Michal: Married to the enemy of your father

The discussion on love is a daily conversation that goes on within our world. More specifically, during the month of February, the talk on love takes a different purview. In February, the celebration of Valentine’s Day is a reminder to some married couples to take a special day to celebrate their love. To other married couples, Valentine’s Day does not count at all. Some single people go through extreme lengths to have  ungodly celebration. Yet, others stay home just to lament their loneliness. I am not sure which category you are in today. Irrespective of how you feel on this Valentine’s Day, know that the greatest love ever has already been shown to you. Our all time favourite memory verse in John 3:16 should be a perfect reminder for you: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” You are so much loved. 

So imagine celebrating Valentine’s Day with your spouse who happens to be the worst enemy of your father. How would you feel knowing that your father is searching for your spouse to kill? This might sound absurd but one woman’s husband was in danger and the enemy was her own father. Our discussion on Michal revealed that she loved David and because of her love for him, her father decided to use it to trap David. Michal, the princess of Israel married David, the giant slayer. The marriage had barely taken ground when Michal’s father, king Saul, began to issue a death threat on David. What was David’s crime? He killed the giant that tormented Saul and his people and the women sang for David, accrediting him with ten thousand and Saul with a thousand. Therefore, David did not do anything wrong to his father-in-law. Michal might have been worried about her father’s hatred for David. If there was any celebration close to Valentine’s Day on their day, Michal and David would have celebrated it in fear. 

Saul sent men to David’s house to watch it and to kill him in the morning. But Michal, David’s wife, warned him, “If you don’t run for your life tonight, tomorrow you’ll be killed.” So Michal let David down through a window, and he fled and escaped. (1 Samuel 19:11‭-‬12)

Saul was not satisfied to see David living.  He was determined to kill him irrespective of the fact that his own daughter was married to David. In his desperation to kill David, “Saul sent men to David’s house to watch it and to kill him in the morning. But Michal, David’s wife, warned him, “If you don’t run for your life tonight, tomorrow you’ll be killed.” So Michal let David down through a window, and he fled and escaped. Then Michal took an idol and laid it on the bed, covering it with a garment and putting some goats’ hair at the head. When Saul sent the men to capture David, Michal said, “He is ill.” Then Saul sent the men back to see David and told them, “Bring him up to me in his bed so that I may kill him.” But when the men entered, there was the idol in the bed, and at the head was some goats’ hair.” (1 Samuel 19:11‭-‬16). Michal’s pain in marriage was initiated by her own father’s discontentment for David. Michal never planned to be married to her father’s biggest enemy but she became a prey for her father’s obsession. 

Thankfully, there was no Valentine’s Day to remind Michal of her loneliness but she would still have felt pain and rejection. Her heart would have been shattered and her pillows would have been filled with tears. This is actually the reality for most people. Instead of celebrating life on Valentine’s Day, they are reminded of the pain, the loss and the emptiness they feel. It is not wrong to express our feelings but we should also be mindful that the environment on Valentine’s Day is a breeding ground for wicked people. Don’t let your fears and worry trap you into a meaningless one-day or one-night stand that will permanently damage you. Don’t allow the world’s standard of love to sway you from God’s love. Even if no human being sends a text or calls to express their love for you, know that your father in heaven loves you with an everlasting love. He has called you by name and he will never leave you nor forsake you. 

Michal loved David but her own father drove away her husband. Maybe you have loved but that love did not last. Know that the lover of your soul has not stopped loving you. His biggest Valentine’s Day gift to you, is the gift of Salvation. As you desire to seek first your heavenly Father’s kingdom and its righteousness, He will satisfy you with good things. Remember, even if you don’t receive what you want, He will always give you what you need. Happy Valentine’s Day!

Michal: The princess of Israel and giant slayer

The women in the Bible series reveal to us many different women in the Bible. We get to know what they did right and what they did wrong. We learn from their strengths and avoid their mistakes as much as we can. This week, we shall focus on Michal, the daughter of king Saul. Michal’s story is quite similar to the story of most 21st Century women. She was a lady who knew what she wanted and she pressed for it. She was a princess who loved a warrior. Maybe this might draw your attention to the stories you read as a child. The popular theme in the stories about a princess falling in love is usually clouded in a series of discord, hatred, battles to fight and opposition from the people around them. Suddenly, there is a turnaround and they live happily ever after. However,  if you are married, you know that the ever after is full of different stages. Yes, you would be happy but there are times that you also deal with life’s challenges. 

Michal, like any young woman, was attracted to the champion of the day, David. In a very dramatic way, David had defeated a giant and led the army of Israel to a resounding victory (1 Samuel 17). This feat attracted David lovers and haters. The people loved David but the king, the father of Michal, hated David. What was David’s crime? “When the men were returning home after David had killed the Philistine, the women came out from all the towns of Israel to meet King Saul with singing and dancing, with joyful songs and with timbrels and lyres. As they danced, they sang: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.” Saul was very angry; this refrain displeased him greatly. “They have credited David with tens of thousands,” he thought, “but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?” And from that time on Saul kept a close eye on David. (1 Samuel 18:6‭-‬9). Saul’s initial attempt was to have David marry his first daughter Merab because that was part of the package for the person who could defeat Goliath (1 Samuel 17:25). David refused to marry the king’s daughter because he knew the implications of being an in-law to the king.

Now Saul’s daughter Michal was in love with David, and when they told Saul about it, he was pleased. (1 Samuel 18:20)

Therefore, Merab was given to another. Saul’s attempt to get David marry his daughter was for Saul’s evil schemes. Michal loved David. She was in love with the champion of the day. In 1 Samuel 18:20, the scripture records this: “Now Saul’s daughter Michal was in love with David, and when they told Saul about it, he was pleased.” Michal’s love for David was Saul’s own way to trap David. However, Saul was wrong because Michal was ready to do everything to save her husband. “When Saul realized that the Lord was with David and that his daughter Michal loved David, Saul became still more afraid of him, and he remained his enemy the rest of his days” (1 Samuel 18:28‭-‬29). When we read the account of David and Goliath (1 Samuel 17), you tend to wonder why Saul would hate on David. But, it all started when the women composed songs that credited David with tens of thousands and Saul with just a thousand. David’s victory attracted the attention of the women in the city. Michal, like the other women, fell in love with the champion. While David remained on the field as a shepherd, he was obscured to these women.

The “falling in love” stage of life is very common and during that stage, lovers are willing to do anything for the other. As a princess, Michal would have become a potential wife to great and mighty people. But, she chose David, the man who could kill giants. Michal’s love for David, transcended her father’s hatred for David. Women naturally are attracted to men who command power and authority. Unfortunately, how we deal with the “falling in love” stage influences our marriage. You could love with your senses and make constructive decisions or love with your eyes and ears and make terrible mistakes. 

As we are in the season of love, you might want to check your love barometer. Are you in love for fame, for fortune, for gains, for companionship, for marriage or for other reasons? Valentine’s Day reminds us of selfless love for humanity. It is not a button for sexual immorality among the youth. If the princess falls in love with the giant slayer, the right thing needs to be done. Michal didn’t run into the arms of David. She was given to David after David had fulfilled his obligations. Don’t use Valentine’s Day as an excuse for fornication. Sex is not a gift. Nine months later, you will reap what you sow! 

Christlikeness: Love each other as I have loved you.

Valentine’s Day is one day in a year dedicated to showing love to one another. The day is also called Saint Valentine’s Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine. It originated as a Catholic feast honoring Saint Valentine. Now, it has become a commercial celebration of romance and love in many countries. I celebrated an early Valentine’s Day this year with my family. Whether you celebrate Valentine’s Day or not, loving one another is not just an event that is meant for only February 14th. In fact, Jesus has commanded us to love one another as He has loved us. Loving one another is Christlike.

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.(John 15:12)

Paul summarized the attributes of love:
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.”
(1 Corinthians 13:4‭-‬8)
The value of love we have for one another is not based on emotions and feelings but on the basis that Christ demonstrated to us and commanded us to love one another.

Until we come to the level of demonstrating real love irrespective of what we might have been through in the past, we are not fully obeying the word of God. Loving one another is a new commandment from Jesus. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34‭-‬35). Love covers a multitude of wrongs. In Christ, each day is a Love Day. As we celebrate today, remember that Jesus has demonstrated by His life that it is possible to love one another.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:13)

Happy Valentine’s Day to you.