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Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8 (NLT)
A lion roars to defend his territory. We as believers must always realize that we are in Satan’s territory. Because of this we must always be on our guard against his attacks. If you’ve ever seen a cat on the prowl you know that they are quiet and agile. They waste no energy in pursuing their prey.
Peter reminds us to be alert but it’s hard to stay alert to enemy attack when we have so many things that distract us. It’s the things that distract us that allow the enemy a foothold to attack. He lurks in the shadow ready to prey on the slow, the weak, the distracted.
We get cutoff on the interstate and give the enemy opportunity to make us angry.
We find out a close friend is the root of a vicious rumor and give bitterness an opening.
The woman in the office cubicle next to ours makes a statement that could be taken in a lustful way and gives the idea of an affair a nudge.
The credit card company notifies us of a credit line increase at the same time an email announces a discount on the ‘toy’ we’ve always wanted and desire whispers in our ear.
Friends in school ridicule a fellow student for the same convictions you hold to and you hide in the shadows allowing the name of your savior to be mocked. Apathy taps you on the shoulder.
A co-worker convinces the boss to take one of your accounts away from you and give it to him and revenge squeezes your hand.
One of your children makes an irresponsible choice. You feel the urge to be reactive and sarcastic rather than understanding and forgiving.
Distractions. Those little things that cross our path every day. Distractions give the enemy opportunities for attack. We must choose to let our guard down or to stand firm in the face of the enemy.
The good news is that we have a God who offers us the power to resist distractions through his Holy Spirit. And when the distractions of life catch us unaware and we give in to the enemy we can find mercy and forgiveness through the blood of Jesus Christ.
Heed the warnings Peter offers us. Stay alert in the face of the enemies attack. Stand firm when distractions urge us to give in. It’s difficult at first, but like any discipline, the more we practice standing firm the easier it is to handle the distractions he throws at us.
PRAYER: Father I confess to you that I’m all too often distracted by the attacks of the enemy. Forgive me for the times I’ve stumbled. Empower me with your Spirit to stay focused on your love and forgiveness. Thank you for the grace and mercy you give every day. Amen
“for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.” 1 John 5:4
What gives you victory in life? At the end of the day, when you look over the agony of defeat and the thrill of victory, what do you attribute to the gold medal hanging around your neck?
For some people it might be that you finally made it a whole day without a cigarette (or a whole week or month or some other milestone). Others may mark it as a victory because even though the words were on the ‘tip of the tongue’ no foul language made it through the lips. Maybe you were actually at the computer and resisted the temptation to visit ‘the sites’. Perhaps you bask in the glory of the fact that you didn’t kill your teenager with words.
We all like victory over some of the bad habits we struggle with daily. Unfortunately those victories can be few and far between. Rather than putting notches in our belts for ‘making it through another day’ we sigh and wonder if we’ll ever be able to break that habit. Seems like the more we fail the harder it is to pick ourselves up, brush the dust from our clothes and move on. “Why try, really? You just know you are going to fail again. And, where is God in all this.”
You look to heaven, maybe even shake your fist and say (sometimes even audibly), “Where were you. I thought you were going to help me? I thought you loved me. I thought you’d never leave me. I thought…”
It might seem strange to you. It might be hard to understand, but God uses the struggles in our lives to make us stronger. He doesn’t enjoy seeing us fail any more than we do. Yet he knows, in all his wisdom, that today’s failures make us stronger for tomorrow’s crisis. It might be that God refuses to remove the habit we struggle with so we will rely on him more and us less.
The warrior overcomes his enemy be rendering him helpless. The athlete overcomes his enemy be defeating him in the arena. The Christ-follower overcomes the struggles in life by reliance on God and believing that someday victory will come, even if it comes through death.
Rather than focus on the battle, focus on the one who has already defeated the enemy. Rather than dwell on your failures, remember that Jesus knew the day he went to the cross that you would fail once again. He went anyway.
Today, just for today, dwell on the fact that God lives within you. He’s walking where you walk. Seeing what you see. Feeling the temptation and frustration and anger you feel. Hearing the critical words hurled at you like a nuclear missile. Be patient with others and more importantly yourself.
Do your best today as you go to battle. Try to rely on God’s Holy Spirit who dwells within you. The one who wants to guide your thoughts and your actions in every situation. Do what you know is right. And no matter what happens, remember that whatever you do, God will do what he does best—extend his grace in your life.
PRAYER: Father God, there are days when I feel like such a failure. If I were to look up failure in the dictionary I’m sure I’d see my picture right there. I try so hard and fail. I blame others. I blame myself. I even blame you from time to time. Help me, during the frustrating times of life when I’m tempted to go against what I know is right, to remember you are right here with me to help me. Thank you for the grace you extend when I fail. Help me to remember the failures of today build the strength for tomorrow. In Jesus name, Amen.
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5
Let the last few words of the above verse sink in. ‘Never will I leave you. NEVER will I forsake you.’
Think for a moment about what that means for you on a daily basis. There is never a time that Jesus is not within hearing range when you need to talk about the things you are troubled by. Never a time in your daily walk that he is not willing to talk with you, comfort you, celebrate with you. There is nothing you can do to make him leave. Nothing you can say he’s surprised by. He’s always there.
Jesus is with you when the doctor tells you the test results. He’s with you as you tend to a sick child. He’s sitting beside you as you write out the bills and worry about where the money will come from.
Sometimes the thought of his presence is comforting. It’s such a relief to know he’s there when the car breaks down, the relationship goes in the tank, the company reorganizes and you don’t make the cut.
Sometimes we ignore his presence. Like the times our minds linger as we watch the cute young thing walks past. The times we willingly visit that site on the internet one more time. Those times when the anger and frustration of life get the best of us and we lash out at those we love the most. The times we lay awake with the enemy named worry by our side.
There are times when the pain is too much. The anxiety to great. The news is too horrific to hear he still, small voice reminding us of his great presence and power. But our awareness of God has nothing to do with the reality of his presence. Our own desires may take us places we never thought we’d go, but they don’t take us from his presence.
When we sin for example, we may feel that we’ve separated us from God, but that’s not true. The issues of life can separate us from SENSING God’s presence, but nothing separates us from the REALITY of God’s presence.
Whatever is troubling you today, whether it is something on a world-wide scale or something close to home; don’t allow the issues of your life to make you numb to his presence. God has promised that he will NEVER leave you or forsake you, and you can take that to the bank!
PRAYER: Father God, there are so many things of late that have distracted me from sensing your presence. So many times I’ve ignored you when life gets in the way. Please forgive me for not living in the reality that you are always by my side. Empower me with your Spirit to live in such a way that your presence will continually guide my thoughts, words and actions. In your name I pray, Amen.
In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 1 John 5:3-4
There is an old Native American legend regarding evil and good. Evil is portrayed as a dark dog that lives within each of us; good is a white dog that also lives within each of us. The two are at constant battle for control of our lives. The dog we choose to feed the most is the dog that wins control of our lives.
In a sense, the legend isn’t far from being wrong. Paul describes a similar scenario in his own life when he says, in Romans 7, the good that I want to do, I don’t do. Instead, the very things I hate, the very things I despise, I find myself doing over and over again. Paul, like the rest of us, want to see the ‘dark dog’ die, yet we continue to feed it at least enough to guarantee power to wage war in our lives.
Any of us who have walked the journey of life at all are well aware of the battle within. There are so many things out there that cry out to us. Things that make us feel good (for awhile at least), things that ‘seem right’ (even though they contradict God’s law), things that sneak up on us and attack us at our weakest moment.
For some of us it’s an addictive habit like smoking, drugs or alcohol, or lust. For others it’s anger, language or food. Still others battle daily with feelings of failure, insecurity, fear and doubt. We work hard to build or salvage broken relationships, save our homes or jobs and rescue our children from harm. It’s draining just to think about it!
The Apostle John gives us a formula for victory. It’s a lesson he learned at the feet of Jesus himself. The secret to victory over the world isn’t found in religion. It’s not found in social action, counseling, self-help books or volunteering at the local soup kitchen. Recovery groups and fitness programs won’t help either.
The secret to victory over whatever you are struggling with is love. Not love as the world gives, but love that comes from a growing relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Many of us know that but few of us see victory. One reason may be that we forget, or have never learned, that relationship takes time. Victory won’t come over night. The bad news is that we are responsible for every bad decision we’ve ever made. We can choose. The good news is that even if we’ve made a boatload of bad decisions in life, Jesus Christ will forgive us and help us back on the road to recovery.
Don’t expect to win every battle every day. Take little steps. Relationship comes as we read God’s Word on a daily basis, pray for guidance and strength and refuse (one decision at time) not to listen to the enemy voices that want to bring us to defeat.
People who are victorious over the things that bring them down are the people who determine every day to walk just one step closer to the light. The are the ones that have learned to celebrate the small victories in life and bounce back from the occasional defeats as they learn to love Jesus Christ above all else.
PRAYER: Father, from this day forward I have resolved to move closer to you in relationship through the love and forgiveness only Jesus Christ can offer. Forgive me for the times I’ve made wrong choices. Empower me with your Spirit to learn to walk closer to you and love you more. In Jesus name, Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 