Daily Jewel

by Pastor Carnell, McAlester, OK
April 19, 2012

“Having a Sand-Shake”
“The lips of a seductive woman are oh so sweet, her soft words are oh so smooth. But it won't be long before she's gravel in your mouth, a pain in your gut, a wound in your heart.” – Proverbs 5:3-5 (The Message)

We are continuing with this concept of the power of the adulteress. I think you have discovered by now it has nothing to do with prostitution—and yet it has everything to do with prostitution! The prostitute sells herself with the intent of luring in her customer. It is for entirely selfish reasons but that does not matter to her and she could care less what it does to her victim. And that is the point Solomon is trying to get across—the tempter could care less about you, he just does not want God to have you so that is where the power and the purpose of his seduction(s) derives. He even makes things we know are wrong look appealing!
As kids we have all probably eaten our share of, shall we say, things that that are probably not digestible. I remember having a sand box in our yard and making myself a “sand-shake.” Definitely not something you will find at Dairy Queen. But the reason that as young children we would do something as ludicrous as eating dirt or sand is simply because we didn’t know better until we got it into our mouths.
As an adult—we should know better. We should know the difference between what is edible and what is make-believe. What Solomon is saying is that even though we should know the difference between what is good and what is not—the adulteress (temptation) is very good at disguising its evil—that is until we attempt to digest it and only then do we discover the truth. The problem that creates is by that point we have either hurt others and our relationship with them or we have done some permanent damage to our own selves—created wedges or resentments that are not easy to overcome.
In the Christian Reader, Lynn Austin writes: “The artificial lures fishermen use look so phony, it astonishes me that any fish would fall for them: shiny metallic and gaudy plastic, hot pink and neon colors in stripes and spots.
Satan knows what he can use to dazzle and distract me. After more than 10 years of introducing myself as ‘just a housewife,’ my enemy dangled before me the lure of a ‘real job,’ with a pay-check and prestige. To boost my flagging self-esteem, I snapped at the bait and signed a contract before prayerfully considering the consequences to our family life.
Within a few months, I knew I had made a mistake. Early morning meetings forced me to leave the house while my children were still asleep. Afternoon conferences that dragged on and on turned them into latchkey kids.
The demands of the job did not line up with my talents and interests. As the work pressures and the laundry piled up, I missed my daily quiet times with the Lord, my friends at Bible study, and my daughter’s Mother’s Day program at school. When my contract expired a year later, I gratefully resigned. I had learned a hard lesson: not to be distracted by fancy lures that make me forget the things that really matter.”
The power of seduction. Subtle. Appealing. Alluring. But in the end—sandy. Unsatisfying. Unhealthy. Destructive. Just thinking about it makes me reach for my mouthwash.
Pastor J. T. Carnell