by Warren Baldwin

A wealthy man decided to go on a safari in Africa. He took his faithful pet dog along for company. One day the dog starts chasing butterflies, and before long he discovers he is lost. So wandering about he notices a leopard rushing in his direction with the obvious intention of having lunch.

The dog thinks, "Boy, I'm in deep trouble now." Then he noticed some bones on the ground close by, and immediately settled down to chew on the bones with his back to the approaching cat.

Just as the leopard is about to leap, the dog exclaims loudly, "Man, that was one delicious leopard. I wonder if there are any more around here?" Hearing this the leopard halts his attack in mid stride, as a look of terror comes over him, and slinks away into the trees.

"Whew," says the leopard, "That was close. That dog nearly had me."

Meanwhile, a monkey who had been watching the whole scene from a nearby tree, figures he can put this knowledge to good use and trade it for protection from the leopard.

So off he goes. But the dog saw him heading after the leopard with great speed, and figured that something must be up. The monkey soon catches up with the leopard, spills the beans and strikes a deal for himself with the leopard.

The leopard is furious at being made a fool of and says, "Here monkey, hop on my back and see what's going to happen to that conniving canine."

Now the dog sees the leopard coming with the monkey on his back, and thinks, "What am I going to do now?" But instead of running, the dog sits down with his back to his attackers pretending he hasn't seen them yet.

Just when they get close enough to hear, the dog says, "Where's that monkey. I can never trust him. I sent him off half an hour ago to bring me another leopard, and he's still not back!!"

I hope you recognize in this story something more than just a dumb joke. This parable, or fable, points to a number of human attitudes and behaviors that tend to get us in trouble.

Notice the monkey. He is quiet. He sits on the sidelines and watches the other players. He mulls over in his mind how he can control these other players.

Lies? Deceptions? Or, tell the truth, but do it in such a way that you can gain advantage over another?

Such behavior is more than dishonorable or reprehensible. It is downright ungodly. Paul gives warning in the Bible against those who go about from house to house, spreading gossip and mischief. He calls them busybodies. He isn't complimentary of their behavior. In fact, he says that such people are following the devil (1 Tim. 5:13-15).

Be careful how you go monkeying around in someone else's life. You can very easily undermine trust, hurt people, and permanently damage relationships. Jesus counsels SERVING others rather than CONTROLLING them.

Serving is hard work, but it sure keeps the monkey off your back. And may keep you from being the monkey on someone else's.

I'm convinced that one of the greatest threats to harmony in the church today has to do with the misuse of the tongue. Warren has made an excellent point. Untold harm occurs when we spread gossip against our brethren. "For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned" (Matthew 12:37).

New Additions