The little deer wandered through the wintry forest alone. The squirrels and rabbits were nestled warmly in their beds. However, the little deer was hungry and food seemed scarce. He didn't know what to do. Then he stumbled upon a few grains of corn. Ah! How delicious! His mother had warned him about finding corn on the ground; how hunters used it to lure their prey; but his mother had left him. Surely there could be no harm in a few scattered grains. He would eat just these and would come to this place no more.
The next day, snow fell gently from the skies. The little deer rambled for hours in the fields and woods, but found no sustenance. Reluctantly, he returned to the same place as yesterday, although he knew he had eaten all the corn. He couldn't believe it! There was corn there and more than yesterday! He didn't stop to listen to the small voice inside warning him. He was hungry, and he ate. He stopped wandering day after day, but headed for the place with the increasing amounts of corn. Nothing was around. Nor did he ask himself how the kernels came to be in the same spot day after day.
After a week, he awoke from sleep and went straight to the place with the corn, but it was gone. In despair, he didn't notice the hunter in the tree until the shot was fired.
Sin does the same to our lives. The devil plants a snare in our path; something small; something that couldn't possibly hurt anyone or anything: a few pills; a little drink; a little gambling; a little stealing; a little lust; a little gossip. We don't even think much about that first little taste. However, we find we like it; and we keep returning to the snare for more and more. Soon, it has consumed totally consumed us. We don't remember how it began, and we don't know how to stop. The devil has us in his sights. Only Christ can break us free of our bondage. Only He can free us to live in Him abundantly. Only in Him can we be free of the snare of sin that lies in wait for us all.