“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8 NIV)
It’s no secret that I love to walk at the end of the day. One of the great advantages of living in Honey Hollow is the long, nearly-private lane leading down to the gravel pits and eventually to the river. This lane provides a couple miles of rarely-interrupted scenery. I especially enjoy the nightly sunsets over the open pasture just south of our house. In the past three months I’ve discovered all kinds of wildlife along the way: each walk is a low-key treasure hunt. Thus far, I’ve witnessed dozens of deer grazing, a wild boar rooting, various armadillos and snakes making their way across the road. I’ve found a fox slyly lurking and turkey vultures feasting. (ew!) Herons regularly soar overhead making their way toward the water. The other night a wild hare lept across my path. And, of course, there are all variety of spiders, dragonflies, moths and butterflies, too.
Lately our Hollow has been in a bit of an uproar. My neighbor’s baby calf was thrown from it’s pen a few nights ago. In the wee hours of the morning, they found it with a hind leg torn off entirely. Of course, the calf bled out and died before dawn. The general consensus is that this was the work of a mountain lion or bobcat. There’s some brute strength involved in taking down a fifty pound calf.
Oddly, that very same night we had come home late from San Antonio. It was about midnight by the time we rolled into our hollow under the smallest sliver of moonlight. The yard was pitch black and I vividly remember thinking “We need to move quickly. Anything could be in these woods and at this hour, we are in their territory.” I didn’t know that there was a specific threat, but my mind and spirit was alerted to the distinct possibility of predatory creatures in the dark. We moved with purpose and got into the house as quickly and quietly as possible, glad to shut the door behind us. We awoke the next morning to the news about the neighbor’s calf; they live about a quarter mile down the lane.
Remarkably, a few days earlier, another neighbor friend and I had met for an early morning walk. We were deep in conversation and a few miles clicked by easily with my two barn cats in tow. It was on the way back that we noticed fresh scat right in the middle of the road where we’d been; far too large for fox or opossum. It turns out that wild cat had been right behind us that morning and we were blissfully unaware. We could have been breakfast, but thank God we weren’t.
I share all this to say there is a big difference between being alert and being oblivious. The Word says our enemy is ever on the prowl: he’s out and about looking for an easy target. He’s looking for those that he may devour. And we are either aware or ignorant. And ignorance makes us an easy mark.
So how do we walk through a world with a known enemy? Just as we did that night in the dark: we remain alert, we move with purpose and we set our hope on getting Home.
“Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought you you when Jeuss Christ is revealed at His coming.” (1 Peter 1:13 NIV)
Lord, we live in a land with a roaring lion seeking who he may devour. We recognize his agenda and his hold on this earth. Help us stay alert and sober, aware of our enemy and his tactics. May we move forward with purpose and put all our hope in going Home to You. Amen.