We went fishing while we were on our camping trip last week. I love to fish which is surprising since I don’t have a great deal of patience. Standing at the water’s edge or sitting in a boat with a line dangling in the water just waiting doesn’t seem like something I would want to do, but I like it. There is something very peaceful and calming about it. I used to go with my Dad when I was a little girl. He was extremely patient – not just waiting for the fish to bite but baiting my hook and getting it out of the trees after my feeble attempts at casting. It was fun even when we didn’t catch anything.

The place we were camping last week is right on the Frio River.
The water is so clear we could see the fish swimming around as we got everything ready to go. We couldn’t wait to get our lines in the water. Once in, we didn’t have to wait long. Those little dabbers (spell-check said it should be spelled this way – I'm not so sure) were bobbing up and down immediately. It was so exciting until we actually pulled the fish out of the water. They were too tiny to even consider keeping.

I know there were big (really BIG) fish in that river. I saw them myself. In fact, I dropped my line with a big, fat, juicy worm dangling on the end of it right in front of the face of a HUGE one – and he just swam away!! Totally frustrating!! We tried over and over again to get that fish, and he just wasn’t biting.

I was thinking about that today. I thought about how Satan tries to bait me. He dangles something in front of me and waits for me to swallow the hook. I could react like the little fish and immediately bite. Hopefully I’ve gotten a little wiser over the years and don’t too that as often anymore.

Howevwe,there was one other “character” in this little fishing story. Our friend thought he had a big one which turned out to be a snapping turtle. He wasn’t badly hooked, so he took him off and released him far downstream. About a half hour later, my son reeled in the same turtle. He had apparently not learned his lesson.
This time I took him far, far away so he wouldn't get caught again, but my son said that long before I got back to our fishing spot the turtle had already returned.

I am afraid that this is much more like me. I can avoid the obvious pitfalls, but there are some things the enemy knows I will fall for every time. Like that little turtle, I see the bait and somewhere in my mind I know I shouldn’t bite. But either it looks like something that really won’t do much harm, or I seem helpless to keep from swallowing that hook. There are times I am in a familiar situation, and I know if I react in a certain way it will only make things worse. It isn’t anything new. I know what will happen, but I “bite” anyway and I end up in a mess. The enemy doesn’t have to go shopping for something new and improved to dangle in front of me. He just uses the bait I’ve swallowed so many times before.

It would be so much wiser to be like that big fish. He saw that delectable, harmless looking worm, but he knew there was a “hook”. He chose to turn his back on what looked to be good and swam away. Or perhaps he had taken the bait way back when he was just a little fish and had learned a valuable lesson. I imagine that’s the way he grew to be a big, wise fish.

Lord, may I be so filled with your word and with your Spirit that I can resist the “bait” the enemy dangles so invitingly in front of me. Help me to grow in wisdom and discernment so that I learn from past mistakes and don’t repeat them.

Blessings,
Linda