The Bullies of Life

Numbers 23:11
“Then Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies, but behold, you have actually blessed them!” 

     Moab’s king, Balak, was seeking to have Israel cursed. He hired, Balaam, the prophet, to do that. Balak had chosen the setting and set up the prepared the event. When the time came, what came from Balaam’s mouth was a blessing for Israel. 
     This reminds me of when Satan went before God’s throne. The topic became God’s servant, Job. Satan was seeking permission to destroy Him. Satan seeks to destroy all of mankind. His hatred for people stems from the high value God places on people. He loves them. Thus people become the target for the devil and his demons. 
     We also have difficulties with human relationships. Some are innocent disagreements among good people. However, we can encounter people who dislike us and seek to discredit us. We see this with the apostles in the book of Acts. Sometimes it was the religious leaders, other times it was business people (idol maker) whose profits were hurt by the spread of the gospel (2 Timothy 4:14). 
     David also had enemies. Saul spent many years chasing David throughout the countryside. He spent government resources and manpower in pursuit of him. Many of the psalms include his grief. One reference is in Psalm 23:5, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies”. 
     We also have people who we come in contact with that bring us grief. When young, they may have been bullies. They produce all sorts of anxiety within us. What are we to do? We may feel things are out of control and our reputation is being damaged. If there are avenues to take to resolve the issue, we should. Sometimes we do our best and we have to trust that God will handle it. Proverbs 26:4 says, “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, Or you will also be like him.” Involving ourselves in their game can make it worse. Follow the proper channels and trust God with the outcome. Sometimes ignoring it is the right method. 
     What’s our attitude to be? God wants us to trust Him. 1 Peter 5:7 says to cast your cares upon Him, for He cares for you. This may still feel bad. That’s where faith comes in. If we have done what we could and committed it to Him, then faith trusts that He will work it out. Today’s passage has an enemy king attempting to curse God’s people. What came out was a blessing. This story was given to us as encouragement. Some may seek to belittle us. Yet, as we walk honorably with God, then He will take care of us. He will turn things into blessings. God eventually enthroned king David and Saul was removed from power. It took time. David spent years with this enemy. We need to trust that God will redeem the situation. 
     Lord, thank You that You love us and will take the ashes of our lives and turn them into good things.