The time to be careful is after you have reached your goals and you’re celebrating your victories. There are three crucial points in every battle, and believe it or not, the easiest one is sometimes the fight itself. The most difficult point is the period of indecision right before the conflict – whether to stand and fight or run away – the battle between faith and fear. But by far the most dangerous period is the aftermath. With your resources spent and your guard down, you need to watch for things like overconfidence, dulled reactions, and faulty judgment. Remember King David’s story? ‘In the spring of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle…David remained at Jerusalem. Then it happened…he saw a woman bathing…Then David sent messengers, and took her’ (2 Samuel 11:1-2, 4 NKJV). Pay particular attention to the phrase, ‘Then it happened.’ David chose to stay home rather than go to battle. Who knows why? Maybe his impressive record of successes made him soft, or he got careless, or arrogant? It was only a brief affair, but it changed everything. His peace vanished, his character was ruined, and his family life destroyed. Don’t fall prey to the perils of past victories! Remember your H.A.L.T. sign. When you’re Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired, you’re in a vulnerable place and need to be extra careful. Resting on your laurels is synonymous with flirting with disaster. Trouble awaits the man or woman who dwells in the comfortable land of accomplished dreams. So, the word for today is – ‘If you think you’re standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!’
