This is an illustration of the power of temptation and what it can do
when we give in.
Our last day on the Isle of Skye in Scotland had
been a wet one. Still, we absolutely wanted to see the Faerie Pools,
even though it was past six in the evening. Once we arrived at the
parking lot, however, we were greeted by yet another torrential
downpour, forcing us to wait in the car for 20 minutes, until the rain
drizzled into nothingness. This, we had learned, was quite normal for
Scotland!
When we stepped out of our car, we were greeted by an
abundance of vicious Scottish midgets, tiny insects, almost
imperceptible, whose thirst for our blood seemed insatiable. Still we
persevered, heading for our destination, even though precious blood
would be lost during this endeavor.
It wasn't long before we
stood in front of a creek. Or at least, that is what it was called. To
me, it seemed much more like a fast-flowing river. The rain had
increased its volume exponentially, and the "trickle" of the waterfall a
bit further upstream seemed to have become as powerful as Victoria
Falls. How could we cross? It would sweep us under!
Determined to
not be robbed of our goal, my wife wandered upstream to try and find a
safe crossing. Meanwhile, the midges made a feast of my head, my arms,
my . . . Well you get the picture. Nothing was safe from those vicious
little bugs!
My wife soon returned with bad news: There was no
path that she felt would be safe enough to cross this
creek-turned-river.
But we really did want to see those Faerie
Pools. Why not start from the end of the circular trail? Maybe there
wouldn't be any more creek-crossings there, and maybe the midges would
lose track of us . . .
We headed back up our trail to find the
place where the end of the trail met up with the beginning. There we
also met up with two fellow hikers who were just returning from the
Faerie Pools. They brought us terrible news: the streams on this trail
had also become impossible to cross, due to the heavy rain throughout
the day.
By this time the rain had started back up, and the
midges had once again found us. Nonetheless, we still wanted to continue
on the trail, but our fellow hikers were adamant: "One false step in
that 'river' could lead to your death!"
And so it was that our
hopes and dreams were defeated by drops of water from the heavens and by
tiny invisible insects. Quite ironic, don't you think?
Had we
given in to the temptation to reach these pools no matter what the cost,
it could have cost us our lives. Only later did we realize that our
obstinate tendency could have led to our downfall. Still we ended up
with a beautiful picture of the creek-turned-river with its waterfall in
the background.
Sin is considerably worse than our thirst for
adventure. Once we give in to temptation, sin has us in its vicious
grip. The more we fight against it, the more we become entangled in its
grip. Eventually it will lead us to our total downfall. Why would anyone
want to remain in such a defeated lifestyle?
Jesus died for us so
that we would not have to remain in the hopelessness of sin. He came to
set us free, not to entangle us even more: "So if the Son sets you free,
you will be free indeed." (John 8:36, NIV)
Would you like to come
with me to the Faerie Pools? It will be fun, especially since the creeks
have turned impassable! What an adventure!
Rob Chaffart
The Midges' Torrential Rivers. Radical Grace from the Book of Romans (6:1-2)
Today's Bible Verse:
"What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may
increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we
live in it any longer?" (Rom 6:1-2, NIV2)
The Midges' Torrential Rivers. Radical Grace from the Book of Romans (6:1-2)
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