Read
Then the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and it said to Balaam, “What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?”
Numbers 22:28
Reflect
Have you ever been so stubborn that something or someone had to make you look utterly foolish to get your attention?
It’s happened to most of us. Sadly, by the time we figure out that we’re wrong, we’ve usually done something that we regret entirely and that reveals how stupid we can be. Like the time I absolutely had to have a computer, way back in the Stone Age of the early 1980s. I had a little Christmas money, and I went to the toy store (yes, the toy store) to buy the Coleco Adam. This was a machine made by the people who were best known for the mass-produced Cabbage Patch dolls. Clearly, it wasn’t a good purchase.
But I had to have it. No one could talk me out of it. And it wasn’t until I tried saving files onto a cassette tape that I figured out just what a stupid move I’d made. It cost me a couple hundred dollars that I could have saved for something worthwhile. Honestly, it was a piece of junk that never worked.
Today’s scripture is about a guy named Balaam who was stubborn enough that it took a talking donkey to get his attention. And this was thousands of years before Eddie Murphy did that in Shrek. Balaam goes where God does not want him to go, and he places an angel on the road to block his path. The donkey could see God’s messenger, but Balaam could not, so he beat his donkey three times to keep it moving. Only when God allowed the donkey to talk to Balaam were his eyes opened to the situation.
What about you? When you want something, do you trust God or other people who try to give you wise counsel? Or do you just go after what you want to do regardless of what God and others say? Wise people pay attention to what’s going on around them, and they plan their actions accordingly. Godly people pay attention to what God has to say, and they plan their actions according to His will. This week, try lining up your calendar by looking around you and by listening to the Lord. You might be surprised at how much more successful you’ll be when you pursue wisdom and godliness.
Reflection copyright © 2024 Doug DeBolt.
Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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