“Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom.”
Isn’t it interesting that sometimes in life, even when things are going great, there can be these “little foxes” that hugely aggravate us and distract us? These “little foxes,” if we let them, will plant seeds in our hearts that can stunt or even kill off future growth.
An Example of a “Little Fox”
Let’s look at the example of Michelangelo: As we know, he sculpted beautiful figures out of marble. While he was intently working on a particular piece, a friend watched to see how he was getting along. However, after a while, his friend went away on business.
Sometime later when his friend returned, he said, “I see you haven’t worked on your sculpture?” To this the great artist replied, “I’ve been working on it constantly since you left.” His friend asked, “How is that possible?” Michelangelo replied, “I’ve made numerous changes. I have softened a line here, straightened the lip there, put more detail to the eyes, created more definition to the muscles, polished this and sharpened that.” His friend then remarked, “But those are just trifles!” Michelangelo replied, “Trifles they may be, but trifles make perfection, and perfection is no trifle!”
In the same way, Solomon writes,
“Catch…the little foxes that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes.”
A Bible teacher once put it like this:
“Small things that may seem unimportant to us can actually spoil the tender grapes.”
The untended little foxes can spoil something like an important relationship, a career path, or most importantly a life that’s dedicated to God. Foxes are insistent and will do their best to get to the grapes if the vine dresser does not drive them out.
Little Foxes Spoil the Vine
How many marriages fail these days because spouses pay no attention to the little things being asked by their significant other? How many children go off the rails because mum or dad didn’t provide any affirmation. Instead, they just carried on criticizing the children that God had given them? How many athletes’ lose major competitions because of tiny lapses in their training? How many Christians give up the God-given call on their lives and stop going to church just because someone said or did something wrong to them?
Many of us are fascinated by the big picture for our lives and our relationship with God, but unfortunately, we neglect the continuity and the little, daily details necessary to bring His plan for us all into focus. We must attend to those “trifles” in the now if we are to succeed into our futures.
As we stay faithful in the little things, God blesses us with far greater opportunities, which are more than we can ever imagine. Why? Because that’s His heart and nature towards us. The important thing is this: During the moments of taking care of the little things that can get us off course, we develop character, faithfulness and obedience, and in return, we conquer the greater issues in life without ever even ”smelling of smoke” of the hardship of circumstance (Daniel 3:27).
Being Faithful in the Small Things
In Scripture it says,
“Only when you’re faithful in small things will God entrust you with greater things” (Matthew 25:21).
So, what “little foxes” do you need to catch and take care of today? Take the time and ask God to show you any little areas of regrets, resentments, offenses, bad habits, and even little areas of dishonesty. If He lovingly reveals them to you, nip them in the bud straight away. Deal with them and watch how it changes your life and the lives of others around you!