Grasshopper thinking
Numbers 13: Alongside them we felt like grasshoppers. And they looked down on us as if we were grasshoppers.
I’d love to come up with some unique, interesting way to talk about this famous statement, but, alas, I think preachers across the centuries have pretty much nailed it. In preparation for invading the Promised Land twelve explorers are sent to check out the area. They find a rich, bountiful land and, to the dismay of most of them, they also find physically imposing warriors. All their faith in God and his promises concerning this land dissipates. The most famous line of the report of the majority is that, compared to those big guys they feel like grasshoppers. Through the centuries since, preachers like me used this passage to remind our listeners that if we think of ourselves as grasshoppers others will do the same. Grasshopper thinking stops us from even attempting great things by defeating us before we ever begin. It’s a self-fulfilling and God displeasing prophecy. When God gives me his plan, my job is not to evaluate the wisdom of that plan. Instead, I’m to trust him and obey in the assurance that God will provide everything necessary for it to succeed. To do otherwise is to see myself as a grasshopper – what Zig Ziggler called, “Stinkin’ thinkin’.”
Take Away: If we think of ourselves as grasshoppers we’ll perform like grasshoppers and others will tend to see us that way too.