With everything going on in our world right now, from the polls to the pandemic, from cyber warfare to raging fires and relentless hurricanes, I know it must be hard for many of us to recognize that we are personally in the middle of a battlefield.
I know I find it difficult at times to acknowledge that Satan wants me as a victory trophy, while God invites me to be a living testament to His eternal love.
It may sound somewhat self-centered with such devastation going on around me because, I don’t remember ever being so popular or valuable as to be the prize in such a high stakes game of life and death, where my only weapon is my faith.
The problem is Satan will and does attack at any given moment. He is relentless in his pursuit and too often my guard is just not up.
On my best days, there are distinct moments when focusing on the Word of God is the last thing on my mind.
Events and circumstances and people make it seemingly impossible, unlikely or just plain too hard. I now know that this is when the devil is at the top of his game.
You see that’s what I mean when I say I didn’t realize Satan wants me and you as his personal trophy dead, stuffed and mounted on his wall. When I’m consciously aware of things, I understand Satan wants to embarrass, humiliate and like a scorned lover hurt the Lord.
What better way to do that than to steal something, degrade something, ruin something that the devil knows the Lord loves. Me and yes, you too. This is not prideful. It is factual.
I don’t know about you but it’s hard to think of myself as that important. It’s hard to consider myself as a pivotal piece in an eternal game of spiritual chess; a king or queen to one and a pawn to the other.
So, I suppose without knowing it, I’m always vulnerable. Like a child who unknowingly wanders off into a swamp, he or she has no idea of the danger. Injury and death are but steps away.
That’s how I feel sometimes. I know I’m lost. I know I’m in trouble. If I’m not vigilant, the devil will take me out and celebrate at my wake. Therefore, much like the weekend athlete, I pretty much know I’ve got to train and be prepared.
But some days I just don’t want to work that hard. I just want to be left alone. I don’t want to believe the travesties going on around me.
Can you see how that rather simplistic thought can spell trouble? Can you see how that frame of mind can get you killed in this particular game?
The bible is full of references about those who would be seduced, tricked, abducted and persecuted for not being true to the Word of God. God Himself, expresses frustration at times about those who willingly forget (selective memory), or unwillingly choose not to remember who He is and to whom they belong.
The consequences can be catastrophic. So what’s the answer when you’re not feeling it? What’s the answer to being lost in this world? What’s the defense for Satan’s temptations? Simple. Get into the Word.
Get into the Word and strategize an offense and a defense of personal testimony. Armed in this fashion, like Jesus in the desert, the devil cannot win.
You know better than me, that when you’re determined, you cannot be distracted.
There are some qualities we all possess that arm us for this fight. Recognition, understanding, desire and discipline come to mind. Together they guarantee victory for God and humiliation for the devil.
Put one foot in front of the other and “do the right thing;” always and forever. Sometimes all it takes is the will to win; sorta like the will to vote, the will to make “good trouble.”
May God bless and keep you always.
