The Adventure of the Wood of the Beasts
Weekly Reading: Sir Knight of the Splendid Way Chapter Four
Sir Constant has traveled far already, but many great dangers he still must face along the perilous, yet Splendid Way. In a cheerless land, Sir Constant finally comes to the Hall of the Glowing Heart in the Valley of Toil, a place of warm welcome and rest. How could anyone help but be be joyful in this place of rest?
Still basking in the joy of his recent defeat of the Black Knight, Sir Constant’s joy is unbounded, and what’s more, tonight he has the honor of sitting in the company of two of the most highly esteemed knights of the King, Sir Valoris and Sir Felix of the Clean Heart. But for a knight of the Splendid Way, there is always a battle to face, and, “before the evening was past, his joy was over-clouded, and peril lay about his path once more.”
And it all begins with a whisper.
…there came to his ear a whisper, gentle and low, but deadly clear. “Some good knights come by great honours with wondrous ease”…and thereafter the feast was tainted with bitterness.
As Sir Constant hears these words and beholds Sir Felix’s pure countenance, his own countenance grows darker (and greener) as his heart is overcome by a gnawing enemy whose name may be familiar to you—Envy.
This is the subtleness of envious and bitter thoughts that can so quickly overtake our minds. For Sir Constant, it is a bitterness so controlling that he cannot bear to face the knights that he had so recently admired and esteemed. With a burdened heart, he isolates himself, leaving himself completely open to the enemy’s attacks. Even worse, he allows the enemy to continue to whisper against his fellow knights, “…for this evil talk found some echo in his own heart.”
Just the smallest whisper changed the entire course of Sir Constant’s path and left scars that would last the rest of his pilgrimage. This small, whispered thought blinded his eyes to the peril before him and clouded his judgment. In our own pilgrimage, we must remember that it is “the little foxes, that spoil the vines” (Song of Solomon 2:15). The little thoughts, the little lies, the little whispers of jealousy can set the trajectory for our lives.
Dear knight, do not let the subtle whispers of the enemy make you want what God did not intend for you. Do you not believe that if God wills to honor you, then honor you He will? But don’t grasp after what has been given to another, whether it’s their looks, their personality, the favor they receive from others, or how they seem to be good at everything. Nor should you shrink from the particular trials that God has given you and desire the trials of another. God knows exactly what is needed to shape you into the vessel of honor that will make you most useable (see Ephesians 2:10).
As the wise Sir Valoris counseled the young knights:
“His battle is not thy battle, and thy place is not his place…Nor shall each wonder at the other, or desire the other’s place, but do his own part faithfully and well, waiting the King’s good time.”
So catch those “little foxes” before they destroy your contentment and the fellowship you have with others. With Jesus’ help, try to redirect those envious or bitter thoughts as soon as they enter your mind, and fight them the same way that Jesus fought the Tempter—with the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God! Remember Christian, He will keep you in perfect peace if your mind is stayed on Him (see Isaiah 26:3), and “No good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly” (Psalm 84:11).
Now go with the shield of faith and the Sword of the Spirit as you faithfully obey the orders of your King!
~Your Friends at Lamplighter Ministries
Memory Verse: Psalm 84:11
“For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.”
Sir Knight of the Splendid Way
Deep into the Vale of Promise ventures Sir Constant, a young knight who desires nothing more than to be in the service of the Great King. Though unworthy of this high calling, he sets forth on the Splendid Way—the perilous road that all who desire to serve the King must take. His faith and valor will be tested, his strength and endurance will be challenged, and his allegiance to the one true King will be proven. A rich allegory wrought with biblical truth.
