"DON'T DO IT"

   Did you ever hear one of your parents say “don’t do…” I know that I have. Funny thing though, every time I heard them say to not do something it just made me want to do it more. But, did you ever think about why you wanted to do what they told you not to do? Personally I blame two things: curiosity and temptation.

   When you tell a 2-3 year old to do something their typical answer is: why? Kids are generally curious. They want to know why they need to do certain things and why they are not to do other things. That is probably why someone came up with the phrase “curiosity killed the cat.” Curiosity can be a great thing because it helps us learn about our world. However, sometimes curiosity can lead to bad things.

   Temptation is the other problem in this “don’t do” situation. We usually want to do what we are told not to do. Why is this? Well it goes the whole way back to creation. Eve was tempted by the serpent to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge. She knew she should not eat the fruit, but the temptation was just so great. At times I am tempted to think that I would not fall into that temptation; but, I cannot actually know that. I mean we cannot actually know in that exact situation. However, I do know that I have been tempted in other instances.

   The one situation that I remember the most is when my mom was baking cookies. They smelled so good and I went to touch one. Mom said I should not do that. So I did not touch the cookies but I went over to the pan. There was still a bit of cookie in the one area, so I decided I would pick that piece up (side note: technically I was still listening to my mom because I didn’t touch the cookie. I touched part of a cookie. You’ve gotta love loopholes). As I was grabbing the piece I didn’t understand why mom said: “don’t touch the cookie.” Well I learned. I left my finger on the pan too long and let’s just say there was a lot of screaming afterwards.
   One of the best parts about this situation was that, even though mom sort of told me not to touch the cookie/pan, after she heard me scream she came running over to help me. It didn't matter that I kind of disobeyed her. At that point, she just wanted to help me. Of course, later on I did get the lecture on did you learn your lesson? But, God also does that for us. When we are tempted, and we fail, we may feel like we need help. God gives us the help we need. If we ask, He is willing to forgive us.

   So basically, all that to say, curiosity can be a great thing if we use it as a learning experience. And, temptation is something that we are going to have to deal with in life. The question is: the next time you are tempted will you walk away or will you get burned? The choice is yours. 

   1 Corinthians 10:13, 1 Peter 5:8, James 1:12, Genesis 3