“Catch us the foxes, The little foxes that spoil the vines, For our vines have tender grapes” (Song of Solomon 2:15 NKJV).
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My mother saw a baby fox lurking around her house this week, and she snapped a picture of it. It was super cute.
Then last night they heard a noise and looked out the window.
Not one, but four baby foxes toddled out from underneath a broken board on the front porch.
My sister quickly videoed the cute little guys and mom clicked a picture to share on Facebook, which, of course, resulted in a chorus of “aw soo cute” from all around.
But trouble was lurking . . .
The Bible tells us to beware of little foxes.
The notes for the above verse in the Passion Translation Bible says,
“little foxes are the compromises that are hidden deep in our hearts.
Comprises are areas in our lives where we have not yet allowed the victory of Christ to shine into.
The foxes keep the fruit of his Spirit from growing within us.
Judges 13-16 tells us Sampson was born to be a judge and deliver Israel from their oppressive enemy, the Philistines.
Not only did Sampson have leadership skills, but he was also clever and had super-human strength.
However, Sampson left little things in his life that he thought were no big deal.
He believed he was strong enough to handle them.
And he was, at first.
But in a weak moment, he was too tired to fight, too exhausted to be on guard, and while he slept, his strength was cut off.
You have gifts, talents, and strengths, (maybe not the same as Sampson’s) but nevertheless, gifts, talents, and strengths God has given you to rule your world.
God has a plan for your greatness!
However, He wants you to take a look at some things that could hinder you from stepping into greatness.
You may already know what that little thing is the Lord has been dealing with you about.
Maybe you don’t.
Ask Him what little thing needs to be adjusted in your life for you to go forward.
We, saints, simply must grow in discernment to recognize satan’s more subtle lures.
As we grow into maturity, the stakes get higher, and choices get tougher and less obvious.
Those little things that seem so cute at first are time bombs waiting to be set off.
You have probably seen news pictures or videos that showed a terrorist’s phone that triggered a bomb.
The enemy of your soul knows all your trigger points and has a phone with your number in it.
You may think that little thing is cute and cuddly, but the phone is about to ring your number.
That cute little thing is really a wild monster fueled by satan himself.
At my mom’s house, those little foxes are super cute to watch while they are tiny. They run around wrestling with each other, falling off the porch, and trying to howl.
But the mama fox will soon begin to bring all sorts of dead decaying things under the house to feed those babies.
The little foxes will get into the garbage and scatter it all over the yard, which will in turn attract other wild animals.
Then they will multiply. Where there are 6 little foxes right now, next year they could have 20 of those little things.
Little things grow into big things that hinder us from going forward!
Three things to know about little foxes:
1. Sometimes things that seem like good things or cute or innocent are not.
2. Discernment and wisdom are essential. We are not all-knowing. Our understanding is limited at best. There are things we do not know about most situations. Only God knows all things.
3. We must lean on God’s understanding and not our own for wisdom. Our understanding, and even our compassion, is corrupted by sin in our fallen world.
We must have a solid biblical foundation AND ask Him daily how we are to understand our world.
Yep sorry.
Your little things might be cute. But cute does not change the nature of the beast.
Little foxes spoil the vine.
“You must catch the troubling foxes, those sly little foxes that hinder our relationship.
For they raid our budding vineyard of love to ruin what I’ve planted within you.
Will you catch them and remove them for me? We will do it together.”
Song of Songs 2:15 TPT
UPDATE: A fox got in my mom and dad’s chicken coop and killed all twelve of their chickens. The heads were twisted off and bodies carried into the forest.
