How to Overcome the Little Foxes That Subtly Destroy What is Good - Song of Songs 2:15
"Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards our vineyards that are in bloom." (S.O.S. 2:15)
Illustration:End of the Road for Fox That Attacked Baby
Mon Jul 15,11:14 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - A fox that savaged a sleeping baby two weeks ago has been trapped and killed by pest controllers, a newspaper reported on Monday. The fox attacked three-month-old Louis Day as he slept on a sofa in the sitting room of his home in Dartford, southeast England, according to the child’s father Peter Day. On Monday, the Daily Mail reported pest controllers had caught and destroyed the animal. The family sought help after the fox reappeared night after night outside their house. "It had attacked Louis and it had attacked and killed a chihuahua in a back garden a couple of streets away," the child’s mother Sue Eastwood was quoted as saying.
"If it was a dog that had bitten my son, it would have been put down -- that is why we called in the pest controller."
Today let us call on God, the great pest controller of the little foxes that seek to destroy what Christ is building in and through us. First we must expose sin and all its deception. Next, let us look at some of those little foxes that undermine what God is building in our lives. Let us ask the Lord to help us find ways to overcome them.
1. Failure to show respect for one another often ruins relationships. We live in a society that suggests we really do not have to respect anyone except ourself. In our narcissitic society it is often seen on TV how a young person will get angry with their teacher and decide to take revenge.
Illustration: Recently, in Kentucky, a 13 year old boy felt that he was wronged by his teacher so he and a friend dressed up in camoflauge uniforms, got their uncles’ rifles and shot fourteen students and teachers as they came running out of the school when they heard the fire alarm. Respect for one another’s authority, rights or feelings often plays a small role in the decisions made by many people in our society.
Respect is what Paul talked about in Phil. 2:3,4 when he wrote, "Do nothing from factional motives (through contentiousness, strife, selfishness, or for unworthy ends) or prompted by conceit and empty arrogance. Instead, in the true spirit of humility (lowliness of mind) let each REGARD the others as better than and superior to himself (thinking more highly of one another than you do of yourselves). Let each of you esteem and look upon and be concerned for not merely their own interests, but also each for the interests of othes. Let this same attitude and purpose and humble mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus. (Let Him be your example of humility) (Phil. 2:3-5 - Amplified Bible)
Ask the Lord to help you show greater respect, regard and humility before others. Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before stumbling, says wise old Solomon. People who fail to show respect for others are pridefully succumbing to the self-destructive fox of pride.
2. Discourtesy is another subtle fox that destroys many relationships. A courteous person is polite, considerate and kind to others. We live in a world where driving to work everyday gives us visible evidence of how discourteous people are becoming. A discourteous person has little patience for another. They are quick to criticize, seek their own interests and find fault in another person’s views. Instead, a courteous person considers the other person’s felt, real, perceived, spiritual and physical needs before reacting out of anger. Failure to be courteous, kind and considerate of other peoples’ feelings is a sure recipe for the destruction of harmony in every home, business or work place.
Illustration:Mamie Adams always went to a branch post office in her town because the postal employees there were friendly. She went there to buy stamps just before Christmas one year and the lines were particularly long. Someone pointed out that there was no need to wait in line because there was a stamp machine in the lobby. "I know," said Mamie, ’but the machine won’t ask me about my arthritis."
Bits and Pieces, December, 1989, p. 2.
3. Nagging and criticism is another destructive fox that needs to be overcome. James writes, "My brethren, do not speak evil about or accuse one another. He that maligns a brother or judges his brother is maligning (injures another through slander) and criticizing the Law and judging the Law. But if you judge the Law, you are not a practicer of the Law (the Word) but a censor and judge of it." (James 4:11 - Amplifed Bible) Do all you can to put away a tendency to criticize or nag other people until they do what you want. Seek to compliment, admire and express appreciation for others instead of being critical of them. Paul writes, "Do all things without grumbling and faultfinding and complaining and questioning and doubting among yourselves." (Phil. 2:14 - Amplifed Bible)
Illustration:How to Bury a Good Idea
It will never work,
We’ve never done it that way before.
We’re doing fine without it.
We can’t afford it.
We’re not ready for it.
It’s not our responsibility.
Bits & Pieces, June 23, 1994, p. 10.
4. Selfish habits are little foxes that are self-destructive in many ways. Too many people overeat, watch too much TV and spend too much money on themselves instead of on the needy. Paul wrote, "The mind set on the flesh (which is sense and reason with the Holy Spirit) is death (death comprises all the miseries arising from sin). but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace. Because the mind of the flesh with its carnal thoughts and purposes is hostile to God, for it does not submit itself to God’s law and indeed it cannot. Unless people are filling themselves up with God’s word, His Spirit and His Mind set they are unable to overcome their selfish tendencies. May we each begin every day with the prayer of the hymn writer who wrote this famous chorus, "May the Mind of Christ my Savior, live in me from day to day. By His love and power controlling all I do and say."
Illustration:In its January 25, l988 issue, TIME provided an insight on selfishness and its corollary, sharing. Speaking about the introduction of the videocassette recorder, the article said, "The company had made a crucial mistake. While at first Sony kept its Beta technology mostly to itself, JVC, the Japanese inventor of the VHS (format), shared its secret with a raft of other firms. As a result, the market was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the VHS machines being produced."
This drastically undercut Sony’s market share. The first year, Sony lost 40 percent of the market, and by 1987 it controlled only 10 percent. So now Sony has jumped on the VHS bandwagon. While it still continues to make Beta-format VCRs [interestingly a higher quality technology] Sony’s switch to VHS, according to TIME, will likely send Beta machines to "the consumer-electronics graveyard." Even in a cut-throat business, sharing has its rewards.
Phillip Gunter.
5. Many people give into the foxes of fear, anger, and hurt. Too many people allow themselves to get discouraged and surrender to their emotions when they feel afraid, angry or hurt. Instead, the Bible teaches us that we are are not given the spirit of fear, but the Spirit of power, love and self-discipline. (2 Tim. 1:7) May the Lord enable us to overcome our feelings of fear, anger and hurt by giving them all over to the Lord. Allow Him to replace these feelings with His assurance, His gracious sufficiencies and His guidance.
Illustration:I am inwardly fashioned for faith, not for fear. Fear is not my native land; faith is. I am so made that worry and anxiety are sand in the machinery of life; faith is the oil. I live better by faith and confidence than by fear, doubt and anxiety. In anxiety and worry, my being is gasping for breath--these are not my native air. But in faith and confidence, I breathe freely--these are my native air. A John Hopkins University doctor says, "We do not know why it is that worriers die sooner than the non-worriers, but that is a fact." But I, who am simple of mind, think I know; We are inwardly constructed in nerve and tissue, brain cell and soul, for faith and not for fear. God made us that way. To live by worry is to live against reality.
Dr. E. Stanley Jones.
Conclusion: Let us ask the Lord to guard against the little foxes of external and internal destructive tendencies. Let us not give in to faulty thinking, habits or suggestions by others.
Illustrations: The flesh is a built-in law of failure, making it impossible for the natural man to please or serve God. It is a compulsive inner force inherited from man’s fall, which expresses itself in general and specific rebellion against God and His righteousness. The flesh can never be reformed or improved. The only hope for escape from the law of the flesh is its total execution and replacement by a new life in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Mark Bubeck, The Adversary, Moody Press, p. 28.
There will be many little foxes that try to destroy what is precious to us and to the Lord, but do not let them. People will break your heart and your spirit if you let them, but do not allow them. Do not internal criticism and give into anger, fear of feelings of hopelessness. Do not give in to debauch pictures, influences or desires. Those who sow the tares of self-destructive practices will destroy themselves and hinder the spread of Christ’s gospel. We are a people who must always fight the good fight of faith or sin’s foxes will destroy. We know that the devil has a plan for each of our lives. Jesus said, "The thief comes only to steal, slaughter, kill and destroy, but I came that you might have life and have it abundantly." (John 10:10)
Illustration:Thank God for the attacks from the little foxes as God allows them to come into your life for spiritual growth.
The Great Barrier Reef stretches some 1,800 miles from New Guinea to
Australia. Tour guides regularly take visitors to view the reef.
On one tour, the guide was asked an interesting question. "I notice
that the lagoon side of the reef looks pale and lifeless, while the
ocean side is vibrant and colorful," a traveler observed. "Why is
this?"
The guide gave an interesting answer: "The coral around the lagoon side
is in still water, with no challenge for its survival. It dies early.
The coral on the ocean side is constantly being tested by wind, waves,
storms -- surges of power. It has to fight for survival every day of
its life. As it is challenged and tested it changes and adapts. It
grows healthy. It grows strong. And it reproduces."
Then he added this telling note: “That’s the way it is with every
living organism."
That’s how it is with people. Challenged and tested, we come alive!
Like coral pounded by the sea, we grow. Physical demands can cause us
to grow stronger. Mental and emotional stress can produce
tough-mindedness and resiliency. Spiritual testing can produce strength
of character and faithfulness.
So when you have problems just tell yourself, "There I grow again!"
