Proverbs 29:5 (NLT)
“To flatter people is to lay a trap for their feet.”

Sincere Praise vs. Strategic Flattening

There is a massive difference between sincere praise and flattery. Praise uplifts and encourages the soul, but the word “flattery” literally means to flatten—to make something smooth. When someone flatters you, they are “smoothing you over” for the takedown. They are numbing your discernment and distracting your focus so that you miss the striking blow. In fact, flattery is designed to make you welcome the very thing that will eventually trip you up.
Flattery appeals directly to your pride and your ego. However, as a child of God, you have a divine defense. When you operate in obedience, the Holy Spirit will reveal the flattery for what it is. He allows you to hear the “clinking” of the trap before you step into it. And according to the Word, that very scheme intended for you will ultimately entrap the one who laid it.

The Practice:

The Ephesians 4 Formula

1. Live the Worthy Life
Paul tells us to lead a life worthy of our calling. This is a mandate to live in a way that rightly reflects the God you serve. When you are busy looking more like Him and less like your old self, you become less susceptible to the world’s “smooth talk.” A person secure in their calling doesn’t need to be validated by a flatterer’s tongue.
2. Mastering the “Hulk State”
Humility and gentleness are your primary shields. Humility counters the pride that flattery feeds on. Gentleness—which I call the “Hulk State”—is the ultimate form of emotion control. It is being “always angry” at sin and injustice, but never out of control. It is the strength to not self-assert, even when you have the power to do so. This level of mastery takes much, much prayer.
3. The Allowance of Love
Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults. People are going to fail you, and you are going to fail others. Accept it, acknowledge it, and move forward. When you are grounded in the reality of human imperfection, you are less likely to be seduced by someone who tells you that you are “perfect” or “beyond reproach.”
4. The Prayer Alert
Remain “prayed up” to stay alert. Flattery always comes from a place of insincerity. It is hollow and always has an ulterior, self-centered motive. Prayer sharpens your spiritual ears to hear the “hollow ring” in a flatterer’s voice. If it doesn’t sound like the Truth, don’t let it in your heart!

Today’s Declaration:

“I am closing my ears to flattery and opening my heart to the Holy Spirit. I refuse to be ‘flattened’ by the smooth talk of the enemy or the pride of my own ego. I am walking worthy of my calling, practicing the ‘Hulk State’ of self-control, and making allowance for the faults of others. I am alert, I am humble, and I am secure in Christ!”

Flattery is the ‘sugar-coating’ on a spiritual poison—don’t bite! Today is a great day to make a Fresh Start!
God bless,
+Pastor Kris