Brooke is taking Ava today to get her flu shot.
And although I love my child dearly......um......better her than me.
If I understand correctly, these shots inject a weak strain of the flu into a person so that his/her body can learn to defend itself in case a stronger strain attacks in the future.
There is always a chance in these situations that the shot itself could make a person sick (which is sharp, painful, torturous irony on glorious display, if you ask me).
I personally wouldn't know anything about flu shots because there is a greater likelihood of a large-scale leprechaun invasion than there is of me getting a shot, voluntarily.
When I have my blood drawn, it takes every ounce of my masculinity not to cry, run out of the office and go home to my mother.
You might ask, "What are you going to do if you get the flu?"
I'll tell you what I'm going to do.
I'm going to get the flu.
I'm going to be sick.
I'll probably throw up, have chills, and be unable to get comfortable for days. I'll writhe and moan and lose 8 pounds and maybe someone will make me soup. I'm sure it won't be pretty.
But no matter what happens....no matter how sick I get....I can promise you one thing: there won't be any needles involved.
And I'll be honest with you, that's a gamble I'm willing to take...because I might not get the flu. In fact, I probably won't. I can't remember the last time I had the flu. I think I was 9.
The point is, the chance of me getting the flu is something I'm willing to risk.
It's not a gamble getting a flu shot, however. There is no question whatsoever that it will absolutely hurt.
The principle behind the flu shot is the same principle that my dad used with me when I was young and wanted to try some of his "Apple Brand" chewing tobacco.
In my child's mind, I just assumed that something that was labeled "Apple" would taste like apples.
No. It did not. At all.
My dad must have figured that a small taste of chewing tobacco would cause me to stay away from it for the rest of my life. So he gave me a little bite of it.
He was right.
This "flu shot" principle is actually pretty effective in many situations. For some people, a small taste of something harmful is enough to make them steer clear of it from that point on.
But not always.
That's why a "flu shot" approach to sin is not a good idea.
It is true that a little "taste" of sin just might be enough to show you that it can/will kill you. That small taste might be enough to teach you to run away from it for the rest of your life.
Or...it might not. You might like it. In fact, let's be honest, you probably will. And you might want more than just a taste next time.
Satan isn't stupid.
He doesn't tempt us with things that aren't fun, pleasurable, or desirable; he tempts us with things that are meant to make us come back for more.
Satan isn't satisfied with us taking a sip of sin. He wants us to chug the whole bottle, tap the keg, and come back next weekend; because he knows that even when we do....we will still be thirsty for more.
The Bible tells us to stay completely away from everything that even looks like sin (I Thess. 5:22). That's what God's Word says.
In other words, God is asking us to trust Him when it comes to sin.
Do we?
Or do we think that we need to do a little more "research" on it before we decide that it might cost us our soul? Do we look for ways to inject "weak strains" of sin into our lives? This is dangerous to us, spiritually.
The notion that we must personally experience sin in order to know how bad it is for us is simply not a biblical idea.
Neither is a flu shot, as far as I'm concerned.
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