Fight or Flight?

A few years ago a friend of mine and I were hiking in the woods near Anchorage, Alaska. It was fall and therefore mating season for moose. At one point on our hike we heard a crashing through the brush and out trotted a large cow moose with a bull hot in pursuit. The cow was irritated by the bull already and seeing us on the trail only worsened her mood. So Ed and I veered off onto another trail to avoid this testy cow.

About 20 minutes later, Ed I were just cresting the top of a hill when here came that same cow up the other side of the hill toward us. In angry moose fashion, she laid her ears back, dropped her head, the hair on the back of her neck bristled and she began stomping the ground. Ed and knew she was not happy about sharing the trail with us and we were about to be chased!

Ed and I both ran for trees on either side of the trail with this irate, 1400-pound cow charging us. Fortunately for us she was apparently more interested in asserting her authority than in following through with the chase and she broke off the pursuit.

I tell that story without even the slightest hint of embarrassment over the fact that we ran away from this cow moose. Fleeing from her was the only smart thing to do in that situation! Had we tried to stand our ground—or worse yet—approach her, we both could’ve been trampled to death or at least very seriously injured.

The apostle Paul gives us similar advice when we’re confronted with what he calls “youthful lusts or passions.” In 2 Timothy 2:22 (NLT) Paul urges, “Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts.” Escape, flee, run away from anything that will feed, fuel or arouse lustful passions. These passions are dangerous! They’re deadly! What in the world are we doing thinking we can toy with them? Do we wrongly think that to resist them we must confront them? No! Run, flee!

But there is more to the strategy than merely fleeing sin. Yes, we’re to run away from sin, but in 2 Timothy 2:22 (NLT), Paul continues, “Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts.”

Paul also explains in Ephesians that by giving ourselves or yielding to sensuality and indulging in impurity, we lose our sensitivity to what displeases God and harms us. That is we can become “darkened in our understanding” (Ephesians 4:18). As a result we become slaves to our passions and continually lust for more (Ephesians 4:19).

Just like with the cow moose, there is no shame or embarrassment in fleeing from sin. It’s the smart thing to do! But were we to coddle sin and give in to it we would experience great loss—greater far than any charging moose!

©2009 Rob Fischer