Avoiding the Fall
Have you ever heard the story of the frog?
Once upon a time, there was a frog who wanted to fly. Not content to merely hop around for the rest of his life, he thought long and hard, and he thought hard and long. Finally, he devised a plan that, in all estimations, would take him to the sky.
His plan, however, involved the help of a couple of his friends; friends who just happened to be feathered.
And here is what they did.
They found a short stick and then each took their place: a bird on each end and the frog in the middle. As the wanna-be-flier grabbed hold of the stick with his mouth, the birds gently picked it up with their feet and headed skyward.
And you know what?
It worked.
The frog was flying,
soaring high above other earth dwelling creatures,
gazing down on them in sheer delight.
As you can imagine, it wasn’t long before this unusual sight caught the attention of the entire neighborhood. Soon, everyone was looking up, pointing at the frog and exclaiming, “Ooooooooooooooo” and “Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah”.
“Wow! Look at Freddy! He’s flying. He’s really flying. Wow! Who would of thought a frog could fly?”
Comment after comment, exclamation after exclamation, slowly drifted upward. And, as you can imagine, the frog was feeling mighty good about his accomplishment.
“What a great idea! I wonder who thought up this amazing plan.”
“Yeah. Who could have been wise enough to figure out a way to get a frog to fly?”
As the search for the man-behind-the-plan intensified, the frog swelled with pride.
“I know! I know! It must have been the birds,” someone said. “After all, they are masters of the sky. I bet they are the ones who came up with this brilliant idea!”
“Yes! You’re probably right,” agreed another.
“Yay for the birds! Hip Hip Hooray!”
And with that, everyone applauded the wisdom of these two birds.
With his mouth wrapped tightly around the stick, the frog gazed down upon this celebration. As shouts of acclamation for his feather friends reached his ears, all the joy he first felt, suddenly disappeared.
It wasn’t the birds idea, he thought to himself, This was MY idea. I’M the one who thought of this great plan. I’M the master mind behind this amazing feat.
Finally someone yelled up at the trio. “Tell us. We just have to know. Who thought up this great idea?”
Within seconds, the answer came.
“I d
i
i
i
i
i
i
i
i
d” the frog exclaimed,
all the way to the ground.
First pride, then the crash—
the bigger the ego, the harder the fall. ~ Proverbs 16:18, The Message
And, just in case we missed this when we were studying chapter 16 of Proverbs, here is it again in our chapter for today:
Pride first, then the crash,
but humility is precursor to honor. ~ Proverbs 18:12, The Message
Pride.
It swells up in us all from time to time, and each time it’s acted upon, the results are the same.
D O W N
D o w n
down
we go……..
It happened to Lucifer and 1/3 of his angels.
It happened to Haman, who was hung on the gallows built with Mordecai in mind.
It happened to king after king.
Remember King Saul and King Nebuchadnezzar?
It happened and it still happens.
We don’t have to look any farther than our own lives to see this principle is truth.
Do you think it is simply a coincidence that smack dab in the middle of the word pride is the letter “I”?
Sadly, the frog learned his lesson…the hard way.
How will your story end?
How will mine?
Wisdom has spoken.
May we heed her counsel and soar on the wings of God’s Spirit.
May He be the wind beneath our wings.
When others see our success,
when words of praise ascend to our ears,
may we give honor where honor is due.
May our lips always declare that it is God,
and only God,
who deserves the praise.~
~Stacy
This post is taken from my current Patreon series entitled, The Pursuit of Godly Wisdom – a month long look at Proverbs. If you aren’t yet a Patreon patron, there is still time for you to enjoy this January series in its entirety. As a monthly patron of Heartprints of God, you will receive a daily “wisdom” post right in your inbox. The Pursuit of Godly Wisdom series based on the book of Proverbs is content that will only be available through Patreon as a thank you for your partnership and support. For just $7 a month, you will have access to this series as well as full access to all of my Patreon posts. Your partnership will help make it possible for me to continue sitting at my keyboard, writing about our God, and answering God’s call to ministry. By you blessing me and me blessing you, God can then use us together to bless the world!
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