“You Don’t Want To Do That!” (Proverbs 22:3 )

It was an unfamiliar sound. Something was moving in the brush, accompanied by a faint hissing. Curious, I stepped closer to investigate. My companion quickly grabbed my arm.

“You don’t want to do that!”

“Why not?”

He pointed toward the brush. “There’s a snake in there. It would have attacked you.”

Sure enough, a few seconds later, a snake slithered out, crossed the path, and disappeared just as quickly into the undergrowth.

I grew up in Hawaii, where snakes are illegal to protect the islands’ unique native ecosystem. Aside from those in the zoo, I had never encountered one in the wild. Because of that, I never developed the instinctive caution that people in many parts of the world take for granted.

Had I been alone that day, I probably would have taken another step toward the sound without a second thought. The experience made me wonder how many dangers I pass by every day without ever recognizing them.

Not all dangers are physical. Some are spiritual. Temptation rarely announces itself. Deception seldom looks threatening. Sin often hides quietly, waiting for us to wander just a little closer. By the time we recognize the danger, we may already be within its reach.

The Bible reminds us,

The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it.
Proverbs 22:3 (ESV)

The prudent are not simply those who have sharper eyes. They are those who have learned to recognize warnings and respond to them. God, in His grace, warns us through His Word, through the counsel of mature believers, through the conviction of the Holy Spirit, and sometimes through circumstances that keep us from taking another step.

Looking back, I wasn’t afraid of the snake because I didn’t know it was there. Perhaps the greatest dangers in our lives are the ones hidden in the brush—those we cannot yet see but God sees clearly. How thankful I am that He often places someone beside us, or speaks through His Word, to say, “You don’t want to do that,” before we step into harm’s way.

Love and trust in the Lord; seek His will in your life.

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