I Caught A Thief

While fishing the other day with my family I came across what I thought was an extremely cunning fish. Now, I’m not a great fisherman by any stretch of the imagination, but generally if I get a nibble or two I can hook the fish. It may take me a worm or two, but not too many fish once they’ve made their presence known escape my hook. This one was different though. I’d bait the hook, he’d steal the worm. I’d bait it again, and he’d steal it again. Time after time this was the way it went. Determined to catch him though, I kept after it. Not sure how long I was at it, but I know I baited that hook at least 6 times. I knew he must have been a small one, but that manly, man thing in me was determined not to be outdone by this fish. Then all of a sudden, I did it. I hooked him and as I reeled him in he seemed a bit bigger than I thought he would be. As he reached the surface of the water, I realized he wasn’t a fish at all. The worm thief was a turtle. My kids thought it was awesome and I was impressed by my skill and persistence at catching the big guy. Still, he was not at all what I thought he was and had I known it was a turtle I wouldn’t have wasted my time and worms on him.

Throughout our life, there are times when just like this turtle, we encounter a thief. I know there are some things that we bring on ourselves through lack of planning, lack of knowledge, and lack of wisdom. But, its important to note that we do have an enemy and there are times when he is at work and we don’t know it. We are trucking along through life and we get hammered by this thing and that thing. Our finances take a hit, our marriage takes a hit, our friendships take a hit, our job takes a hit. We do everything right and still seem to be getting it from every direction. If we are not careful, we’ll blame others, or even worse blame God.

Scripture tells us that our enemy is not flesh and blood. It’s the devil not others. Scripture also tells us that our enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy. When we realize what our enemy’s job description is, it goes along way in determining who’s at the bottom of this kind of stuff in our lives. Once we know who’s at the bottom of it, it makes it easier to deal with the real problem. Once, I discovered it was a turtle stealing my bait, I didn’t throw any more out there for him to steal. In the same way, when we discover the enemy at work in our life, we don’t allow him to continue. Using the Word of God and prayer, we take the fight to him and watch him tuck tail and run. If we need to change the way we are doing something, we do it. If need be, we get some brothers and sisters in the faith to stand with us. The point is this, we identify the thief and then do whatever it takes to make sure he doesn’t continue.

Of course, with the turtle I was humane. I removed the hook and put him back in the water. With our enemy though, there is no need to be humane. Once you get him on the hook, finish him off!