“Holding My Breath”– A Bad Strategy

At times children can be pretty good at manipulating their parents. “I’m going to hold my breath until you give me another Oreo cookie…. if you don’t get me a new iPhone for my birthday, I’m going to run away.”

Sometimes manipulation works and sometimes it doesn’t. A wise parent is able to figure out the proper response. I remember the story of a father responding to the kids constant nagging…  “I want ice cream, I want ice cream…. for breakfast, lunch, and dinner”. He gave them what they wanted and their joy vanished after 24 hours of just ice cream…. my tummy hurts. Remember the story of the father giving his son the cigar he was sneaking…. “okay, you can have the cigar…. inhale and get a good puff; as junior turns green , he decides that smoking that cigar was a bad idea.” There’s a consequence to getting our way…. sometimes good, sometimes not good.

You would hope that as we mature we would stop trying to manipulate our parents, our spouse, our boss or even our God. Well, todays reading from the book of Samuel tells the story of the Israelites trying to manipulate God, insisting on their own way, whining about not having a king like all the other nations. How did that work out? 

“All the elders of Israel came in a body to Samuel at Ramah and said to him, now that you are old, and your sons do not follow your example, appoint a king

over us, as other nations have, to judge us.” Samuel was displeased when they asked for a king to judge them.  God said “Grant the people’s every request. It is  not you they reject, they are rejecting me as their king.” Samuel delivered the message of the Lord  telling them the price they will have to pay….. you will complain against the king whom you have chosen, but on that day the Lord will not answer you.” The people, however, refused to listen to Samuel’s warning and said, “Not so! There must be a king over us. We too must be like other nations, with a king to rule us and to lead us in warfare and fight our battles.”

When Samuel had listened to all the people had to say, he repeated it to the Lord, who then said to him, Grant their request and appoint a king to rule them.” (1 Samuel: 8:4-7, 10-22)

We learn that getting our own way when it’s not God’s way, does not work out well. The Israelites went from being a powerful nation living in a land flowing with milk and honey to being exiled to Babylon as slaves. When God is our king, things work out well; when we are on the throne, disaster soon follows. 

Let’s be careful of what we ask for and even insist on. Let’s be careful not to pout when God doesn’t answer MY prayers in MY way. Holding my breath until God does what I want is a bad strategy. On the other hand when we submit ourselves to the Lord and his ways, all will be well. God’s will for us is for our best. He loves us perfectly and only wants the very best for us. And that is very good news.