In the third section of the manual, President Kimball shares the intriguing story of trapping monkeys. Hunters bored small holes in boxes and put a nut inside. The monkeys reached in, grabbed the nut, and could not get their hands out. They would allow themselves to be captured before they would release the nut. President Kimball notes that we, too, can fall into that same trap, laid by a very cunning hunter.
Satan seeks to snare us. He knows that our temporal bodies and our natural man prefer the easy and comfortable way. He has many tools to lure us, and I am firmly convinced he loves this modern age, when everything around us tells us to put ourselves first.
I sat here for awhile, trying to determine some monkey traps in our lives. Apparently, they are well embedded in my pschye, because I had a hard time pulling them out! After a little bit of consideration, I think I found a few. However, I am sure there are many others.
Consumer debt – The American culture teaches us to buy what we want today and put off paying for it. Debt itself is marketed with such intensity, it is no wonder that so many people buy into it! We think that our cars, our furniture, and even our food must be bought with debt. Yet this goes against what the Lord has taught us about managing our finances, and what the prophets have taught about debt.
Careers – Although I mentioned it in yesterday’s blog, it took me some time to actually think of this one. We are taught to seek to improve our careers and our livelihoods so much, and sometimes at great cost. I am sure that any young man considering serving a mission instead of going to college or to work must face disbelief and incredulity from his peers, not only because he is serving God, but because he is delaying his career to do so. Young women, I am sure, face a similar problem, since most are in the middle or at the end of college before they serve.
Stuff – Everywhere we go, people are trying to sell us stuff. We are told that the right clothes, the right car, and even the right blender will make us look better, feel better, and be better. To get that stuff, we have to have money (or the aforementioned debt), and so we must work, work, work! If we don’t work on Sunday to get stuff, we’re considered to be weird. If we don’t work instead of spending time with our family, people say our priorities are off. And so on.
These are just three of the monkey traps I found on quick review. I am currently analyzing another, more personal one. I encourage you to examine your own lives and see what monkey traps Satan has set up for you.
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