She Is Strong and Courageous 30-Day DevotionalSample

Grasp the Truth – The Wise Woman of Abel-beth-maacah

Have you ever believed a lie? This devotional offers bible study methods that will help you eliminate false beliefs and misinformation while growing in an understanding of God’s word.

“When Joab’s forces arrived, they attacked Abel-beth-maacah. They built a siege ramp against the town’s fortifications and began battering down the wall. But a wise woman in the town called out to Joab, ‘Listen to me, Joab. Come over here so I can talk to you... I am one who is peace loving and faithful in Israel. But you are destroying an important town in Israel. Why do you want to devour what belongs to the Lord?’” (2 Samuel 20:15–16, 19)

Pray: Lord, let your Word be a mirror into my soul. 

Observe: Satan is the master of lies and he desires to deceive, distract, and destroy us at every turn. Throughout our lives, we can find ourselves lured into false beliefs as a result of misinformation from loved ones, friends, and well-meaning teachers. It’s even possible to be exposed to false doctrines and misunderstandings of God’s Word. 

After all, satan loves to tempt us to question it, just as he did to Eve. Exposure to these types of distortions can lead us into making poor choices. We sometimes even base life’s most important decisions around our misguided beliefs.

In 2 Samuel, chapter 20, Joab, the commander of King David’s army, was prepared to attack and destroy the entire city of Abel-beth-maacah. As they prepared for battle, a brave, wise woman approached Joab and urged him not to destroy Abel-beth-maacah, an important city that belonged to God. 

As a result of her courage to confront Joab with the truth and his willingness to embrace that truth, the city was spared. It’s critically important throughout our lives that we identify and eliminate any distorted and worldly beliefs we’ve adopted and learn to live in the light of God’s truth as he reveals it to us in his Word.

Courageously embrace God’s truth by implementing the following practices: 

1. Approach God’s Word inductively by putting your beliefs aside and allowing God’s Word to unveil the truth.

2. Study God’s Word faithfully by implementing practical Bible study steps for proper interpretation. 

3. Memorize verses of Scripture to secure God’s truth in your heart and mind. 

4. As you read, study, and memorize God’s Word, be mindful to identify worldly lies that you’ve believed and replace those lies with God’s unchanging truth. 

Interpret: God never wants us to base our choices on misinformation. Embracing truth enables wise decisions, and we prosper as a result. 

Apply: Can you name one worldly lie you used to believe and the truth from God’s Word that eliminated that lie? 

Pray: Father, give me wisdom to recognize any worldly lies I’ve adopted and help me replace the lies with truth from your Word.