Today is February 25.
 
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you.          
  
Take a moment and quiet yourself. Take a deep breath. Welcome God’s presence. And say, “Come Holy Spirit.”     
    
Today’s reading is from the Book of 1 Samuel, chapter 24.    
   

After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, “David is in the Desert of En Gedi.” 2 So Saul took three thousand able young men from all Israel and set out to look for David and his men near the Crags of the Wild Goats. 
  
3 He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave. 4 The men said, “This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’” Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe... 
  
8 Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, “My lord the king!” When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground. 9 He said to Saul, “Why do you listen when men say, ‘David is bent on harming you’? 10 This day you have seen with your own eyes how the Lord delivered you into my hands in the cave. Some urged me to kill you, but I spared you; I said, ‘I will not lay my hand on my lord, because he is the Lord’s anointed.’ 11 See, my father, look at this piece of your robe in my hand! I cut off the corner of your robe but did not kill you. See that there is nothing in my hand to indicate that I am guilty of wrongdoing or rebellion. I have not wronged you, but you are hunting me down to take my life. 12 May the Lord judge between you and me. And may the Lord avenge the wrongs you have done to me, but my hand will not touch you. 13 As the old saying goes, ‘From evildoers come evil deeds,’ so my hand will not touch you.   
  

David and Saul have a relationship marked by power, distrust, and significant dysfunction. Are there any relationships in your life right now that feel out of joint? As we enter into a time of prayer today, take an extra few moments to reflect on as many relationships as come to mind. If a broken relationship does come to mind, or perhaps it's an individual who you feel like is bent on doing you in justice, pray specifically for them, and for the situation right now. 
   
Along with all of this dysfunction, David and Saul's relationship had a massive bit of miscommunication in it. They're both chasing each other around, and they're both feeling chased. listen to the text again and pay attention for particular parts of the story that stand out for you, or a word or phrase that seems particularly meaningful. 
   
Human relationships, because of sin, will always experience breakdown and dysfunction. The natural way of the world is toward entropy… And that means that it takes work to build good and healthy things. As we end our time of prayer today, ask yourself how much energy, you are putting into the most important relationships in your life. Are you doing the kind of work that represents the importance of that relationship if you feel like there is a gap in your practical investment in relationships in your life, take time today to pray and ask for wise counsel about how you can do good work to build good and healthy relationships.