Dealing With A Smart Donkey

One day Balaam was on his way to take care of some business he thought was important. As he made his way there, the donkey he was riding suddenly stopped. Balaam nudged him onward, but the donkey wouldn't move. He kicked him harder and the donkey still wouldn't budge. Finally Balaam tore into the donkey, showing him no mercy.

It was at that point that the donkey turned around and spoke to him, asking "What's your problem, man? Have I ever acted this way before? Get a clue. There's a reason this is happening." Okay, maybe he didn't say those exact words, but it was something like that.

As I recently read this story again, it made me think of my own frustrations with "smart donkeys" (if you use the King James Version, it reads differently), I sometimes encounter in my own life. Sometimes I find myself growing impatient with people's behavior in certain situations - the things they might say or do or not do.

Recently I had an experience where somebody didn't do something that I thought they were supposed to do. I felt frustrated at first, then felt myself becoming agitated about their failure to do what I thought needed to be done. Then I read the story of Balaam again.

God can use the stubborness or even the irresponsibility of other people to make sure we stay on the right path. If Balaam had been allowed to go on with his plan, he would have died in the process. God used a donkey to stop him.

So the next time you have to deal with a "smart donkey" who won't do what they're supposed to do, don't be so quick to judge. It may be that God is using their action to ensure that you don't do what you aren't supposed to do and that instead you walk the path He has planned for you. "Smart donkeys" can be frustrating, but even they are tools in the hands of our Sovereign Lord.