The Bible tells us in Song of Solomon 2:15, "Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes." We must be careful to take care of the little things. Paul said, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." He said "in every thing" so that our heart and mind might be kept.

The Word of God says to be prayerful in everything, with thanksgiving. We need to be very careful. Instead of saying, "Oh, that is so bad," we should praise the Lord. For example, we wouldn't say, "Praise the Lord, I have a flat tire," but we could say, "Thank the Lord, I have a jack and a spare and can change it." The Lord tells us to pray with thanksgiving. So, we could look at a situation and say, "Lord, help us to keep our spirit right and to be thankful." We need to be careful of how we view things. Remember, circumstances could be worse. Also, we need to remember that people are watching how we react, and so is God. When adversity comes, how is our attitude? Do we look on the bright side?

Perhaps some have read a little story called The Fence:

There was a little boy with a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him to hammer a nail in the back fence every time he lost his temper. The first day, the boy drove thirty-seven nails into the fence, and then, it gradually dwindled down.

He discovered that it was easier to control his temper than to drive those nails into the fence. Finally, the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it, and his father suggested that he now pull out one nail for each day that he controlled his temper. The days passed, and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that the nails were all gone.

The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, those words leave a scar, just as these nails have. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out, but no matter how many times you say 'I'm sorry,' the wound would still be there. A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one."