The Monkey Trap
THE MONKEY TRAP
Read Luke 12:16-21.
Jordan’s parents were missionaries in central Africa. One day Jordan’s friend Joseph helped him make a monkey trap. Joseph said, “Make a hole in this gourd, just big enough for a monkey to put his hand through.” He watched Jordan work. “That’s big enough. We’ll put some nuts and fruit in the gourd. Then we’ll fasten it to a tree branch at the edge of the village.”
“I don’t get it,” said Jordan as the boys walked toward a tree. “I can see that a monkey might reach into the gourd to get the food, but what will keep him from getting away?”
“When he has nuts in his fist, his hand won’t go through the hole,” explained Joseph. “If he’d just let them go, he could get away. But he won’t. He’ll hang on even though he’s caught.” Joseph helped Jordan attach the gourd to a tree. “There. By tomorrow morning, you’ll have a monkey.”
That night Jordan told his mother about the monkeys. Mom nodded. “I was just as foolish myself at one time. I didn’t want to give up my things and come to the mission field. But God showed me that when I obeyed Him, I wasn’t giving up anything important. I was just letting some things go for better things. I’ve never been as happy as I’ve been here in Africa, bringing the message of salvation to the people here.”
HOW ABOUT YOU?
What things do you want to keep? What things do you want to have when you grow up? Don’t let your things trap you into missing what God wants for you. It may be that the things you want will be in His plan for you, but you need to be willing to let them go. If they are not in His plan, you can be sure He has something even better.
TO MEMORIZE:
Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.
Colossians 3:2
LOVE GOD, NOT POSSESSIONS.
From the book
