Steps to Avoid Becoming a ‘YES’ Man or Woman

Have you surrounded yourself with people whose vocabulary mostly consists of the word, “Yes“?

• People who tell you what you want to hear instead of what you need to hear.
• People who think exactly like you.
• People who won’t tell you you’re wrong because you can’t handle it.

I was floored by a passage from 2 Chronicles 18 the other day. Here’s the gist:

King Ahab of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah, dressed in their royal robes, were sitting on thrones at the threshing floor near the gate of Samaria. All of Ahab’s prophets were prophesying there in front of them. One of them, Zedekiah son of Kenaanah, made some iron horns and proclaimed, “This is what the Lord says: With these horns you will gore the Arameans to death!” All the other prophets agreed. “Yes,” they said, “go up to Ramoth-gilead and be victorious, for the Lord will give the king victory!”

King Ahab was surrounded by “YES Men,” and ultimately, it led to his demise. Ahab didn’t want to hear God’s words through the prophet Micaiah, he only wanted to hear “YES.” Ahab wanted his plans and purposes to go unimpeded and got cranky at anyone who told him otherwise.

• YES, we think that your strategy is a good idea. (Even though it’s not.)
• YES, we think this expense is a wise one. (Even thought it’s not.)
• YES, we agree that we can accomplish this task in this given time frame. (Even though we know we can’t.)

This is why people who dissent against the “YES Man” mindset get shushed. Or marginalized. Or ostracized. Look at what King Ahab’s advisors told Michaiah, one of God’s messengers:

Look, all the prophets are promising victory for the king. Be sure that you agree with them and promise success.

Ha! Can you believe that?! As my mentor says, “human beings are boring and predictable.” Why? Because not much has changed since Ahab’s day. Those who go against the flow are still being told to “agree” and “promise success” for the King Ahabs in their lives. Going against the grain doesn’t mean you push back on a popular viewpoint solely for the sake of challenge.

That’s insane.
And annoying.

That’s what makes Michaiah’s response all the more powerful: “As surely as the Lord lives, I will say only what my God says.” Bingo! That’s our task–to allow God to breathe reality through us instead of cowering to the thoughts and opinions of people. That may look like agreeing with what everyone else is saying. Often times, it’s not.

Why?

Most people (myself included) think they are right on any given subject, at any given time. God’s a lot smarter than everyone and wants more people to think like him. He chooses to challenge others through the minds and hearts that are submitted to him–submitted to saying “only what God says.”

So ask yourself, “What do I need to do today to not be a ‘YES man’ or ‘YES woman’ and be a ‘GOD person’ instead?“