Proverbs 29:25

Proverbs 29:25
The fear of human opinion disables; trusting in God protects you from that. (The Message)

Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the Lord means safety. (New Living Translation) 

To fear anyone will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is kept safe. (Today's New International Version)
 
When I read Proverbs 29 on May 29th, this verse jumped out at me. I wanted to jump onto my keyboard and share it but felt that I should ruminate on it a bit...so I did...
For over 2 decades (without letting you know how old I am :)), I have held this verse dear to my heart. I can't say I have made all the right decisions in life but I know that I have refused to fear what man thinks and that has given me the liberty and confidence to obey God and do what I feel and know is the right thing to do. In fact, I almost don't have a problem saying "no" - I refuse to be ensnared by people who try to make me do what they want even if it isn't what I want to do or even worse, it isn't what God wants me to do.


There is too much sentimental blackmail and manipulation around and women are an easy "prey". As women, we should learn and know how to: Say "no" without feeling guilty - and that should be within reason. Maybe we'll talk about that some more at a later time but suffice it to say that when we can't or don's say "no" as approriate, we'll be like the man in this story the Holy Spirit reminded me of over the weekend. The man lost a lot just because people's opinions mattered to him...it may be familar to some of us from over 2 decades ago;)

The Man, the Boy, and the Donkey by Æsop*

A man and his son were once going with their donkey to market. As they were walking along by his side a countryman passed them and said, "You fools, what is a donkey for but to ride upon?" So the man put the boy on the donkey, and they went on their way.
 But soon they passed a group of men, one of whom said, "See that lazy youngster, he lets his father walk while he rides." So the man ordered his boy to get off, and got on himself. But they hadn't gone far when they passed two women, one of whom said to the other, "Shame on that lazy lout to let his poor little son trudge along."

Well, the man didn't know what to do, but at last he took his boy up before him on the donkey. By this time they had come to the town, and the passers-by began to jeer and point at them. The man stopped and asked what they were scoffing at.

The men said, "Aren't you ashamed of yourself for overloading that poor donkey of yours -- you and your hulking son?"

The man and boy got off and tried to think what to do. They thought and they thought, until at last they cut down a pole, tied the donkey's feet to it, and raised the pole and the donkey to their shoulders. They went along amid the laughter of all who met them until they came to a bridge, when the donkey, getting one of his feet loose, kicked out and caused the boy to drop his end of the pole. In the struggle the donkey fell over the bridge, and his forefeet being tied together, he was drowned.

Moral of the story: Try to please everyone, and you will please no one.

Overriding moral: Seek & obtain favour with God rather than with man...man's favour follows closely after God's favour - it did in Jesus' & Samuel's lives - see Ps 5;12; Prov 12:2; Luke 2:52, 1 Sam 2:26.


Source:
*http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/type1215.html#aesop (their source: Joseph Jacobs, The Fables of Æsop (London: Macmillan and Company, 1902), no. 63, pp. 149-51).