The Hiker Who Refused to Run

In 2019, Kyle Burgess was jogging a trail near Slate Canyon, Utah, when a female cougar stepped onto the path ahead of him. Every instinct screamed at him to sprint. His legs burned with the urge to flee. But Kyle had read the park service guidelines, and he trusted them: face the animal, make yourself large, back away slowly, and never — never — run.

For six agonizing minutes, the cougar lunged and feinted, testing him. Kyle kept his arms wide, his voice loud, his face forward. He didn't pretend the danger wasn't real. He didn't try to negotiate with it. He simply held his ground on the authority of someone who understood the predator better than he did.

Then the cougar turned and disappeared into the brush.

James writes, "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." Notice the order. Kyle survived not because of his own courage but because he submitted to the wisdom of those who knew cougars. His obedience became his shield. The resistance flowed from the submission.

Temptation works the same way. It prowls and lunges, testing whether you will hold your ground. The Enemy is looking for runners. But when you plant your feet on the authority of the Almighty — when your resistance is rooted in surrender to God — the thing that seemed so terrifying loses its nerve and slinks away into the dark.