1 Kings 21:7 Jezebel his wife said, “Is this how you act as king over Israel? Get up and eat! Cheer up. I’ll get you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.”
Jezebel is King Ahab’s wife. Ahab wanted a vineyard owned by Naboth. Naboth wouldn’t sell it to him. “So Ahab went home, sullen and angry because Naboth the Jezreelite had said, ‘I will not give you the inheritance of my ancestors.’ He lay on his bed sulking and refused to eat” (verse 4). Jezebel reminds me of Lady MacBeth who chides her husband because he has doubts about killing the king in his story. Ahab needed to grow a spine, but that is not easy to do. There are people who are basically passive and who get what they want out of life by sulking until the dominant characters to which they have attached themselves act on their behalf. People play all sorts of games with the relationships in their lives but they usually do so to fulfill some basic desire for love or security or meaning or whatever. So many people play so many games that most of them get ground up in the carnage that ensues. There was a very popular psych book in the 60’s by Eric Berne titled “the Games People Play.” Most of the games were counter-productive if not downright destructive. It is why we need a savior and thank God we have one! But this week, as a Lenten activity, consider what type of relational games you may be playing and if they are what God would want for everyone involved.
Logan Memorial Presbyterian Church 