thorns & snares

Thorns and snares are in the way of the crooked;

whoever guards his soul will keep far from them.

Proverbs 22:5

The warning in this proverb is to guard one’s soul from the thorns and snares of this life. This requires vigilance. It requires both faith and an active plan. A thorn is a weed that grows up to choke off the life of a good plant. A snare is a deliberate trap to capture and end a life. Both of them can be stumbled into and cause a lot of damage, if not death. Both can overwhelm us and destroy us. As I think through this calling in this proverb to be careful, I think I see some possible thorns and snares to attentively avoid. Here are my current big three:

• Entertainment. The world offers so many appealing options, nearly all of them are devoid of God-honoring values. And lately I’ve found virtually every TV show, streaming series, movie, or post-modern song pushes a worldview and a moral imperative that is rife with sinful snares. Captivating my mind with such poison is not good. I’ve had to seriously reign in my consumption of entertainment and institute active accountability with people I trust to keep me from ensnarement.
• Laziness. I am deeply tempted to just do nothing… and this is a very new thorn in my heart… a struggle I’ve never had before. I know that it stems from way too much time alone, letting unfocused grief give way to self-pity, covetousness of the past and of others, and it leads me right into the swamp of despond. But I usually open the door to that journey myself. That’s wrong. And so I guard myself from watering this thorn of laziness by cultivating much more ministry around people face-to-face, doing a whole lot more outdoor physical exercise so that I am truly tired at the end of day, not just lazy, and trying to add new friendships to old friendships to challenge myself relationally, emotionally, and spiritually.
• Singleness. I have a new appreciation for the challenges that adult singles face daily. And as our culture pushes against biblical purity of heart, the pressure of that snare is felt by me in ways I had forgotten could be so VERY strong. Being an old dude doesn’t make the battle easier. I know what I am missing and so it kind of feels more difficult. It’s so different than when I was last single as a young man forty years ago. You’d think I’d be much more wise, seasoned by life, inoculated by a faithful, fruitful, expressive marriage, ready to settle into contented acceptance of a singleness given at the end of that great experience. But in many ways the alone part of being single can feel like a snare, which I must continue to build accountability around. To me it looks like the most dangerous of the three, needing real discernment, direct action, and continuous examination of my motives and emotions. 

Handling these three starts at the heart and these three active principles from Proverbs help me to step back from my feelings, lean into scriptural facts, and trust by faith what God is doing to keep me from thorns and snares:

• GUIDE MY HEART: Proverbs 23:19 - Hear, my son, and be wise, and direct your heart in the way.
• GUARD MY HEART: Proverbs 4:23 - Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.
• DON’T FOLLOW MY HEART: Proverbs 28:26 - Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered.

So I pray several times daily a prayer something like this: Lord, protect me. Surround me with wisdom, your Spirit’s guidance,  and honest friends to push me away from the dangerous thorns and snares.

Amen