The Porcupine’s Mistake

Have you ever seen a porcupine? I could show you one. It is lying by the side of the road near the river, because it was hit by a car. When I drove by, I decided I would come again and take another look. Do you want to come with me?

Will it shoot quills at us? you ask. No, the big creature is quite dead. See its dark face and black eyes? It doesn’t look mean at all. It is covered with long, waving, black and gold hair. The quills are those short white darts with black tips that are poking out everywhere. See how its long tail is covered with them? If we are careful, we can pull a few out to take home.

That spiky tail is the porcupine’s great defense that keeps it safe from its enemies. The neighbor’s dog came home with a quill-covered nose once. They were very sharp and hard to pull out. After that he stayed away from porcupines! But this time the porcupine’s armor wasn’t what it needed. Poor creature! It thought it was safe and didn’t have to worry, but this time it made a mistake. Rubber tires don’t care about porcupine quills!

I think there is a lesson we could learn from the porcupine’s mistake. Maybe you think you are smart and able to keep away from trouble, too. If you are good-tempered or know how to behave well, that is a good thing. But we can’t count on our natural abilities to keep us safe. You might be good all week, but then some trouble or temptation will come that is too big for you. Jesus is a Savior stronger than any problem and is able to keep us from all evil. We need His protection in life. If you are just trusting in your own “quills,” you will end up as roadkill, too.