Strategic Avoidance

"Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn away from it and pass on." —Proverbs 4:15

When professional athletes are arrested during brawls at places like night clubs and dog fights, we say, "How stupid! Why would they risk their millions of fans—and million-dollar contracts—by deliberately putting themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time?" 

Yet every one of us is doing the same thing whenever we go anywhere that exposes our own hearts to needless temptation. For each person, the temptation might be something different--the availability of various forms of media alone can present temptations that you know you need to avoid. The Bible says plainly, "Avoid every kind of evil" (1 Thessalonians 5:22, NIV). Our sinful natures are drawn like magnets to the things of this world; they seem attractive to us. One significant way to slay temptation is by not placing ourselves in an environment where we'll be tempted. 

Call it Strategic Avoidance. Proverbs 16:17 says, "The highway of the upright avoids evil; he who guards his way guards his life" (NIV). [Dr. David Jeremiah, Journey, pg. 281]

It's easier to avoid temptation than to resist it. —Bill Shannon