In Judges 8, verses 1 – 3, the men of the tribe of Ephraim were angry that Gideon didn’t invite them personally to fight against the Midianites.
The Bible says that these men “did chide with him sharply.” They were ticked. Furious. And they were letting him have it.
The thing is, though, when your country is going to war, you shouldn’t have to be invited to participate. You just show up. You don’t wait to be asked. You don’t have to be wined and dined. You do the right thing and show up for your people.
As we look at the tribe of Ephraim in the Bible, we learn that they are proud, jealous and self centered. It’s all about Ephraim all the time. I mean, what was Gideon thinking to not stop and take time to personally invite them to fight? Not only that, but of the 32,000 that were initially amassed, all but 300 were sent home. I imagine most of the men of Ephraim would have left too.
So how does Gideon handle their attitude?
He asks them, how they could ever compare what he has done to what they have done. He compliments them. He brags on them. He makes them feel good about themselves. He tells them that nothing he has ever done can compare to what they have done.
The result? “Then their anger was abated toward him.”
They backed off. Gideon told them exactly what they needed to hear to cool them down and keep them on his side.
He was brilliant.
Lessons:
1. Wise is the individual who doesn’t have to always be right.
2. Wise is the individual who can let someone be wrong and not throw it in their face.
3. Wise is the individual that doesn’t have to set everyone straight.
4. Wise is the individual that can humble himself in order to protect the relationship.
5. By doing these things, we are not weak. We are smart.
Would you rather be right or smart?
Joel Stiff's Adventure 