Lust, a Looney Tunes Worthy Trap

Who remembers watching the old Bugs Bunny cartoons where the bad guy would always fall down the really obvious trap door? I got to thinking – that’s kinda what Solomon was talking about in Proverbs 5 & 7. Lust is an awful lot like a really obvious trap door. God puts warning signs in our lives to steer us away from lust and temptation. The only problem is that sometimes we are so consumed and blinded by our lusts that we either can’t see or we ignore the warning signs. It’s like walking up to that really obvious trap door and falling down the hole. Only, unlike in the cartoons, we willingly trigger the trap.

As someone once said, “It’s not the fall that will kill you; it’s the sudden stop.” When we’re in the middle of indulging in our lists (falling) we can’t see (or don’t care about) the affect our sin has on us. Yet once we hit the floor and we feel the guilt and shame of our sin, the damage has been done. Unlike the cartoons, though, we don’t come back in the next scene like nothing happened. Not only does our sin hurt us but it hurts those around us, especially the ones we love the most. Not only do we come out all banged up, but so do others.

We often forget that God tells us not to do certain things for a reason – because He knows what those things do to us, how unholy they are, and lust’s destructive power. We take a look at that which we lust for (whether it be sex, power, control, appearing spiritual to others, money, fame, fortune, love, acceptance; the list could go on) and we covet. It’s like that child whose parents tell him or her “no” so the child either throws a tantrum or does/goes for it anyway.

Then again when we refuse to give in to that temptation and lust, even if we’re standing with one foot on the trap, God prevents the trap from springing. When we trust God and that He says no for a reason we find that we draw closer to Him. And, heaven forbid, we have fallen and damage has been done, God can still repair the damage that’s been done.