“Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.” (1 Thessalonians 5:21, 22)
We were driving to the downtown area of Dallas for a doctor’s appointment and following the printed directions to arrive there on time. The fact is, because of a large truck we still almost missed our exit. It would have been at that moment when things would have become very interesting, even dicey, for us. You see, we would have found ourselves in unfamiliar territory.
In the same way as missing an exit or even making a wrong turn, we can find ourselves in a place where we shouldn’t be or even really want to be! Habits are like that. We can make a deliberate perhaps even hasty decision only to discover we have started a process in our hearts, minds and lives that can be difficult to extricate ourselves from. The most stubborn of habits as well as sins can begin in such a simple, even innocent way, can’t they? Take a moment to read the following fable written way back in 1858:
Control The Camel
The Arabs tell a story about the miller and the camel. One winter day, when the miller was sleeping in his house, he was awakened by a noise. Looking up, he saw a camel that had thrust his nose through the door.
“It’s very cold out here,” said the camel, “Please let me warm my nose a little.” “Very well,” said the miller, “but just your nose.”
A little later, the camel asked permission to put his forehead in; then his neck. Little by little he kept crowding in, until at last his whole body was in the miller’s room. Then the camel began to walk about the room, knocking things over, and doing just as he wanted. The miller found his visitor so rude and troublesome that he told him to leave at once.
“If you don’t like the room, you can leave it whenever you wish,” replied the camel. “As for myself, I am very comfortable, and mean to stay where I am.”
We must understand that one bad habit ends up keeping company with other choices and practices that are unhealthy to the body, mind and most importantly, our soul! The camel’s nose in this fable is a metaphor for a situation where the permitting of a small, harmless act can end up opening the door for more costly and undesirable actions on our part!
We will be considered “wise” by the Lord when we follow the rule of resisting the beginnings of evil itself! Don’t even answer the door of your heart to the tap or gentle knock of the evil one who is lurking just outside!
“Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7)
Bill Fairchild, Jr.
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