Are There Squirrels in Your House

Do not move an ancient boundary stone set up by your forefathers.

Proverbs 22:28

It could have been a catastrophic mistake. I did what I consistently tell others not to do. I failed to close the screen door of our mountain home. When my husband came in several hours later he saw the door open and a big squirrel sitting on the door step.

Of course I have been teased mercilessly. I’m constantly telling people to close the doors or we’ll have squirrels in the house. Fortunately the curious little fellow did not come in and neither did any of his friends.

I’ve heard stories of the terrible way squirrels wreak havoc in people’s homes. They’re very wily and difficult to catch. They chew things and steal things and make a mess of everything.

Screen doors serve as boundaries to protect us from a lot of pests and varmints. Without them we couldn’t enjoy the fresh breeze bringing in the wonderful scents of our mountain surroundings, free from the worry of unwanted visitors. In the same way, God’s word places boundaries in our lives, providing us with the protection we need from things that have the power to destroy our lives, robbing us of the blessings of obedience.

 Just as I warn my family of the dangers of squirrels in the house, God’s word reminds us of the dangers of allowing things like unclean thoughts, wrong attitudes, bad habits and temptations of the enemy into our lives.

The enemy sneaks in when we remove God’s boundaries and whispers things like, “Just this once won’t hurt,” and “If you’re careful no one will find out.” Those little lapses become habits and one day someone discovers the havoc in our private life and everything we have worked for is in jeopardy.

It is necessary for me to hide the word of God in my heart on a daily basis so sins don’t creep in and destroy all I’ve been blessed with. I hear His voice warning me to keep the boundaries where He set them. I don’t want those bad habits creeping in any more than I want squirrels in my house.

Vow today to close any doors in your life that allow bad habits to enter in. When you keep the boundaries where God set them you will see His blessings.

© Copyright by Norma Gail Thurston Holtman 

About the author:

Norma Gail is the author of the contemporary Christian romance, Land of My Dreams. A women’s Bible study leader for over 21 years, her devotionals and poetry have appeared at ChristianDevotions.us, the Stitches Thru Time blog, and in “The Secret Place.” She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Romance Writers of America, and the New Mexico Christian Novelists. Norma is a former RN who lives in the mountains of New Mexico with her husband of 40 years. They have two adult children.

Connect with Norma:

Website: www.normagail.org

Amazon Author page: http://www.amazon.com/Norma-Gail/e/B00ILHXBAK/

Book trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQbZIoC_JSE

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorNormaGail

Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+NormaGailwrites

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/normagailth/boards/ 

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7874459

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/Norma_Gail

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/norma-gail-thurston-holtman/42/71a/3b2

Book Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Land-My-Dreams-Norma-Gail/dp/1941103170

Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas Bookstore: http:// lpcbooks.com/product/land-of-my-dreams/

 Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/land-of-my-dreams-norma-gail/1119606864?ean=9781941103173

Wrestling With Sin

For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. James 1:13b-15

The spider looked innocent enough, just like all the others I’d allowed inside my home, until it jumped on my husband’s arm and bit him.

I laughingly refer to my approach toward spiders as my amnesty program. As long as the spiders behave, they can come inside unharmed. My goodwill doesn’t extend to deadly spiders like black widows or brown recluses. However, at that point, my husband didn’t see the humor in being bitten by a harmless spider or my amnesty program.

The previous autumn, I’d allowed a rather large spider to come under the door every night and run around. By morning he’d be gone. Each night, this repeated itself until the spider climbed over the couch and landed on my husband’s lap while he watched television. He wasn’t amused by this episode either and put a stop to this nightly visit. J

I began to see the parallels between allowing the spiders free run of my home and sin. The spiders spin their webs. I sweep them down, and within a week, they’re back. I justify it by not allowing in deadly spiders. What harm can come of that?

The Bible instructs us to flee from sin, yet we allow it to creep into our lives and then routinely sweep out the debris without fully killing the sin. We comfort ourselves with the knowledge that we don’t commit deadly sins like murder or stealing, but the end result is the same. When we least expect it, the regular garden-variety sin has bitten us and left a mark on our lives.

What sin are you struggling to rid your life of today? Perhaps it’s a small sin you routinely wrestle with, and it’s dragging you down because you won’t get rid of it once and for all. Ask God to help you identify the areas of your life that need cleaning up.

Meanwhile, I’ve got some cobwebs to sweep down. Again. J

Laura Hodges Poole is a freelance writer with three dozen articles, devotions, and short stories in publication. She writes Christian romance novels and is a 2012 RWA Emily finalist, placing second amongst a nationwide field of Christian and secular entries. Laura is also an Associate Editor with Christian Devotions ministry. Her passion is encouraging others in their Christian walk through her blog, A Word of Encouragement. She may be contacted at laurapoole565@gmail.com.