Ready. Set. Rambling:
- I wonder how often U.S. believers consider spiritual warfare with so much access to “take care of our problems”.
- Government, medicine, non-profits, even churches can (even if unintentionally) help in ways which shield people from really dealing with the spiritual roots of their problems.
- We must remember our enemy, Satan, hates life, truth, and peace. He will do anything he can to wreck our day to day existence.
- The war we fight as believers strives for the peace flowing out of full trust in God.
- Worry? Satan’s attempt to deny us the peace which rests in God’s sovereignty and provision.
- Hatred? Satan’s attempt to pit us against each other and devalue the humanity of others.
- Medical problems? Does prayer ever enter the equation before popping a pill or scheduling a doctor’s appointment?
- Hurt by a church or upset by a believer? Nothing more than Satan trying to separate us from the life giving relationships Scripture calls us to strive for together.
- Evaluating your spirituality by comparing yourself to others instead of God’s Word? Satan has successfully turned your eyes away from truth and substituted the lesser reality of false self assurance (see Genesis 3).
- On and on I could go: shame, doubt, guilt, despair, apathy all evolve in us as Satan works to hinder us from experiencing victory in Jesus Christ.
- The simple message: The truth of Christ means forgiveness and the hope of eternal life. The implications of this truth for the believer do lead to increased joy, peace, love…(read Galatians 5:22-23 for yourselves).
- Will you admit Satan’s desires to destroy you?
- Will this truth spur you to pray, seeking God’s wisdom to counter Satan’s desires to block you from coming to faith in Christ or killing what faith you have?