Fleeing is not Casual

The first time I saw them running, it startled me. A pack of people seemingly running for their lives, pushing carts and diving into small alleys. I did not know what they were running from but I knew that I was not going to walk right into lion’s den, so I stayed put and observed. I saw many other observers doing the same but I could not tell what was happening. Was someone walking down the street with an assault rifle? Did these people just rob a store and were escaping with the merchandise? What could be so terrifying that would cause them to act in such a manner?
It turned out that these street vendors were being audited, for a lack of a better word, by the municipality. It happens frequently where the auditors come flying in their cars to a screeching stop and jump out only to destroy the kiosks of the vendors and take all of their merchandise. Apparently it is not legal to sell on the streets although it happens everywhere, all day, everyday. However, the one word that best describes the reaction of these people when the authorities come is “flee”. I cannot think of a better visual to make this word come to life. So when we are told to resist the devil and he will flee from us or to flee from sexual immorality, it is not just a mild suggestion but an emphatic command. So when these temptations come, I need to react just like Joseph and these street vendors and run for the hills and I have found that the temptations, as promised, subside.