunderstandings. Make everything clear to me, Father. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Which Side Are You On? (Thought for the Day)
Which is worse – to misunderstand, or to be misunderstood?
