Be Aware

Now Dinah the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her and lay with her, and violated her. - Genesis 34:1-2

The Lord had a plan for His people as He was beginning to develop His own nation. But long before the children of Israel would fully understand what that meant, God began to teach them the importance of being set apart from the Gentile (or pagan) nations. When Dinah "went out to see the daughters of the land," she may not have realized the potential danger in mingling with the foreigners. This danger became real when Hamor "violated her."

As Christians, we must be aware of the danger of mingling in the world's activities. There must be a distinction between us and the world. There are times to witness and to shine the Light of Jesus Christ into the world, but we need wisdom to know when to be careful of dangerous places. Jesus prayed for us to be in the world but not of the world. God has a purpose for us in how we live and also in the activities of which we participate. We must train ourselves to be aware of the enemy's schemes to lure us into trouble, which often happens because we are in a place where we should not be.

Dinah found herself in trouble by visiting the women of the land. This trouble led to even greater problems for the family. Let us receive this message and apply it to our own lives as we pray to be aware of these types of dangers. What can seem harm-lesscould actually be harm-ful. Get into the habit of bringing every decision to the Lord first and then asking for the wisdom and guidance in what to do next.

~Daily Disciples Devotional~