Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
"Now stay here tonight as the others did, and I will find out what else the Lord will tell me." That night God came to Balaam and said, "Since these men have come to summon you, go with them, but do only what I tell you."
Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the princes of Moab. But God was very angry when he went, and the angel of the Lord stood in the road to oppose him. Balaam was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand, she turned off the road into a field. Balaam beat her to get her back on the road.
Then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path between two vineyards, with walls on both sides. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she pressed close to the wall, crushing Balaam's foot against it. So he beat her again.
Then the angel of the Lord moved on ahead and stood in a narrow place where there was no room to turn, either to the right or to the left. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam, and he was angry and beat her with his staff.
Then the Lord opened the donkey's mouth, and she said to Balaam, "What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?" Balaam answered the donkey, "You have made a fool of me! If I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now." The donkey said to Balaam, "Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?" "No," he said.
Then the Lord opened Balaam's eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown. The angel of the Lord asked him, "Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me. The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If she had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared her."
Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, "I have sinned. I did not realize you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now if you are displeased, I will go back."
The angel of the Lord said to Balaam, "Go with the men, but speak only what I tell you." So Balaam went with the princes of Balak." Numbers 22:19-35
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As we start this next part of the account of Balaam, we see where he has went before the Lord after vowing to never give into the enticements of Balak and disobey God's command. After once again asking his visitors to remain while he consulted the Lord, Balaam gets the following message:
"Since these men have come to summon you, go with them, but do only what I tell you."
So Balaam "got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the princes of Moab" and we read where "God was very angry when he wen" and sent an "angel of the Lord" who "stood in the road to oppose" Balaam. Why was God angry? Well, He expected Balaam to be completely focused on Him…in tune with Him…ready to do only what He told him. It's obvious in this account that Balaam is far from focused on the Lord as he travels. It's is entirely possible that Balaam was starting to be enticed in his heart by Balak's offer. And since God knows the innermost thoughts and motives within us, He would have seen Balaam's true attitude, despite everything he was saying. Whatever the speculation about why God was angry at Balaam, the bottom line is that He was angry and sent an angel of the Lord to take care of Balaam (note the angel had a drawn sword in hand).
So Balaam is on his trusted donkey, an animal with a reputation for being stupid and yet it was the donkey who saw the Lord before his master. Our passage tells us that "when the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand, she turned off the road into a field". She was trying to save Balaam. And what did she get for her loyalty in trying to protect her master who was so pre-occupied that he couldn't even see the Lord's messenger?
The donkey received a beating from Balaam to get her back on the road.
Question: Have you ever walked into a day blind to what God might want to do with you? Have you ever allowed yourself to be pre-occupied to the point that you couldn't even see the Lord's signs or presence around you? Although you may have never ridden a donkey, maybe you can relate to Balaam.
Well after the donkey was beaten back up onto the road, the angel of the Lord "stood in a narrow path between two vineyards, with walls on both sides". Once again, Balaam was oblivious to what peril was ahead but the donkey wasn't. She saw the danger clearly and took evasive action, pressing "close to the wall" and "crushing Balaam's foot against it". Still unable to perceive that the donkey was acting in his best interest and not just being stubborn, Balaam beat her a second time.
For a third time, the angel of the Lord confronts Baalam and his trusty donkey, this time standing "in a narrow place where there was no room to turn, either to the right or to the left". In other words, there was no escape…no route to evade the angel and His judgment. With no place to move without subjecting his master to the danger, the donkey exercised her only option. Stop dead and "lay down under Balaam", a move that angered him and so he "beat her with his staff".
Question: Have you ever berated or abused someone who was just trying to help you?
Well…it was obvious to the Lord that Balaam just wasn't going to get it without intervention. The donkey was more in tune with the Lord than her master and so the Lord gave the donkey the power to speak. This is what makes this account more than just some folk tale. It wasn't just the donkey talking on her own because donkeys don't speak. But by way of the Lord's miraculous power, the donkey became the instrument by which God got Balaam's attention. We read where the donkey asks Balaam, "What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?" Balaam had to be astonished that this donkey was speaking but he doesn't hesitate to answer his animal's question. Balaam said, "You have made a fool of me! If I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now." To which the donkey replied, "Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?" In other words, the donkey was trying to get Balaam to see that she was acting in a way that was not typical. There must have been a good reason for it. It was those words that got Balaam changing his mindset because he replied, "No". His donkey had been acting out of character he must have thought. Through the power of God, the donkey was able to get Balaam's attention. Now God would enter in.
Question: The Lord sent a sign to Balaam in the way of a suddenly disobedient donkey. The donkey was only symbolic of Balaam himself and his sudden turning from focusing on the Lord and what He wanted Balaam to do. Have you ever missed a sign the Lord was sending you? Has God ever altered circumstances around you so that things weren't as they usually would be…all in an effort to get your attention…all in an attempt to open your eyes?
It was time for Balaam's awakening.
For we read where "the Lord opened Balaam's eyes" allowing him to see the very danger that the donkey had seen prior…"the angel of the Lord standing in the road with his sword drawn".
Balaam's reaction was one of sudden repentance as he "bowed low and fell facedown". Now the angel speaks to Balaam asking, "Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me. The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If she had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared her." Balaam continued his contrite penitence by proclaiming to the angel, "I have sinned. I did not realize you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now if you are displeased, I will go back." In other words, he would do what the Lord wanted him to do. And the Lord instructs Balaam through the angel to "Go with the men, but speak only what I tell you." So Balaam "went with the princes of Balak."
Question: Has the Lord had to get your attention in some way and speak though another to do it? Have you ever found your eyes then suddenly opened, revealing your sinful obstinance and refusal to see what the Lord wanted you to do?
Over 16 years ago, I was not a person that the Lord could have favored much. I was like the countless people out there in the world that thought they were a good person. After all, I didn't drink, smoke or get into trouble. I always tried to help others any time possible. What was wrong with me? Well, I was doing all of this with the focus on myself. I was a good person because I was the one making myself that way. But there was a lot not right with me too.
For I loved to curse and wouldn't hesitate to get angry with someone who treated me wrong. I can't say I was the nicest person either when it came to dealing with others around me, especially if I was in competition with them in some way. Once again, it was all about me.
My attitude and non-Christian lifestyle resulted in bad things happening in my life. I was a reckless driver and received several speeding tickets over a two or three month period. I also had a couple of accidents because of my aggressiveness and lack of focus on the road. Just as I was driving on the highways with reckless abandon, so too was I driving through my life the same way. I ended up divorced after nearly 10 years of marriage and left abandoned and alone. The Lord was trying to get my attention but like Balaam, I was unable to see any of it. The blame for my circumstances fell everywhere else except the one place it should have fallen…on my shoulders.
Well, God didn't send a donkey into my life but He did speak through a beautiful woman I ran into as I was volunteering at a local elementary school. I didn't know her first name when we first met and our conversations were only professional for several months. It was then that we started to talk about other things and I decided to ask her to go to dinner with me. She accepted and it was then I learned her first name…Grace. I would later come to realize that Grace was only her middle name for her first name, to me, would be Amazing.
Grace told me that if we were going to have a relationship, God would have to be first. I told her that was fine with me, all the while dealing with the churning anxiety of not having lived spiritually since I was in high school. The questions were whirling in my mind. Would God accept me back? If so, would I remember any of what I learned when I was younger? I hadn't been to church regularly for around 13 years. How would that work out when I returned? I hadn't read the bible for a long time either. Would I know the Old from the New Testament?
Just as the Lord had opened Balaam's eyes after speaking through the donkey, He had opened my eyes through the words He spoke through my Amazing Grace. He led me to remorse and repentance for my many years of unfaithful living. But He also got me on the right path in life…the narrow path to righteousness.
And so, here I am today…more than 16 years later…working hard for the Lord daily to hopefully be the one He speaks through to another…to be the one who helps another open their eyes and see what they were so that they might repent and become what God wants them to be. I am ever thankful that the Lord has taken one who was definitely lost and turned him into a man who is definitely found.
Question: How about you? Is God sending someone in your life, whether it's a donkey or an Amazing Grace, to get your attention, open your eyes and lead you to Him and a life like no other?
My prayer is that we all would be drawn to the words of a favorite contemporary hymn…a plea for God to open our eyes and see Jesus, the One who saw we were heading down the wrong path into danger just as Balaam was…the One who was willing to be beaten and ultimately killed in order to save us just as the donkey was willing to beaten to save Balaam…all for a people who lived with their eyes blind to the sinfulness that was taking them down the path of destruction. The song is called "Open Our Eyes Lord" and the words are as follows:
Open our eyes, Lord
We want to see Jesus,
To reach out and touch Him,
And say that we love Him.
Open our ears, Lord
And help us to listen.
Open our eyes, Lord
We want to see Jesus.
Yes Lord, we want to see Jesus…now and for all eternity. Open our eyes we pray. Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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