Who's On My Side?

One of Saul’s servants, Doeg, reported that the priest aided David, in 1 Samuel 22.  When confronted by Saul, the priest wondered why he wouldn’t tend to David like he always did, especially since he didn’t know anything about the conflict between David and Saul.  He reminded Saul that David was his son-in-law, his most loyal servant, and his best soldier.  Saul commanded his servants to kill all the priests and their families.  Nobody would do it, with the exception of Doeg.

Why didn’t the priest know anything about the conflict between David and Saul?  Because David chose not to tell him.  Why?  Maybe because David didn’t want him to get involved.  Maybe because David wanted to protect him.  Maybe because David didn’t want the priest to have to choose sides.  Whatever the motivation, David didn’t give the priest the inside scoop.

How many people in our inside circles know about the conflict between us and a coworker or friend?  How many people outside our circles are privileged to that information as well? We tend to try to get as many people on our “side”, when those people shouldn’t be on a side to begin with!  Next time we want to share a conflicted situation with a third party, it wouldn’t hurt to first ask a few questions:

How will this person benefit from knowing the situation?  Am I sharing information only to get power and control?  How will sharing information help resolve the conflict?  Will the person in conflict with me benefit from me sharing this information?

God of infinite wisdom, will you guide my motivations?  Thank you for the conflict in my life.  Help me to resolve those situations in a Godly manner, and grow me closer to you because of it.  Amen.