dangerous decisions

DANGEROUSDECISIONSLearning From The Mistakes Of Lot & Achan

OOne of the greatdiscoveries of life is to

see how often we can do things we will never regret.

Think about what wouldhappen if a group of us gottogether and spent a day talkingabout the best decisions we evermade—and the worst.

Such a conversation wouldnot be far from stories of theBible that show men and womenat the crossroads of their lives.

Those are the kinds ofdecisions Dan Schaeffer helps us to think through in thisexcerpt of his book DefiningMoments: When Choices Matter Most. Mart De Haan

CONTENTS

Defining Moments . . . . . 2

The Tragic Tale Of An Empty Lot . . . . . . . . . 3

Achan’s Fatal Attraction . . . . . . . 16

Our Greatest Need . . . 31

Managing Editor: David Sper Cover Photo & Design:Terry BidgoodUnless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations taken from the New American StandardBible®. Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The LockmanFoundation. Used by permission.This booklet is based on a portion of Defining Moments:When Choices Matter Most by DanSchaeffer, published by Discovery House Publishers, a member of the RBC Ministries family.© 2009 RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, Michigan Printed in USA

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DEFININGMOMENTS

OOne morning youwake up, totallyunaware that today

you will make a decisionthat will define your life for years to come, perhaps forever. If you had known this momentwas approaching, youwould have prepared for it. But you didn’t.

Each of us willexperience moments that are far more importantthan all the others. In thesemoments we will say or dosomething because suchbehavior has becomesecond nature to us. Butthe consequences will bedrastically different.

Senator Dan Coates said, “Character cannot be summoned at themoment of crisis if it has been squandered byyears of compromise andrationalization. The only

testing ground for the heroic is the mundane. The only preparation forthat one profound decisionwhich can change a life, or even a nation, is thosehundreds of half-conscious,self-defining, seeminglyinsignificant decisions madein private. Habit is the dailybattleground of character”(Reader’s Digest, June 1996).

Our character is thescene of great battles. In the last analysis, it willnudge us in one direction or another. Fortunately, wecan learn from those whohave gone before us. TheBible is full of definingmoments, both good andbad. Real people in real-lifesituations, just like us.From their examples we canlearn how to prepare for ourown defining moments.

Are you ready? In thefollowing pages you willmeet two people from theBible who weren’t ready fortheir defining moment. And

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© 2009 RBC Ministries

you will see the terribletragedy that ensued. (Forexamples of people whowere ready and made goodchoices, see the book fromwhich this excerpt wasderived.)

Most of us embrace wiseprinciples for living as wellas habits that are unwise.These two are in constantconflict within us, eachvying for privileged status.In that pivotal moment, wewill choose between thetwo, and our lot will beirretrievably cast.

In Mere ChristianityC. S. Lewis wrote, “Everytime you make a choice, youare turning the central partof you, the part of you thatchooses, into something alittle different from what itwas before. And taking yourlife as a whole, with all yourinnumerable choices, allyour life long you are slowlyturning this central thingeither into a heavenlycreature or into a hellish

creature; either into acreature that is in harmonywith God, and with othercreatures, and with itself, or else into one that is in astate of war and hatred withGod, and with its fellow-creatures, and with itself.”

THE TRAGICTALE OF ANEMPTY LOT

TThere’s a windingmountain road leadingup to the High Sierra

Mountains on the way toYosemite National Park.The road passes throughseveral small towns and anoccasional home or smallbusiness. I recall that whenI first started making thatdrive, I saw a large steakhouse that had closedrecently. “For Sale” signswere everywhere, alongwith the name of therestaurant. The buildingwas still in good repair,nicely painted, and

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pleasant to look at. Iwondered what restaurantwould be there the nexttime I came through.

It has been 16 years,and that building is stillempty. The paint is old and faded, the windowsboarded up, the parking lot overgrown with weeds.When this restaurant first opened, it must havebustled with activity: plates,silverware, and glassesclinking; wait-staff scurryingto get food; music playing;people talking, laughing,and socializing. I’ve oftenwondered what caused it to close its doors.

This restaurant had beensomeone’s dream. But nowthe dream has died. Thebuilding stands vacant andlonely. No one goes thereexcept for the occasionalvagrant looking for shelter.It’s a sad picture. It’s alsothe tragic story of manypeople’s lives.

In this section, we will

look at the true-life story ofa real empty Lot. His storyis found in Genesis 13, 14,and 19. Lot was the nephewof Abram, whom the Lordlater called Abraham, thefather of the Jewish race. In those chapters we read about Lot’s definingdecision—the decision that mirrored his whole lifeand set the tone for the rest of it.

Both Abram and Lotwere wealthy men whoresided in a foreign country.It was a land that belongedto the Canaanites and thePerizzites. The area whereAbram and Lot were livingcould no longer support two great herds of animals.With no fences or bordersto determine where one’sgrazing rights began andanother’s ended, theherdsmen of the tworelatives began to fight. So Abram stepped in andmade a wise decision.There was enough room

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for both of them if theywent in different directions.

Abram was the patriarchof the two, and the one towhom God had promisedall this land (Gen. 12:6-7).As the proper recipient ofthe entire region, Abramcould have chosen the landhe wanted and left the restto Lot. But Abram showedhis godliness by trustingGod to keep His promise inHis own way. He graciouslyallowed Lot to choosewhich land he wanted.

Humanly speaking, itwasn’t a hard decision forLot. The Jordan Valley wasa lush green place, andSodom and Gomorrah were beautiful anddesirable places to live. Lot didn’t think twice. Hesaw the fertile land of theplains and chose it.

While this decisionseemed shrewd for Lot, it turned out badly. Hisshallow choice reflected histrue character and revealed

him to be, in several ways,an empty Lot.

Lot’s life can teach us four dangers to bewareof when making defining-moment decisions—fourdangers that will keep youfrom becoming an emptyLot yourself. The firstdanger is:

The Danger OfDeceiving Yourself.From Lot’s tragic life welearn that there are noharmless character flaws.When we read Genesis13:10-13, it’s clear that self-interest and greed droveLot’s decision. AlthoughAbram could rightfully have chosen where hewould live, he humbledhimself and allowed Lot to choose. Furthermore,Abram initiated the solution to the problem.

Significantly, the Bibledoes call Lot a righteousman. In 2 Peter 2:6-8, Peter reminds us that God“condemned the cities of

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Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducingthem to ashes, having madethem an example to thosewho would live ungodlylives thereafter; and if Herescued righteous Lot,oppressed by the sensualconduct of unprincipledmen (for by what he sawand heard that righteousman, while living amongthem, felt his righteous soultormented day after daywith their lawless deeds).”

Lot was a righteous manbecause he believed God,expressed his faith in God,and did not approve of thehorrible sins of Sodom and Gomorrah. In 2 Peter,however, it seems that Lot’srighteousness is contrastednot with Abram’s but withthat of the citizens ofSodom and Gomorrah. It’spossible to appear to bemorally upstanding buthave one or two tragiccharacter flaws thateventually surface.

One of Lot’s flaws wasthat he struggled with greedand selfishness. He desiredthe best of the land forhimself, and he was in aposition to get it. Sodomand Gomorrah werewealthy enclaves—places of great riches because of the fertileness of the region. People like to live in beautiful places, and usually only thewealthiest can afford to.

Lot’s greed is evident in other passages as well.When we read that God sentjudgment upon Sodom andGomorrah, we gain valuableinsight into Lot’s character.God had determined toobliterate the towns for theirsin and unrepentance. Yet,even though Lot knew this,he didn’t want to leave. Godsent angels in the form ofmen to protect Lot from thejudgment. But the men ofSodom demanded that Lothand them over so theycould rape them. That’s

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how perverse the people ofSodom had become.

In spite of this horribledecadence, Lot still didn’twant to leave. The angelsliterally had to drag him andhis family out of Sodom.The scriptural account says,“But he hesitated. So themen [angels] seized hishand and the hand of hiswife and the hands of histwo daughters, for thecompassion of the Lord was upon him; and theybrought him out, and puthim outside the city” (Gen. 19:16).

Hesitated! Why? Thereason is simple. EverythingLot had attained was aboutto be destroyed—all hiswealth, his businesscontacts, his home, his job, everything but his very life. He still didn’twant to give it up.

You may be thinking,“But I thought he was arighteous man?” Can aperson be a Christian and

still have a defectivecharacter? Yes! Greed,desire, envy, and jealousydon’t go away just becauseyou become a Christian.Sooner or later, God makes us face those issues and brings them to our attention. It cost Loteverything he had beforeGod got his attention.

If not dealt withproperly, a single weakcharacter trait can have anegative effect on the rest of our lives. In Lot’s life,greed and self-interest werepresent, even though heappeared to be a morallyupstanding individual.

The heart of theChristian is like a garden.When we are born again,God plants His fruit, thefruit of the Spirit: love, joy,peace, patience, kindness,goodness, faithfulness,gentleness, and self-control(Gal. 5:22-23). But at thesame time, Satan keepstrying to replant his

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own garden in our heart. Character flaws are like

weeds—they grow fastestwhen they are ignored andbecome increasingly difficultto pull out. We need to dealwith such weeds when theyfirst appear, because by thetime we see the plants, theroots are already formedand growing.

My wife Annette and Iplanted a little garden. Weplanted corn, pumpkins,cantaloupe, watermelon,beans, herbs, squash, andsunflowers. We planted all those on purpose; wewanted them to grow. Wewatered them carefully andcultivated them. But weedspopped up without anyattention whatsoever. They grew marvelously. We had to pull the weedscontinually. We nevertended the weeds; the more we neglected them,the better they grew.

The spiritual garden we want must be tended

in order to grow, but aspiritual “weed” willflourish with inattention.What weed, or characterflaw, are you ignoring? Ifyou ignore it long enough,one day that flaw will growso large it will be the onlything that people can see in you. All your goodqualities will be hiddenbehind that one characterflaw you have ignored.

You may be there rightnow. Caring people mayhave already discussed thisflaw with you. They haveseen how it has taken overyour life. When you try topoint out all your goodqualities, they can’t seem to see them. Your characterflaw is now so blatant thatit overshadows all yourother good qualities. If so,you may be on your way tobecoming an empty Lot.

Some Christians jokeabout their character flaws.“That’s just who I am,” they will tell you with a

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grin. They seem to think a character flaw is just apersonality trait. But theBible never treats them that way.

I heard of a pastor whowas cursing in his sermonsand criticizing people hewas angry with from thepulpit. He got into a fistfight with an elder fromhis church at a basketballgame. When confrontedwith this sin, his excusewas “Hey, that’s just me.That’s my personality. It’sthe way I am. It’s no bigdeal.”

He equated his activitywith a personality trait thatwas supposedly beyond his control. Shyness is apersonality trait. Beinggregarious is a personalitytrait. But sin is sin! Andsins are weeds that must be pulled. Don’t deceiveyourself. There are noharmless character flaws.

There’s also a seconddanger to consider:

The Danger OfAltering God’s PriceTags. Genesis 13:10 tellsus, “Lot lifted up his eyesand saw all the valley of the Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere—this was before the Lorddestroyed Sodom andGomorrah—like the gardenof the Lord, like the land ofEgypt as you go to Zoar.”

Everything Lot could seewith his eyes looked good.He was smitten with thegreat lust spoken of in 1 John 2:16, “For all that isin the world, the lust of theflesh and the lust of the eyesand the boastful pride of life,is not from the Father, but isfrom the world.”

One commentatorpointed out that theHebrew word for sin means“to miss the mark.” He thenwent on to say: “So a sinneris one who is ever aiming athappiness and constantlymissing his mark; because . . . he seeks for happiness

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where it can never befound” (Adam Clark, The Bethany ParallelCommentary: Old Testament,p.45). Lot didn’t lookbeyond what his eyes couldsee. He knew that Sodomwas an immoral town. Itsreputation was well-known.But it was an attractiveplace. While Lot neveradopted the religion of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, nor theirimmoral practices, he wassmitten with their culture,their “stuff.” They were apeople who were looking forhappiness where it couldn’tbe found, and Lot seemedto have the same weakness.

God places the price tagsin life where they belong.He tells us what is valuableand what is worthless.When God’s price tags don’tseem to make sense to us,we’re tempted to changethem. Lot chose Sodom and Gomorrah, the capitalcities of the “good life.”

The result? His righteoussoul was constantlyoffended, oppressed, andinfluenced by the sinfullifestyle around him.

In chapter 14, we’re toldthat enemies captured Lot,and that Abram had torescue him. He no doubtlived a compromisedlifestyle in Sodom, one thatlikely contributed to the lowmoral standards of hisdaughters (see Gen. 19:30-38). Not only did he haveto be rescued by angels, healso lost his wife, his sons-in-law, and his livelihood,and he barely escaped withhis own life. Lot paid dearlyfor his poor choice.

Recently, my wife and I struck up a conversationwith a clerk in our localBarnes & Noble bookstore.She seemed despondentand mentioned that herhouse had recently burneddown. She sadly sharedhow she had lost some75,000 baseball cards she

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had been collecting as partof a business venture. Allthe plaques and honors shehad accumulated over theyears were also destroyed.

When I asked her ifanyone was hurt, shenonchalantly shook her head no, as if the question were ultimatelyunimportant. She obviouslyderived no comfort from it.Her stuff, which was of greatvalue to her, was destroyedin much the same way thatLot’s things were—by fire.Bible commentator F. B.Meyer wrote, “The world is full of Lots—shallow,impulsive, doomed to berevealed by their choice.”

Have you exchangedprice tags in your life? The things we valuebecome the basis for our most important anddefining decisions. If wevalue money and prestige,we will chase a job thatbrings us these things butlittle else. We all know

scores of people who areunhappy in their jobs butare now trapped. The thingsthat bring them fulfillmentdon’t make them enoughmoney, and they are tooattached to their lifestyle to make the necessarychanges. Work becomes a grind, and they growmiserable.

I know men and womenwho married their spousesprimarily for their looks.This is what they valuedmost in a mate. But now—5, 10, 15 years later—theluster has worn off. They wish they had married someone moreunderstanding, thoughtful,and considerate—qualitiestheir spouses lack, whichnow cause them such pain.All around them they seecouples who are physicallyless attractive but arefulfilled in marriage.

When we value all thestatus possessions of ourworld—bigger, more

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expensive homes, and moreexpensive and newer cars—we can find ourselvessacrificing everything to getthem. Spending beyond ourmeans, we end up in debtand unable to enjoy thevery possessions we havesacrificed so much to have.In these and many otherdecisions like them, we canfind that our choices revealwho we really are.

What do your choicesreveal about what youvalue? We see this thoughtdeveloped more fully in thethird danger:

The Danger OfLong-term DecisionsBased On TemporaryAttractions. Lot’sdecision was based on what he saw, what appealedto him through his physicalsenses. What did Lot seewhen he looked at thebeautiful Jordan Valley andSodom and Gomorrah? Hesaw three things: beauty,wealth, and ease.

The Jordan Valley wasmore beautiful than theterritory Lot left to Abram.It was a desirable place to live. Think of the NapaValley in California, or the South of France, where vines and orchardsgrow abundantly and thecountryside is picturesque.

Second, there waswealth. Ample water andpasture meant additionalgrazing areas and increasedflocks. More flocks meantmore wealth, because in theancient East, livestock hadvalue, not currency.

Third, Lot saw ease. It would be much easier to make a living in Sodomand Gomorrah than whereAbram was going. Whenthe water is there, and thegrass is in abundance, andthe fruit trees are alreadyplanted, you simply don’thave to work as hard.Caring for the animals is much easier.

Beauty, wealth, and 12

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ease. Lot, like so many ofus, was sure that the thingshe now found so attractivewould always be that way.People are sure their looksand youth will last, their jobwill be secure, their talentwill always be in demand.

So what happened? Let’s start with the beautyof Sodom and Gomorrah. It was utterly destroyed by a volcanic-like eruption,never to be anything but a desolate plain. And Lot’s great wealth? Hisflocks were destroyed, hisbusiness and his customerswere gone, and he barelyescaped with his life. Andwhat about the ease of hislife? With his livelihood andhis home removed, Lot wasdestined to live in a cave.

Several years ago, therewas a sensational story inthe news about Della andDarryl Sutorius. Darryl was a heart surgeon who haddivorced his wife of 30years and met a striking

woman named DellaBritteon through a datingservice. He saw a young,quiet, eye-catching woman,and evidently thought shewould be everything hisprevious wife had not been.

He married her only 4 months after his divorce.What he didn’t know,however, was that Dellahad been previouslymarried three times and was not at all what she seemed. She wasdangerous! Each of herformer husbands had been lucky to escape theirmarriage with their lives.Della was vicious and mean, and when rejected,she acted violently. Lessthan a year after marryingthis “beauty,” Dr. Sutoriuswanted a divorce. But henever got the chance. Dellakilled him with a .38-caliberrevolver she had boughtonly 2 days earlier.

Are you making long-term decisions based on

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temporary attractions? Thatis one of the quickest waysto become an empty Lot.Finally we come to the lastand greatest danger:

The Danger Of Assuming YourDecisions Won’t AffectOthers. We infuse thosearound us with our values,especially those closest tous. Let’s follow the resultsof Lot’s decision on hisfamily. When they wereescaping Sodom andGomorrah’s judgment, the angels warned them in Genesis 19:17, “Escapefor your life! Do not lookbehind you, and do notstay anywhere in the valley;escape to the mountains, or you will be swept away.”But what happened to Lot’swife? Genesis 19:26 says,“But his wife, from behindhim, looked back, and shebecame a pillar of salt.”Don’t misunderstand. TheHebrew word suggests thiswas not a casual backward

glance. It was a long look ofdesire, a reluctance to leaveher home and possessions.

She, like her husband,was hesitating, lingering,because she didn’t reallywant to go. God had sentangels to save them fromdestruction, and she didn’twant to leave Sodom. Shehad a severe case of thesame greed that Lot had.

Lot’s sons-in-law didn’ttake his warnings seriouslyand were destroyed. Butwhat of his daughters?

When Sodom andGomorrah were annihilated,Lot took his daughters andhid in a cave with them. His daughters decided theywanted to have children, sothey got their father drunkand slept with him (Gen.19:30-38). These incestuousacts resulted in the Moabitesand the Ammonites, twotribes who were a perpetualthorn in the side ofAbraham’s descendants.

This story shocks our 14

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sensibilities. Where was their faith in God’sprovision? Where did Lot’s daughters learn todebase themselves withsuch horribly immoraldecisions? Think about this:How much time had Lot’sdaughters spent in the cityDaddy picked to be theirhome? With whom had theygrown up, and from whomhad they been learning?Who was influencing themday after day, night afternight? What lifestyle wastheir culture bombardingthem with continually?

How are our decisionsaffecting our loved ones?Lot’s faith in God remained,but his decisions haddestroyed everything hevalued because he hadinvested his life in things of no value.

Dr. Laura Schlessinger, a radio talk-show host,related how she was once at a loss for words duringher call-in show. It was a

call from an 11-year-old boy that rendered herspeechless. He told her hehad a problem. He liked acertain girl at school, butanother one was “makingeyes” at him and letting himknow she liked him. Shouldhe drop his present girlfriendto chase the new one?

Dr. Laura asked the boy, “Well, how would you feel if your daddy went off with some newlady every time one showedinterest?” “He did,” was hismatter-of-fact reply. Sinceno loyalty and fidelity wasmodeled at home, whatcould Dr. Laura say?

Our values will affect—or infect—those we love. A very enlightening projectmight be to poll yourspouse, children, and closefriends, and ask them toshare what they feel youvalue most in life from what they see in your life.Warning: This is not aproject for the faint of heart.

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If you heed this advice,your defining moment canbe a wonderful one, amoment that will positivelyaffect your family andeveryone else. Give yourown story a happy ending!Don’t become an empty Lot.

Personal ReflectionWe all have character flaws,but it’s tempting to justifythem or joke about them,instead of dealing withthem. The longer we wait to deal with these flaws, theworse they become and thecloser we are to becomingan empty Lot. Will yourmost defining moment be a result of an ignoredcharacter flaw? What mightyou do to prevent it? Nowgo do it—while there’s time!

Follow-through Write down what youbelieve to be your greatestcharacter flaw. Determine to make it a daily matter ofprayer. Look up Scriptures

related to it, and ask God continually for His power to overcome it. Don’t expect immediatechanges. Actions are theresult of our heart’sdesires—and the heartchanges slowly. But startnow, and don’t stop!

ACHAN’S FATALATTRACTION

TThere’s a sport that afew daring souls havebegun to embrace

called BASE, or extremejumping. Its name isderived from the acronymfor buildings, antennas,spans, and earth. Instead of jumping out of a planeand parachuting, these folksjump off tall buildings, highantennas, bridges, andcliffs—tempting fate anddanger for the thrill of it.Because of its inherentdanger, it’s banned in most places.

Jan Davis was one of 16

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five BASE jumpers preparedto challenge one such banin Yosemite National Park.The group had climbed tothe 3,200-foot peak ofYosemite’s El Capitan. Their jump was going to be a public protest todemonstrate that the jumpscould be made safely.

Davis was 60 years oldand a veteran of countlessjumps made over 16 years.She was the fourth of five jumpers, and usedborrowed gear because she didn’t want hers to be confiscated by rangerswaiting to arrest her on thevalley floor. As her friendsand family watched frombelow, she jumped, but her chute never opened.She fell to her death. Thenewspaper headline of her death read, “Chutistdies in ironic tragedy.”BASE-jumping is inherentlydangerous. That is part ofits allure. But for Jan Davisit was a fatal attraction.

Like Jan Davis, each one of us has our own fatalattraction. While we maynot consider ours nearly so dangerous, our fatalattractions can ruin ourreputation, marriage, career,friendships, and dreams.Perhaps there’s no morevivid example in the Bibleof this danger than Achan.

Achan’s story is found in Joshua 6. Israel hadcrossed the Jordan Riverand marched aroundJericho for 7 days as Godhad commanded them. Thestory is familiar. Perhapsnot quite as familiar areGod’s specific instructions.Before the people werecommanded to shout,which would bring downthe walls of Jericho, theywere reminded:

The city shall be underthe ban, it and all that isin it belongs to the Lord;only Rahab the harlotand all who are with herin the house shall live,

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because she hid themessengers whom wesent. But as for you, onlykeep yourselves from thethings under the ban, sothat you do not covetthem and take some ofthe things under the ban,and make the camp ofIsrael accursed and bringtrouble on it. But all the silver and gold andarticles of bronze andiron are holy to the Lord;they shall go into thetreasury of the Lord (Josh. 6:17-19).Achan was there, and

he heard the ban. But thetemptation proved too great for him, and he broke it. Unfortunately for all of Israel, the divineconsequence of Achan’ssin was that God would nolonger go before them andlead them to victory.

Unaware of what Achan had done, Israelattacked a small outpostcalled Ai. What should

have been an easy victory turned into aninglorious defeat, and 36men of Israel were killed. Ai remained defiant andunconquered. Joshua 7:16-26 relates the dramatic waythat God exposed Achan’ssin to Israel, and hisresulting confession.

From Achan’s examplewe can discern sevensymptoms of a fatalattraction that may beevident in our own lives. If ignored, they could leadto a defining moment notunlike Achan’s—terrible,shameful, and destructive.But if we can identify them,there’s great hope that wecan disarm the ticking timebomb before it explodes inour lives.

The first and mostobvious symptom is:

A Fatal AttractionNever Lies Dormant.A fatal attraction is nothingmore than a secret sin orsinful attitude or activity

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that we have allowed tobloom. It is something wefind ourselves drawn to that we know is dangerousand sinful, yet we haveconvinced ourselves that it’s safe for us. Perhapswe’ve even cultivated thisattraction in private.

How long had Achanstruggled with this problemof greed? This was not amomentary character lapsefor Achan, but the naturalresult of a fatal attraction hehad nurtured. Unfortunately,it was an attraction needingonly the right opportunity—a defining moment—toprove his undoing. Achan’sfatal attraction was a glaringchink in his spiritual armorthat he had ignored. Hisdesire for wealth hadhideously devolved intogreed of the first order.

Achan’s motivations arecommon to all of us. Jamesexposed the process oftemptation in every humanheart when he wrote:

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am beingtempted by God”; for Godcannot be tempted byevil, and He Himself doesnot tempt anyone. Buteach one is tempted whenhe is carried away andenticed by his own lust.Then when lust hasconceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin isaccomplished, it bringsforth death (1:13-15).How graphically this is

revealed in Achan’s definingmoment! But beyondJames’ words there is, inAchan’s own confession,the clear downward spiralof temptation and sin:

When I saw among thespoil a beautiful mantlefrom Shinar and twohundred shekels of silverand a bar of gold fiftyshekels in weight, then Icoveted them and tookthem; and behold, theyare concealed in theearth inside my tent

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with the silver underneathit (Josh. 7:21).He saw, he coveted,

he took, he concealed.Before we leave this

scene, it’s good to rememberthat thousands of Hebrewsoldiers saw what Achansaw when they invadedJericho, but their own greedhad not degenerated to thelevel of Achan’s.

There is an enlighteningequation we can derivefrom Achan’s life:

A FATAL ATTRACTION +OPPORTUNITY = SHAME,

DISGRACE, AND LOSS

There is latent within allof us a fatal attraction. Wecan ignore it and assureourselves that we have itunder control. Or we canfear it, terrified that it mayone day be our undoing.

We often mistake thelack of opportunity withself-control. But as Achanshows, by God’s mercy we may never have beenexposed to the right

opportunity. At some point, Satan will be givenpermission to tempt usagain, and the opportunitywill be presented.

Each of us has asensitivity to differenttemptations. Some of us are extremely susceptible tofinancial temptations, othersto sexual temptations, whileothers are vulnerable totemptations of fame orpower. As you review thedownward progression thatled Achan to ruin, can youidentify your own positionon the continuum? I saw. I coveted. I took. I hid. Howclose to danger are you?

Achan’s defining momentcame when he first laideyes on the treasure he haddiscovered, because at thatcritical moment somethinghappened that even hedidn’t understand. Anunaddressed pervertedpassion had grown toostrong for him to control.Did it surprise even him?

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The movie Little Shop Of Horrors is the story of a small alien flower thatcomes into the life of ayoung employee at a plantstore. While the flowerlooks strange to him at first, he does his best to try to keep it alive. Butdespite his best efforts andall conventional care, itcontinues to die. It’s onlywhen he accidentally cutshis finger and a drop ofblood dribbles on the plantthat it perks up. He isshocked to discover that it subsists on blood.

Each day the young manpricks his finger and feedsthe ravenous plant. Andeach day the strange plantgrows bigger and stronger,demanding more and moreblood. It finally grows to fillthe whole shop and evencommits murder to fulfill itsunquenchable desire.

This is an apt picture of what happens tounaddressed passions

within us. They do notremain dormant. They willdemand attention, and wemust either deny them—sending them back into theshadows—or feed them,making them stronger still.

I saw. I coveted. I took. I hid. One unaddressed evilpassion in our lives is all ittakes. Remember, a fatalattraction never liesdormant. Second:

A Fatal AttractionDeafens Us To God’sWork And Voice.A quick review of the book of Joshua reminds us thatAchan had been part of twotremendous miracles of Godwithin a short period oftime. First, he had walkedacross the Jordan River ondry ground as the water was miraculously held backin a heap. Second, he hadwitnessed an amazingmiracle when the walls of Jericho came tumblingdown.

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Joshua had told everyonenot to touch anything thatwas under the ban. SoAchan knew exactly whathe was doing when he tookthe loot. He showed noconcern that God wasactive in Israel, ignoring the miracles performed right before his eyes.

Additionally, Joshua 5indicates that Achan musthave been one of the menwho had been circumcised.Circumcision was a sign of the Hebrews’ covenantrelationship with God. Had Achan forgotten theimplications of this sosoon? How can a manwitness such miracles of God and then let hisgreed run amok? Didn’t he believe God would see what he was doing?

Achan’s story highlightsthe devastating effect of anunaddressed sinful passion.Our desire to listen to God’sWord wanes. We lose ourappreciation for His works.

When we embrace a sinfulpassion and allow it to growstrong in our lives, one ofits first debilitating attacksis on our spiritual focus. To reach any goal—even an evil one—takesconcentration and focus.We work, think, andstrategize to reach what we want most. When thathappens, we lose sight ofeverything else. It’sinevitable.

Achan’s greed was all he focused on in the end.He had stopped listening toGod and appreciating Hismighty works because allhis senses were trained on one thing—greed. Anunaddressed passion willslowly but surely deaden us to God’s work and HisWord in our life. We willbegin to tune out God’svoice because it will presentan unwanted obstacle toour sin. And we don’t wantour sin challenged; we wantit fulfilled.

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This is why Paul warnedthe young pastor Timothy,“The love of money is aroot of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered awayfrom the faith and piercedthemselves with manygriefs” (1 Tim. 6:10). Wecan insert any number ofpassions in that verse andthe result would be thesame. The love of power,fame, and lust are alsoroots of all sorts of evil.

As Paul noted, some ofus wander away from thefaith. It’s a slow defectionrather than an abruptdeparture. We don’t justturn our backs on God one day; it takes time for asinful desire to develop thelevel of intensity that willcause us to ignore thescriptural wisdom we’veadhered to for years.

After years of counselingpeople who have beencaught in various sins, Ihave noticed a clear pattern

of behavior. A slowexchange of passions,developed over time, causespeople to lose interest inGod’s work and voice. Itoften happens slowly, soconfident of their spiritualconvictions that they fail toaddress the danger properly.Gradually they becomeoblivious to the danger. Andthen, in what appears to bejust a moment, they fall.

One evening I waswatching a documentaryabout strange creatures.The episode dealt with apredatory fish that had the extraordinary ability to burrow into the oceanfloor, becoming completelycamouflaged. While thisodd fish was too slow tocatch the smaller fish onwhich its diet depended,God had given it a longworm-shaped appendage on the top of its head thatcould wiggle freely. Whenthe fish lay on the oceanfloor wiggling that

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appendage, it looked justlike a real worm dancingabout. The unsuspectingprey would swim by,become tantalized by thewormlike appendage, andprepare to devour it. But ina split second, the predatorwould rise up and swallowthe smaller fish.

Nature reminds us thatthis kind of thing happensevery day. The Biblereminds us that it happensto people as well. Like thelittle fish being tantalized by the wormlike appendage,we become oblivious to thedanger because we havestopped listening to God’swarnings. But the dangerdoesn’t end there. A thirdsymptom is that:

A Fatal AttractionStimulates The GrowthOf Other Sins WithinUs. Listen to God’sassessment of Achan’sactivity. “Israel has sinned, and they have alsotransgressed My covenant

which I commanded them.And they have even takensome of the things under theban and have both stolenand deceived. Moreover,they have also put themamong their own things”(Josh. 7:11). How frequentlydo we traffic in one sin, andsoon begin to “changelanes” to avoid detection.When we embrace one sin,it becomes necessary toresort to another. Not onlydid Achan steal, but he hadto deceive everyone intothinking he hadn’t.

“Sins are like circles in the water when a stone is thrown into it; oneproduces another,” wrotePhillip Henry. “When angerwas in Cain’s heart, murderwas not far off.”

When someone becomesinvolved in scandal, drugs,alcohol, or any kind ofimmoral activity, how oftendoes lying and deceptionenter the picture? Deceptionbecomes necessary to hide

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the first sin alreadycommitted. For example,when President Clinton wasaccused of immorality withMonica Lewinsky, what washis immediate reaction? Helied to try to cover up hissin. But before we throw too many stones, is he sodifferent from the rest of us?Who among us has not liedto cover up another sin? Didnot King David try to coverup his sin with Bathsheba?One fatal attractionstimulates the growth of other sins within us.

Did Achan exhibit anyconcern for the 36 men whodied? (Josh. 7:5). Did hecare for their families, or forhis responsibility in theirdeaths? The answer mustbe no, because the lotwould have taken quitesome time to fall to him,and he had ample time to come clean (vv.14-18).

So why didn’t he care?He didn’t care because theseeds of self-centeredness

and self-preservation hadbeen cultivated in his life, tothe exclusion of compassionand conscience.

The great aircraft carriersof World War II were vitalwar weapons. They werealways escorted by otherships to protect them. Inthe same way, our fatalattraction requires othersinful “escorts” to keepitself safe.

We must not deceiveourselves. One nurtured sin waters other seeds of sin that have fallen into the fertile ground of ourwavering faith, and theywill quickly bloom. Theidea that we can isolate a particular sin in our lives and restrain it fromspreading elsewhere is amyth. The weeds of sin willalways spread. Fourth:

A Fatal AttractionBlinds Us ToEncroaching Danger.Achan’s response to theprocess of the lot in Joshua

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7:14-18 is a fascinatingstudy in human nature.Achan clearly understoodhow the lot worked, but ateach draw of the lot, as itdrew nearer and nearerhim, he adamantly refusedto confess. Achan nevercame forward, which leadsme to believe he didn’tthink he was actually goingto be caught. This shouldn’tsurprise us. He had alreadydemonstrated that he wasdeaf to God’s work andvoice.

The Hebrews used thelot to determine God’s will.The lot may have beenstones marked with eitherblack or white paint, or asothers have suggested, theymay have been pieces ofmarked pottery. Why thelot? Because “the lot is castinto the lap, but its everydecision is from the Lord”(Prov. 16:33).

There were mountains of evidence that God wascarefully watching over

Israel in every way, butAchan’s sinful passionblinded him to it. It’sconceivable that he simplydidn’t believe he would getcaught. If he had an inklinghe might, he was too greedyto risk losing his treasureunless he was forced to.Remember that he now had in his possession thething he wanted most inlife, the thing he had riskedeverything to get. Maybe heeven hoped the lot wouldimplicate someone else.

A fatal attraction blindsus to encroaching danger.Achan obviously had thewill to sin; he lacked onlythe opportunity. But it’sdoubtful he recognized his own weakness, for that would require wisdom. Achan hadsacrificed wisdom on thealtar of greed years earlier.

The Illinois Departmentof Natural Resourcesreports that more than17,000 deer die each year

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after being struck bymotorists. According to thestate wildlife director, thepeak season for road kills isin late fall. Why? Becausein November, the bucks arein rut. He tells us, “They’reconcentrating almostexclusively on reproductiveactivities, and are a lot lesswary than they normallywould be.” Those words areso instructive: “a lot lesswary than they normallywould be.”

But we are not islands.And the activities webecome involved in, forgood or evil, start ripplesthat touch all those aroundus. Tragically, our fatalattraction will not affectonly us. Fifth:

A Fatal AttractionInfects And DestroysThose Nearest Us. Wesense a twinge of injusticewhen we see all Israelpunished for one man’ssin, but we must rememberthat they had all entered a

covenant with God. Theyhad willingly agreed to beHis people, to be faithfuland obedient to Him. It wasa unique arrangement. Godlooked at them as part of aunit. Each one’s sin affectedthe whole. They hadentered this agreementwillingly and freely, andGod had taken it seriously.

When we read that hisfamily was killed with him,we are further prompted toshout, “No fair!” The lawsaid, after all, “Fathers shallnot be put to death for theirsons, nor shall sons be putto death for their fathers;everyone shall be put todeath for his own sin” (Dt.24:16). Since this was partof the law, which Joshuaknew thoroughly, it seemsto indicate that Achan’sfamily was complicit in his scheme.

It would have beendifficult for Achan to dig a hole in his tent, depositseveral large objects, and

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then cover them up without his family knowing. Apparently, theywere part of the conspiracyto remain silent. Here wesee another tragic outcomeof refusing to address afatal attraction—it infectsthose around us.

The values of parents arelearned by their children.Achan’s newfound wealthcouldn’t help but make lifebetter for everyone involved,could it? Is it possible tobelieve that Achan’s greedwas not noticed by hisfamily? His own covetouspassions were beingconveyed daily to his own children.

Before we dismiss the offense as petty theft,remember that as a result ofAchan’s sin, as many as 36daddies didn’t come homeand 36 families lost sons,fathers, and husbands. An entire army wasdemoralized and in dangerof being attacked by other

armies who would gaincourage from Ai’s victoryover Israel. God’s protectionhad been removed fromthem. An entire nation wasnow in great danger. Why?Because one man refused toaddress a sinful passion inhis life. It destroyed notonly his own life andfamily, but also 36 others.

When we lose control of our lives, our friends andloved ones are often injuredin the crash. Achan was notthe last person to lose farmore than gold when hislife careened madly out of control. Far more thanjust our own family andreputation are at stake. Sixth, we also know that:

A Fatal AttractionShames God And HisPeople. God’s assessmentof the situation was clearand unequivocal: “He hascommitted a disgracefulthing in Israel” (Josh. 7:15).Not only was Israeldisgraced by Achan’s

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action, God was shamed byit as well. Achan never evenconsidered the shame hisaction would bring. Perhapsthis is the most tragic of allthe characteristics of Achanand all those who are in thegrip of a fatal attraction—hedidn’t care. His sinful desirewas far more important tohim than God’s reputation.

Years ago, one of thelarge churches in our areawas rocked by a publicscandal. A former presidentof a large parachurchorganization, who was anelder in the church and aSunday school teacher, wasaccused of molesting younggirls at his home. Thedisgrace was intense.

What is worse is thatthis same man had beenaccused of similar activity20 years earlier, but nothinghad been done about it. His fatal attraction hadremained buried until itfinally bloomed and couldno longer be hidden.

As we approach our own defining moments, weneed to ask ourselves animportant question. Is theresomething in our life that, ifnot addressed and broughtto light, could bring shameto our family, our church,and our God? There may be an even more importantquestion: Does the thoughtthat our life could shameGod and His church evenbother us very much? If itdoesn’t, we may be furtheralong in our fatal attractionthan we think.

The seventh and mostserious of all the symptomsof a fatal attraction is:

A Fatal AttractionSteals From GodWhat Belongs ToHim. Achan never saw theseriousness of the sin hewas harboring in his heart,but Joshua did. RememberGod’s instructions? “Thecity shall be under the ban, it and all that is in itbelongs to the Lord” (Josh.

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6:17). Now look again atJoshua 7:23. “They tookthem from inside the tentand brought them to Joshuaand to all the sons of Israel,and they poured them outbefore the Lord.” Why didthey pour Achan’s treasuresout before the Lord?Because they were notAchan’s, or Israel’s, orJoshua’s—they were God’s!

Every one of us,regardless of whether weconsider ourselves poor orrich, will want somethingwe don’t or can’t have. TheBible reminds us that this is an essential part of ourfallen nature. “Sheol and Abaddon are neversatisfied, nor are the eyes of man ever satisfied” (Prov. 27:20). We may wantsomeone else’s popularity,income, possessions,spouse, reputation, job,authority, girlfriend, orboyfriend. God, from Hisheavenly treasury, gives toeach of us precious gifts of

relationships, talents,family, position, andfinances—but they are His.When we court any sinfulpassion within us, we aresecretly conspiring to takemore than God has allottedto us. To conspire to takewhat God has not given is to steal from Him.

Could a fatal attractionin your life be a plan tosteal from God? It’s difficultin our consumer-conscious,materialistic society tobelieve that God may notwant us to have whatsomeone else has, but it’strue. If we can accept thistruth, it can be one of themost freeing things we’veever learned—relieving usof the drive to accumulateand compare with everyoneelse. If we can’t accept thistruth, it may be the lastwarning we are given.

A secret sin, a fatalattraction, can be thedeterminative factor in a tragic defining-moment

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decision—unless we realize it and address it beforehand.

I saw. I coveted. I took. I hid. This was a definingmoment tragically caughton divine film for eternity.Will we address our ownfatal attraction before it’stoo late? Achan let theprocess go too far. We canstill stop it. We must—andthe sooner the better. Mayour legacy read: I saw. I was tempted. I resisted. I escaped.

Personal ReflectionIs there an attraction inyour life that is growing so strong that, if given theright opportunity, you mightindulge it? Ask yourself howthis decision would affectyour loved ones and thereputation of Jesus Christ. A fatal attraction is a ticking time bomb that must be defused, or it willeventually explode. You areeither actively defusing the

bomb or waiting for theexplosion. Which is it?

Follow-throughConfess to God your secretfatal attraction and yourfeelings of powerlessness toovercome it. Be honest. AskHim to strengthen you toresist this temptation and tosend His servants to you tohelp you overcome it beforeit’s too late. Actively seekout a pastor, or a wise andgodly mentor or counselor,to help you defuse yourbomb before it explodes.

OUR GREATESTNEED

TThe most definingmoment in anyone’slife is the decision

to surrender to God byaccepting Christ as personalSavior. God’s Word, theBible, tells us that ourgreatest need is not simplyguidance in life; it’s arelationship with God. We

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can have this relationshipthrough Jesus Christ alone,resulting in peace with ourheavenly Father and the giftof eternal life with Him.

If you’ve never taken thisstep of faith, remember thatfaith is not something youwait for like a letter in themail. Rather, faith issomething you step out on,like a bridge over a ragingriver. Jesus Christ paid thepenalty for our sins by dyingon the cross. After 3 days,He rose from the dead andis now preparing a place forthose who put their faith in

Him. If you do that, you willbecome a child of the livingGod and an heir of eternallife. As a suggestion, praysomething like this:

Lord, I believe that Jesus is the Son of God. I believe that He came and died to pay thepenalty for the sins Ihave committed. I askYou to forgive me, and togive me the gift of eternallife You promised. Comeinto my life, and causeme to be born again.Amen.

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hThis booklet is excerpted from Defining Moments: When ChoicesMatter Most by Dan Schaeffer, whichis published by Discovery HousePublishers, a member of the RBCMinistries family. Dan is the pastor of Shoreline Community Church inSanta Barbara, California. He is alsoan award-winning writer whosearticles have appeared in Reader’sDigest and AThird Serving of ChickenSoup for the Soul.

Dan has also written other booksfor DHP, including In Search of theReal Spirit of Christmas,When Faith andDecisions Collide, and A Better Country:Preparing for Heaven.

The Bible tells us that our

greatest need is not simply

guidance in life,it’s a relationship

with God.

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