Greetings and felicitous salutations on this third day of the week! We would like to welcome you to a blog unlike any blog on the internetosphere, Tuesday's Musical Notes! It is unique in that it is the only blog in existence to combine the best in musical interludes with a balance of microscopic introspection.
Tuesday is here and there is no time to waste! Expediency is the mantra today! Open eyes, ears, and minds are a necessity as we explore the potential for possibilities never postulated! Why we could even find ourselves in a realm where it's normal to have a little talk with the animals...
Written by Leslie Bricusse ("Goldfinger", "You Only Live Twice") and recorded in 1967 by Rex Harrison (The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, My Fair Lady), for the movie Dr. Dolittle, "Talk to the Animals" won an Oscar for "Best Song" at the 40th Academy Awards. It also garnered enough attention to be nominated, but not included, for the American Film Institute's AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs. It was covered by the likes of teen heartthrob Bobby Darin, Bing Crosby, Herb Alpert, The Chipmunks, Roger Moore on The Muppet Show, and surprisingly, Sammy Davis Jr. who had been fired from the movie as Rex Harrison thought the "song and dance man" was wrong for the role of Bumpo, a character who never made it to the final cut of the movie.
Dr. Dolittle was not a commercial (it lost over $11 million) or critical success despite its showing at the Oscars in 1968. Proving that the "Academy" can be persuaded, the movie's distributor, 20th Century Fox, provided 16 nights of free screenings of the film which included dinner and champagne. Consequentially Dr. Dolittle was nominated in 9 categories and won 2, (Best Song, Best Special Visual Effects) thus bolstering the movie's appeal. One imagines that if you attended more than one of the screenings, there is the possibility that the champagne might have the "Academy" talking to the animals as well!
While not to the same level as Dr. Dolittle had with the animals he encountered, many folks have animals that they care about. Do you have a pet? Do you speak to them? There is intrinsic communication that occurs between pets and their owners. Dogs and cats especially find their way into our hearts and seem to understand what we say to them. Even the cattle on the farm where we lived understood our voices when it was time to eat and followed our direction when we were transitioning pastures or trying to keep them out of the corn patch. But have you ever heard an understandable voice come from one of those domesticated critters? I sure haven't.
The Bible has several "animal" stories scattered throughout its pages. In the Genesis account of creation, Adam provided the names of all of the animals that God had created. It would seem that communication of some form to those animals would be necessary if there were to be an understanding between Adam and the rest of God's animal creation. That communication, while eluded to early on, comes into its zenith in chapter 3. We've covered that scene well in Tuesday's Musical Notes - "Don't Know What You Got ('Til It's Gone) (Cinderella). Noticeably, the serpent/snake spoke to Eve and later God spoke to the creature to curse him. So at least in this instance, having a coherent conversation with animals actually occurred in the Bible.
Later in Genesis, Noah would have by necessity had a close interaction if not direct communication with all of the animal kingdom as they sailed together on the good ship "Saved by God". (Genesis 7 New American Standard Bible/The Amplified Bible/King James Version of the Bible parallel)
While the birth narratives of Jesus do not explicitly name animals being present, one would imagine that the grotto where Jesus was born had its share of domesticated critters as the Bible tells us that the Baby was laid in a manger, a feeding trough of the time. (The Gospel of Jesus according to the physician Luke, Chapter 2, verses 1-20 - NASB/AMP/KJV) With these and other mentions of our grunting, squeaking, and squawking friends, one would imagine that God has a role for them to play in His redemptive story.
As we journey through the great stories of the Bible we now come to one of the most often told stories in children's Sunday School, the story of Balaam and his donkey.
While the donkey talking so Balaam can understand him tends to be the "vocal" point (sorry, couldn't resist) of this story, the takeaway is much larger than one's ability to walk with the animals, talk with the animals...and them talk back!
Israel is on the precipice of receiving the Promised Land from God. One of the rulers of the area, Balak, is having none of it. He sends his minions to hire a diviner/prophet of the land of Beor (Peor) named Balaam to curse the Israelites. He hoped that these curses would lead to Israeli impotence in the process of invading the land. After the henchmen's arrival, Balaam (who seems to worship whatever god is most expedient at the time) seeks out guidance from the One True God who initially tells of Israel's blessed status and denies Balaam the opportunity to go to Balak. The lackeys report back to Balak that Balaam is not coming causing Balak to restart the process. This time God instructs Balaam to accompany the party sent by Balak, but Balaam is restricted to only say what God tells him to say.
We aren't given the specifics, but somehow Balaam makes God angry as he departs for his rendezvous with Balak. God determines to destroy him by posting "the angel of the Lord" in his pathway. The donkey Balaam is riding balks as it sees the angel that has been hidden from Balaam's vision and begins to turn down a differing pathway. Balaam guides the donkey back to the path via beating and the angel blocks this passage as well. The donkey is so intimidated that it avoids the angel by getting as close as possible to a vineyard wall and in the process crushes Balaam's foot. The angel once again repositions, this time to a place where there is no viable passageway. Balaam is furious and lays into the poor donkey with the most savage punishment thus far. The Bible then says that "the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey". In his furor, it seems that Balaam doesn't have the rationale to realize he is talking to the donkey he has ridden his entire life and the donkey is talking back. Reality returns once God opens Balaam's eyes and he sees the angel. The angel explains that because of Balaam's reckless and contrary ways, he would be dead now if it wasn't for his trusty donkey.
We don't hear from the donkey again, but one imagines if we did that he would have an interesting story to tell. If God had opened his mouth again, perhaps the donkey would tell about how Balaam didn't curse Israel like Balak had desired, instead, Balaam sent blessings on the nation of Israel as God desired. In fact, Balaam blessed Israel 3 times. Each blessing came from a differing physical location overlooking the new nation. Balak was incensed and demanded Balaam leave before he blessed them anymore. But Balaam's work was not complete. He continued the positive discourse a portion of which includes a prophecy of Jesus. That's right, this pagan diviner, prophesied that a "scepter would rise out of Israel" (Numbers 24:15-19 - NASB/AMP/KJV) Thus bringing the ultimate blessing on the new nation.
As an aside, we mentioned the Balaam worshiped whatever god might be to his advantage. We think it is interesting to note that the Bible never denies the existence of other gods. It does however exclaim with each passage the preeminence of the One True God, the God of Israel.
If God opened the mouth of Balaam's donkey, he would continue to tell of Balaam's deceit and trickery as Balaam tried to salvage his reputation and probably some of the remunerations of this "blessing" event. Balaam would later tell enemy nations how Israel could be tricked into apostasy by being enticed into sexual encounters with the native residents. This seems to work as the Israelites commit the heresy of Baal worship in Numbers 31. More Israelites are killed in the discipline that follows. God instructs the Israelites to destroy the land of Midian for their part in bringing Israel into the idolatry experienced at Peor. Because of his culpability in the process, Balaam is caught up in the wave of retribution and is subsequently killed alongside the Midianites.
Balaam is a character that is not held in high regard in the New Testament as well. 2 Peter 2 - NASB/AMP/KJV reviews his story as an example of a false prophet. Balaam is listed among other incorrigible folks in Jude - NASB/AMP/KJV. Finally, Balaam is referenced as one who provides stumbling blocks to God's people, in the letter to the church at Pergamum in Revelation of Jesus Christ, chapter 2, verses 12-17 - NASB/AMP/KJV.
This pagan prophet was used by God to bless the people of Israel but that did not make him a good man. The things he did could not redeem who he was. Sadly, Balaam was much like we are. When faced with our own moments of the miraculous, we are so blinded by wanting to do things our way that we don't see the angel that is right in front of us, nor do we realize who or what may be talking, because we aren't listening...
Just like Balaam, the good things we do cannot redeem who we are. There is hope, however for our selfishness. God desires to speak to us and He doesn't need animals to do it. He's already spoken volumes ON a cross and IN an empty tomb. He wants to speak this Gospel, salvific message into your life today if you will let Him.
God is waiting in your pathway. Open your eyes to see Him. Open your mind to accept His forgiveness. Open your heart to feel His presence. Open your life to the change that only He can give. That is the true miracle...a changed life.
Don't wait for a grunt, or squeak, or squawk from an animal, He waits to talk to you!!!
'Til Tuesday,
Serving HIM by serving You,
randy
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