Wise Eyes

Two young boys, brothers, walked to the river while on a camping trip. Surveying the wide river they both imagined themselves playing in the water. Just as the younger brother kicked off his shoes and started for the water, the older brother warned, “You’d better not go in; remember what dad said.”

Hesitating, the younger replied, “It looks pretty calm to me. I think it's ok.”

With another reminder from the older brother, they refrained.

What stopped them?

They were the ones at the river. They had firsthand knowledge. They could see that there were no dangers, but they hesitated; they stopped.

We are often like the young boys. We approach life like a wide inviting river. We want to kick off our shoes and wade in without a care in the world. We see no dangers, so we think it's ok.

We stand at the side of the river; we can see that everything is safe. But our Father has warned us.

The boys could not ‘see’ the dangerous undercurrent their father knew to exist. Likewise, we often cannot ‘see’ the dangers that our Father knows to exist.

Fear stopped the boys; fear of their father. There was an element of ‘scared’ fear, but there was something more. They held their father in high esteem. There was trust and respect and knowledge of potential consequences for disobedience. Fear. Respect. Honor.

   Do not be wise in your own eyes; 

   Fear the LORD and turn away from evil.

   --Proverbs 3:7

Reverence and awe for God will be a protection from evil.

Do you have ‘wise eyes’?