> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.chrisknightwrites.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Before You Blame the Donkey
- URL: https://www.chrisknightwrites.com/before-you-blame-the-donkey/
- Published: 2026-09-15T10:50:28.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-15T10:50:28.000Z
- Author: Chris Knight
- Tags: Daily Devotionals, Book of Numbers

Numbers 22:27-28

Balaam was determined to go somewhere God was not particularly interested in him going. I have discovered that once I decide what I want, I can become remarkably gifted at finding spiritual reasons God should agree with me. We call it “seeking God’s will,” but sometimes it looks suspiciously like asking God to approve a decision we already made.

In Numbers 22, Balaam saddled his donkey and headed down the road. God sent an angel to stand in his way. Balaam could not see the angel, but his donkey could. The donkey turned off the road. Balaam hit her. She pressed against a wall. Balaam hit her again. Finally, she simply laid down underneath him.

At this point Balaam was furious with the donkey, which is interesting because the donkey was the only one in the story demonstrating spiritual discernment. Then God opened the donkey’s mouth. 

*“When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it lay down under Balaam. In a fit of rage Balaam beat the animal again with his staff. Then the Lord gave the donkey the ability to speak”* (Numbers 22:27–28, NLT).

Balaam started arguing with her. Personally, if an animal begins speaking to me in complete sentences, I would like to think my first response would not be debate. I am probably getting off the donkey.

Eventually God opened Balaam’s eyes and he saw the angel standing in the road with a drawn sword. Suddenly the frustrating donkey looked a lot more like God’s mercy. What Balaam thought was an obstacle was actually God protecting him. That is the part worth sitting with. **Sometimes we become so committed to our plans that every closed door feels like opposition.** The delay frustrates us. The person who questions us annoys us. The plan keeps falling apart, so we push harder. But what if God is trying to get our attention?

**Not every obstacle is God saying no**. Instead of immediately fighting whatever stands in our way, perhaps we should pray, “Lord, is there something here You want me to see?”

God loved Balaam enough to block the road and if necessary, He was willing to use a donkey to get the message across. **May we stay humble enough that He does not have to.**