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 But
as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue
righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness,
gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. 1 Timothy
6:11-12a
I've always loved Winnie the Pooh.
Maybe that's why when I came across The Associated Press
story about a modern-day Winnie the Pooh, I had to read
further.
The story told how a Montana grizzly bear had been
raiding commercial beehives. According to a state bear
management specialist, the bear had wandered about 20
miles from his home in search of food. The bear thought
he had entered bear heaven when he stumbled across the
unprotected hives.
Isn't that cute? I thought to myself.
Then, I realized we were talking about a 575-pound
grizzly bear.
There are a lot of words that can be used to describe a
grizzly that is storing up food for the winter. You can
call a grizzly voracious. You can call him a scavenger.
You can call him noble, impressive, fearsome, or
powerful.
But one thing you should not
call a grizzly is "cute."
That kind of thinking can get people (and bears) into
trouble.
The bear thought the honey hives were cute and delicious
to the eye. His wrong judgment got him trapped,
collared, and transported to a remote location.
From Eve until this very day, people have thought the
world's temptations were cute and innocent. When we do
that, the devil springs his traps. This shows us there
is nothing cute about disobeying the Lord and
disregarding His Son who came into this world to save
us.
To encourage believers to follow the Savior who gave His
life so we might be forgiven, freed, and safe from
Satan, Paul wrote our text for today: "flee these
things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love,
steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of the
faith."
Pursing godliness rather than the world's tempting honey
may not sound like a lot of fun, but in the eternal
scheme of things, fleeing Satan's seductions is far
safer, more sensible, and savvy.
THE PRAYER: Dear heavenly Father, the world is
constantly inventing things and
stuff designed to woo me away from You. Watch my eye, my
heart, my soul, so I may believe and look to the Savior
who gave me all I need. In His Name. Amen. |
