God can help with our problems

I was just coming in from my workout this morning when I looked out in the backyard and saw him. He was slowly making his way around our tool shed and over to the stone wall. He stopped for a minute and then he wiggled in behind the shed and out of sight.

I will never again go out to the shed to get the lawn mower or some lawn chairs without thinking of that skunk. I am not sure if he has a nest there or if he was just passing through but now I know that he has a nice hiding place that puts him smack dab in the middle of my world.

The problem with it though is not that I won't be careful for the next few weeks. I will. The problem is that my caution will not last all that long. In a few weeks I will begin to go about my business as if the skunk was never there. I may think about him but I will ignore him. I will begin to act is if he can't hurt me and that he can't possibly be there.

Someone once said "ignorance is bliss." That's a lie. It may feel like you are in control but that's when the unexpected happens to derail you. That's when you say I should have known better but it's too late.

Sin in our life is like that skunk. It walks in and hides just out of sight. It doesn't appear to be a problem but when you least expect it, it jumps out and sprays you and makes a mess of your life. The truth is that we need to tackle it head on. We need to root it out and get rid of it so it can't come back to hurt us. We need to honestly recognize we have a problem and face it. We can't ignore it.

Whether we are talking about substance abuse, sexual immorality, financial irresponsibility or something else, we need to address it before it attacks us. If we can't do it alone, then we need to get help. At church I keep the name of a animal trapper handy. I called on Nuisance Wildlife Evictions once when we had a squirrel running loose in the church and they captured him in less than a half hour and solved our problems. They knew exactly what to do.

God is like that. When we call on him he can help get rid of our problems. He can help us find the solutions we need to get our lives back on track. We don't have to face it alone. god's got our back.

Cal