Like me, you may have heard someone say someone else was too stupid to get out of the rain. Personally, I enjoy the rain, as long as I'm not in it. Still, I refrain from leaving our car and taking an umbrella with me into a store, often to the chagrin of my wife. My reasoning is that I don't mind getting wet for the sake of not losing another umbrella. I'll drop her off under a porte-cochere, and if it's raining when we leave, I'll walk in the rain to the car, get in the car and go pick her up where I dropped her off. It makes sense to me, but my wife shakes her head in disbelief at my reasoning. She often mocks me by asking after the rain starts and we're in a store, "Is the umbrella safe and dry in the car?"

You can tell from my experience that I might be one of those people you consider too stupid to get out of the rain. Well, that's not true. You see, I endure rain falling on my head in order to get where I want to go without carrying something I can misplace. Beside, I consider it an act of valor that I endure temporary discomfort for the sake of protecting an asset and proving my love for my wife. (Tongue in cheek.)

Understand, I don't stand around in the pouring rain. No, I always try to find the closest place to seek refuge from it. You see, I love protection. In fact, my best sleep comes when it's raining really hard at night. The sound of rain falling on the roof while I'm safe and warm under the cover, is not only comforting, it's almost like taking a sleeping pill. No reasonable person endures being in the rain for very long without seeking shelter.

Solomon noticed that some people are too stupid too seek refuge when there is imminent danger facing them. While I know of no one who has died from falling rain, many people fail to escape real danger and even die as a result of it.

The actor Clint Eastwood had a great movie line not long ago that went like this: "A man has to know his limitations." Only a fool, or as Solomon called them, a "simple" person would approach danger thinking they were invincible. We'd better know when to stand and when to run or we'll likely fall prey to whatever danger we face.

Do you know your limitations? Paul wrote to the Ephesians (6:14) telling them (and us) to stand firm in our struggle against the devil's schemes. It doesn't sound like he wants us to be afraid of anything, but look at the provision of his advice. He said we should wearing the armor of the Lord and praying. And what is prayer except another word for seeking help and taking refuge?

Are you prudent or simple according to Solomon's test? Quite simply, if you stand alone without the strength of the Lord bracing your legs, you better run and do so in God's direction. Proverbs implies that we as Christians need to recognize danger and know our limitations, or we may find ourselves suffering the consequence for failing to do so. If we decide to stand in the face of danger, we'd better be encapsulated in the protective garb of the Holy Spirit, dependent on the word of God and praying.

1 Developed from Read the Bible Thru ( Ez. 21:1-22:31 Hb. 10:1-17 Ps. 108:1-13 Pr. 27:12 )
2. Scripture comes from the Holy Bible, New International Version; (c)1978 by New York International Bible Society

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