Five Little Foxes of FaithBOOK REVIEW
By Stanley O. Williford
Director of Publications
Catch us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines . . . (Song of Solomon 2:15).
“We may make every effort to not let major spiritual issues trip us up, but usually it is the ‘little foxes’ which cause us to stumble,” Apostle Price writes in the introduction to the book, The Little Foxes of Faith. “What we as believers need to realize is that those overlooked faults can nullify our faith as easily as those larger issues.”
What are these five little foxes? He lists them:
- Unforgiveness
- Worry
- Fear
- The battle for the mind
- Losing hope
If one considers each of these issues, the problems present themselves clearly.
In the first chapter, titled Unforgiveness – A Snare for Our Faith, Apostle Price points the reader to what Jesus says in Mark 11:25-26:
“And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.
“But if you do not forgive neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”
Apostle Price writes:
“Sometimes, without realizing it, you can have unforgiveness in your heart, and it will stop your faith every time.”
He notes that some people “savor a grudge as though it were a gourmet meal,” but spiritually speaking, “they are literally poisoning themselves.”
“You control your Father’s ability to forgive you by how you forgive,” he writes.
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In chapter 2, titled Worry – the Sin of Not Trusting God, Apostle Price makes this interesting statement:
“If you asked most people to make a list of sins, they would write down such sins as lying, murder, fornication, and adultery. Very few, if any, would have worry on their list – and yet worry is one of the worst sins you can possibly commit.”
He explains that worry is equal to unbelief. “It is a lack of faith, and the Bible says that anything not of faith is sin.”
Sadly, he writes, “Most Christians consider worry a part of life. They consider it normal to worry . . . .”
He quotes Paul in Philippians 4:6:
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God.
“God wants to hear our requests, and he wants to do something about them for us. But for Him to actually do something we have to apply our faith.”
He adds in Philippians 4:7:
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
The chapter on the third little fox is titled Fear – A Robbing Spirit. “Fear is a spirit,” he writes. “It is an agent of Satan, and this agent will steal the blessings of God from you by robbing you of your faith.”
He advises: “Here is how you can tell when a spirit of fear is dominating you. When whatever it is you are afraid of causes you to panic or become paralyzed with fright, that is a spirit of fear in action.”
He admits that in his own life two fears limited his enjoyment of some things most people take for granted:
“Here I was, a grown adult male, had lived all my life in the Los Angeles area, where you are never far from the ocean, and I could not put my head under the water until I was in my 40s.”
“The same thing was true for flying on airplanes. Airplanes had never done anything to me, but I was literally terrified of flying on one.”
“Until I learned how to walk by faith, the spirit of fear had control over me in those two areas – water and flying on airplanes. Once I learned to operate in faith, I broke that spirit, and conquered those fears.”
The fourth little fox is discussed in the chapter, The Battle for the Mind.
In it, he explains that the first place where satanic forces of worry, fear and unforgiveness attack a person is in the mind.
“The mind is the arena or battleground of faith,” he writes. “That is where the battle for your faith will be won or lost . . . .
“You have to guard your mind. Nobody’s mind is off limits to the influence of the devil.”
“Your mind is open to both God and the devil. You are the one who decides which way to go. You can gravitate toward the devil, or you can gravitate toward God. You are the one in control.”
“Satan’s attack is always to cast doubt on the truthfulness of God’s Word. He will always come to make a suggestion to you in an attempt to get you to compromise the Word. That is how he messed up Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.
Losing Hope is the title of the fifth and final chapter. In it, he explains the importance of hope:
“When you lose hope, for all intents and purposes, you also shut down your faith.”
He reminds the reader that Hebrews 10:23 says:
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised in faithful.
And Hebrews 11:1, which says:
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for . . . .
“Hope sets the goal,” Apostle Price writes, “and faith obtains the goal for you. Hope and faith must work together.”
“Everyone should have a goal. If you never set a goal, guess what? You will never attain one. That is why many people – and sad to say, many Christians – never achieve anything. They never set specific goals, so they have nothing for their faith to obtain.”
Another unmentioned fox might be described this way:
Failure to take advantage of the wisdom in this Book.
https://store.crenshawchristiancenter.net/p-2501-the-little-foxes-of-faith.aspx
