Overcoming The
Attack Of The Devil
My friend
was mowing her lawn, trying to beat the diminishing evening light. Possibly we
might all know the feeling of trying to beat the setting sun when gardening, or
doing some other thing outdoors.
The mower
belt broke on the ride-on and my friend didn’t get to complete the task. How
annoying is that, for the belt to break and not finish the job? It’s now become
a blocked goal: You see, you wanted to mow and couldn’t. Sometimes blocked
goals can make us angry. Sometimes we have to work on staying in peace. We should
remain peaceful during the storms of life and not get upset. The reason being
to resist the devil.
The devil,
a coiled serpent waiting to strike the unwary, is like a battering ram,
consistently coming at you to stop you from achieving your goals. He’s especially
consistent when it comes to listening to great Christian speakers, or reading
our bibles.
Another way
the devil will stop you attaining your goals is, by keeping you distracted.
Either way, we don’t finish what we started and at times we don’t even get
started. During times such as this, we need to remember; satan (I refuse to
capitalise his name) has power, but no authority, however we have all power and
authority. That means we’re stronger than the devil, believe or not.
Sometimes,
though, we get tired of the battering ram, striking and hammering and beating
at us, time and time again and eventually this causes us to cave in. This
allows the devil a foothold into our situation and every time we allow a
foothold, the devil is strengthened in our lives.
The way to
beat the devil at his own game is to over-ride our feelings and listen to the
message anyway, to read our bible anyway. No matter what we have caved in to,
we can beat the devil by over-riding our feelings and doing what’s right,
before God.
There's no
separation between God's power and God's word. If you want His power to work in
your life, you have to be reading His word. We have to do what we know to be
right, to be seen doing what we should be doing, if we want to overcome the
devil.
There are
voices in our head (so yeah, we can all appear a little crazy at times) and once
we understand the other voices in our head (the one’s besides God, which speak
to us), then we can know who’s doing the talking and it becomes easier to
differentiate between our own voice, satan’s voice and the voice of our
precious Lord God.
Often, when
it’s satan talking, I’ll tell him; “Go away, you gnat. You’re less than a flee
and I’m not listening.” He’s pretty cowardly and easily put off. He almost
always goes away immediately.
I heard
someone say recently, that feelings are schizophrenic…all over the place. And
it’s true. Feelings are fickle. One moment we feel great, the next, we’re in a
heap on the floor. And the devil plays a big part in that. He doesn’t want us
walking with God and will try every trick he can to stop us.
Demons
don’t die. They’re always looking for a body to rest upon. They’re deceitful
and lie to you all the time, about everything. And you’ll know it’s a demon,
because a demon, who’s also known as the accuser, will accuse. Demons accuse
you and tell you; you’re so stupid, you can’t do this, what an idiot you are.
You can’t, you’re stupid, you’re an idiot. All the words satan and his demonic
cohorts will use, to accuse you.
Your own
voice will tell you; I’m so stupid, I can’t do this, what an idiot I am. You
aren’t helping the situation, with this kind of self-talk.
God will
tell you; come on, you got this My beloved and what you can’t do, I’ll do for
you. God’s voice is a gentle whisper, a fleeting word in the deep recess of
your mind, one you could almost ignore. The one you pretty well fob off on
occasion, it’s so quiet and unobtrusive. It’s a voice of gentle reason and
love, not harsh and condemning.
When you
hear the ‘I can’t/you can’t,’ you can say; “Get lost hairy legs, you gnat.
You’re smaller than a flea and I’m not listening.” Then go against your
feelings and do what you know to be right. You’ll know what that is too,
because the Holy Spirit will give you a nudge. That still small voice of God
will lead you in the right direction.
When you
die to self (i.e.: to your feelings), satan can’t work in you anymore. And
that’s what Jesus wants from us, to die to self and follow Him. It’s in His
power and His authority which He gave us, that all things are possible.
So, we give
thanks today; for His sacrifice, for His blood, for His love, for His healing
power, His courage, His strength, His comfort, His provision, His protection
and we remember Him at this time, offering praise and thanksgiving. We do this
also, while partaking of the Holy Communion. Eat. Drink. Praise God.
Alexandra Grose –
An investigative photojournalist and author for over twenty years. Writing is
her passion and her dream and helping others achieve their dreams, through her
written work, is Alexandra's greatest aspiration.
#Integrity;
truthfulness, honesty and reliability, in all things.
I believe one
should....be truthful in everything you say and do. Keep all relationships open
and honest. Be reliable, punctual and organised and if you say you'll do it -
do it.
If you want to soar
like an eagle, make an effort, not an excuse.
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