Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Foreign pastor Chuck Allen here. And on this Friday, I hope we can slow down long enough to really listen, both me and you, because sometimes the voice that you least expect is the one God uses to get your attention.
[00:00:22] That's. That's the story found in the Old Testament, Book of numbers, chapter 22.
[00:00:28] Now, it's different. You may have never even read it. It's an ancient, wild, poetic story.
[00:00:35] There's this prophet for hire, and his name is Balaam. B, A L, A, A M. He's good at what he does. Kings calling when they need blessings or curses, because apparently Balaam's words, well, they work.
[00:00:50] The king of Moab sees the Israelites coming out of Egypt, and dude is totally terrified.
[00:00:57] So he sends for Balaam and he says, come curse these people before they overrun my land. And Balaam says, I can't do anything unless God tells me. By the way, just kind of parenthetically, that's not really a bad idea for us today to just maybe not say anything or do anything unless the Lord affirms it. Just saying, I know I needed to hear that today.
[00:01:21] So I think maybe we've probably all been there before. It's like, what do you think we need to do here? I mean, you'd think him saying, I can't do anything unless God tells me, you'd settle it, right? But then money enters the picture. Pressure, promise, pride, all these things, just like our life. And Balaam asks God again, hoping for a different answer.
[00:01:47] Ever done that when you know what's right, when you're already, like, been told, but you just keep asking, hoping God will change his mind to match yours?
[00:01:58] So Balaam saddles up his donkey to go anyway. And this is where it gets wild and weird. The donkey sees something that Balaam cannot see.
[00:02:08] The angel of the Lord stands in the road, sword drawn, and the donkey stops.
[00:02:15] Now, this is where it gets weird. Balaam can't see it, so he beats the donkey. The animal moves a little, then he stops again. Balaam beats him again. He's furious, he's offended. And then God literally opens the donkey's mouth. And the donkey says, according to scripture, what have I done to you to deserve your beating me three times?
[00:02:40] And somehow Balaam answers like, it's normal to have a conversation with a donkey. He argues with a donkey. The story wants you to smile right there, maybe even giggle a little bit, because sometimes when you're so convinced you're right, you can end up arguing with a donkey, blind to what God's doing right in front of your own nose. And then God opens Balaam's eyes and there it is, the angel of the Lord. And Balaam realizes the donkey actually saved his life.
[00:03:14] I love what happens next. Balaam suddenly sees what he was too busy, too successful, and too self assured to notice. The whole time, God was speaking, not through thunder, not through clouds or prophets, but through a humble, beaten, faithful animal trying to protect him.
[00:03:33] Friends, maybe you're on a path that's already showing signs of warning people you love raising questions, your body wearing thin circumstances, pushing back. Maybe what feels like frustration is actually grace in disguise.
[00:03:49] Maybe God's trying to plant himself right in your path, saying, slow down, you can't keep going this way.
[00:04:00] And what if the voice that stops you isn't coming from a preacher, a podcast, or a verse taped to your mirror, but from the person you argue with? Or the kid you keep dismissing? Or your own donkey moment when something that shouldn't be speaking suddenly does?
[00:04:18] The story ends beautifully when Balaam finally listens. What comes out of his mouth isn't a curse, but a blessing. He blesses the very people he was supposed to curse.
[00:04:31] That, my friends, that's called grace. When you stop long enough to hear God, even in strange places, he can take what was meant for harm and turn it into blessing.
[00:04:43] So today, what's the donkey in your road? What's the voice you've been ignoring because it came in a form that you didn't expect?
[00:04:53] God still speaks through the humble and the ordinary all day, every day.
[00:04:58] The question is, are we listening? Can we listen?
[00:05:02] So before you jump into your next meeting, your next message, your next plan, just take a breath and ask the spirit of God to open your eyes to what you're missing, open your ears to who you might be there and who God's using to speak into your life. Maybe, maybe, just maybe, the very thing standing in your way, it's what's saving your very life.
[00:05:29] I'm Chuck Allen. Let's walk with open eyes and open hearts today. Thanks so much for listening in to today's weekday podcast and have a great weekend. Bye now.
