Focus Chapters:
- Numbers 22-24
Standout Verse(s):
Numbers 22:22-27, 22:31-34 NLT
But God was angry that Balaam was going, so he sent the angel of the Lord to stand in the road to block his way.
As Balaam and two servants were riding along, Balaam’s donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand. The donkey bolted off the road into a field, but Balaam beat it and turned it back onto the road. Then the angel of the Lord stood at a place where the road narrowed between two vineyard walls. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it tried to squeeze by and crushed Balaam’s foot against the wall. So Balaam beat the donkey again. Then the angel of the Lord moved farther down the road and stood in a place too narrow for the donkey to get by at all. This time when the donkey saw the angel, it lay down under Balaam. In a fit of rage Balaam beat the animal again with his staff.
Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the roadway with a drawn sword in his hand. Balaam bowed his head and fell face down on the ground before him.
“Why did you beat your donkey those three times?” the angel of the Lord demanded. “Look, I have come to block your way because you are stubbornly resisting me. Three times the donkey saw me and shied away; otherwise, I would certainly have killed you by now and spared the donkey.”
Then Balaam confessed to the angel of the Lord, “I have sinned. I didn’t realize you were standing in the road to block my way. I will return home if you are against my going.”
Observation (s):
- The angel of the Lord blocked Balaam’s path thrice. However, he was so focused on his intents that he failed to see the divine intervention or closely question his donkey’s strange behavior.
As Balaam and two servants were riding along, Balaam’s donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand. The donkey bolted off the road into a field, but Balaam beat it and turned it back onto the road.Then the angel of the Lord stood at a place where the road narrowed between two vineyard walls.When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it tried to squeeze by and crushed Balaam’s foot against the wall. So Balaam beat the donkey again. Then the angel of the Lord moved farther down the road and stood in a place too narrow for the donkey to get by at all.This time when the donkey saw the angel, it lay down under Balaam. In a fit of rage Balaam beat the animal again with his staff.
Application:
The angel blocked Balaam’s path three times. At the first blockage, the donkey ran off the road into a field. At the second blockade, the donkey tries to squeeze pass the angel by going too close to a wall, crushing Balaam’s foot. At the third try, the donkey gave up and drew to a halt. From Balaam’s perspective, the angel’s intervention and the donkey’s response resulted in:
- A totally unplanned detour that took him from the target he had his sights set on.
- A slight shift in his charted journey path that resulted in an injured foot.
- A complete halt of his plans and journey.
All these results were involuntary, from Balaam’s perspective. Despite all of these unplanned circumstances, he still persisted without checking with God to see what was happening and check their alignment.
Don’t be so focused on your targets that you forget to check if your intent still aligns with God’s. Without God in the midst, you are certain to experience blockades. Don’t be blinded by your intent that you overlook the godly interventions behind the blockades. Stop. Consult God. Act.
