Ps 32:8-9
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. BE NOT LIKE THE HORSE OR A MULE, WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING, OR IT WILL NOT STAY NEAR YOU.
I’ve heard one too many sermons where this was taken out of context or improperly used… Sometimes it is easy to read something and make a snap judgement - at first glance it makes it seem like RESTRAINT/SUBMISSION/CONTROL is the name of the game with aggressive undertones. But I’d like to take a swing at enlightening a less rigid perspective. Besides; IF you haven ridden a horse (which I’m guessing a lot of pulpit preachers haven’t) you know that wrestling a thousand pound prey animal is the LAST thing we aim to do.
The bit is an extension of our communication with horses. It helps relay the message we want our horse to do (connect, direct, guide) to his mind from our heart/seat of intentions. It is not so much the “bit” that makes the difference, but the application of its use. For instance, you can get a horse to stop with a bike chain in his mouth, a spade laid on his palette, or a simple snaffle draped over his tongue. However, the emotion that you provoke in that horse may swing with in the range of FEAR to FRIENDLY FEEL. A bike chain will probably scare the horse (and hurt), the spade will give you a refined frame, and the snaffle - a friendly feel. Not all bits are created equal.
But it’s not just about the bits…it’s about the hands offering the connection to the tool communicating from your seat of intention. If you have hands that are rash, super grabby, clingy and angry (like a monkey trying to squeeze a banana with out peeling it first), NO BIT in the world can make hands offer a feel that is friendly, direct, and connected if they do not have the wisdom to do so. Hands that are connected to the horse in any way must first be trained, so that they have the wisdom to guide from out seat of intention.
So what is the point here? A little BIT of wisdom goes a LONG way.
Do we need our horse’s to listen to us so they don’t take off into oblivion at the first flap of a predatory plastic plastic bag or ominous depth of a puddle? Of course! A bit would definitely help us direct that horse to a better state of mind, so he could come to his senses and carry on (hopefully with us still aboard). Could a bit offer some assistance (like a foreign language translator) to sharpen up his shape to move soundly while doing high level athletic maneuvers? Definitely. A bit can be a make or break tool in many situation on horse back.
But what about the ‘stay near you’ part of verse 9? Are you saying that in order to have a horse come close to you, and stay in the vicinity of you that he needs to be wearing a bit…or else?! What about horses that can ride around bridle-less or even perform at liberty? Are they the exception? A little bit of food for thought…
The wisdom the God’s words offer us is less about RESTRAINT/SUBMISSION/CONTROL in an aggressive context, and more about TRANSFORMATION, PEACE and PARTNERSHIP in the journey.
A bit is a tool that helps clearly communicate, but it doesn’t house the wisdom itself, it isn’t an electronic chip programmed to do commands. The hands that hold are the hands that teach. If wisdom has been planted well, it will have a chance to root in the student, where wisdom because not only what they wear but how they respond. Wisdom invites a cultivated response , but fear instigates a manipulated reaction. If we teach well by guiding with wisdom and a friendly feel our result will lend itself to TRANSFORMATION, PEACE AND PARTNERSHIP. If we lash out in fear it becomes a wrestling match of RESTRAINT/SUBMISSION/CONTROL.
The more we are guided in wisdom the less we will have to use our reins, the more the horse will use his brain and not rely on the bit. Likewise, the more we rely on God’s wisdom to become rooted in our hearts, we will feel the freedom in His partnership, and trusting Him to guide us. Things are always more clear when we rely on communicating with God in love, instead of wrestling with fear in a lie.
So the next time you hear a poor rendition of this verse relating to horses and it grinds your gears…take heart! The same friendly feel, smooth response you’ve educated your horse to offer you the first time you ask, is what God is trying to instill in inside of you! Even if you feel like times in your life He’s had to bring out the bike chain on you, if you keep trying your best to teachable you may just refine your way down to a beautiful bridle less response.
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