Reb Zalman Brizel zt'l once fell into a manhole. Since then, he would carefully look ahead to see whether there was a hole in the road. He would cross to the other side of the street if there was a hole. That one time he fell into the manhole made him cautious for the rest of his life. We, too, should be careful to avoid all different spiritual pitfalls. Especially if you fell once, chas v'shalom, you should know to be cautious in the future.
The Chofetz Chaim zt'l said to a Yid from Warsaw, "To be in Warsaw, and to not be there [by avoiding strolling unnecessarily on the streets] is to invest in Olam HaBa."
Reb Shmuel Wosner zt'l writes, "I heard from someone who heard it directly from the Chofetz Chaim zt'l, ‘To hold back, even just once, from walking on the streets of a big city, is a keren (investment fund) for Olam HaBa.'"
The Gemara tells that Reb Yochanan blessed his students, כמורא עליכם שמים מורא יהא ודם בשר. The simple translation is that they should fear Hashem as much as they fear people. We see that when one sins, he is afraid that people shouldn’t catch him. He is more scared of people seeing him doing an aveirah than he is afraid of Hashem seeing him.
The Ben Ish Chai adds that ודם בשר can also refer to one's own flesh and blood. Thus, Reb Yochanan was blessing his students that they should be cautious with the mitzvos as they are with their health.
People are very cautious with their health, avoid dangerous situations, and take other necessary precautions to remain healthy and well. Do the same with regards to yiras Shamayim. If there’s a place that can be detrimental to your yiras Shamayim, or if there’s something else that can hurt your yiras Shamayim, fear Hashem and avoid it.
