Recently I had some time to spend in
the woods. It is one of my favorite places to be, when I get completely surrounded by God's creation and
have no other place to be. There is something special about sitting in the
woods, when you know that not another living person knows where you are at and
God is the only one who is aware of your current location. It is this perfect
time of solitude and peace, although I am covered in camo with a weapon as I wait
to try and harvest one of God's creations. I will admit that I have been
completely lost in thought with God a time or two, while a deer has strolled
up.
On this occasion I was
sitting on the ground, legs hanging over the edge of a ridge, watching and
listening to all that was going on in the trees. It's as if you become one with
nature, you can feel the wind shift, the sound of a stick being stepped on 100
yards away and then it happened. Something caught my eye, I looked down and a
snake was right next to my leg. Are you kidding me, how did this snake get right
next to me, how did I not see or hear it, so much for being at one with nature.
As soon as I saw the snake, he or she, saw me too (remember camo) neither of us
was going to move. Now, I am not afraid of any snake, as Jesus commanded, "See, I have given you authority
to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and
nothing will hurt you."
Although I was in no
real danger form this snake it did make me think. Thanks to Adam in the garden
of Eden, I can't help but think of Satan when I see a snake slithering by. This
snake got really, really close and it made me ponder, how many times has Satan
slithered right up next to me without me noticing. As R.C. Sproul put it, "Cunning.
Craftiness. Subtlety. Guile. These are the descriptive qualifiers that paint
the biblical portrait of Satan." I
can get so comfortable in my surroundings that I don't see him coming. Or I can
get super focused on a task or objective that I'm like a horse with blinders
on. And then it happened again. Where did it go, as slick as it slithered up to
me, it has vanished. So I started looking, I mean really looking without moving
(I'm still hunting) for this snake. There he is, somehow he moved without
notice and had turned the tables on me and was completely camouflaged in the
grass to my left.
Just like Satan, when
I thought the snake was gone, I see him hiding in the grass. What a perfect
vision of Satan, he loves to slither up next to us and hide, close enough to
strike. Unless your different than me, I find it that I am in the most danger, I
am at my weakest, when I am alone. When no other person knows where I'm at. The
problem with me, is me, as good as I try to be and as much as I try to follow
Jesus, at my core I'm still sinful by nature or as some might call it
depravity. My take away from this little encounter with a slithering friend,
keep my guard up, especially when I think I'm alone(we are never alone, Jesus
is always with us). We also get some good advice from Peter, "Be
alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion
looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because
you know that- the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the
same kind of sufferings." - 1 Peter 5:8-9
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