Utter and Total Confusion

Then the Egyptians—all of Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and charioteers—chased them into the middle of the sea. But just before dawn the Lord looked down on the Egyptian army from the pillar of fire and cloud, and he threw their forces into total confusion. He twisted their chariot wheels, making their chariots difficult to drive. “Let’s get out of here—away from these Israelites!” the Egyptians shouted. “The Lord is fighting for them against Egypt!” (Exodus 14:23-25)

We may never see the power of God on display such as the Israelites witnessed that day when they crossed over the Red Sea with waters piled high on each side, ground made dry for their passage. We might never encounter actual enemy forces hot on our trail, making way toward us in order to bring us to our demise. We may never see the actual pillar of fire or cloud of God's glory on display, clearly delineating the break from our past. Yet, we see God at work in our lives in many ways we may not fully recognize as God.

One of the things that captured my attention in this passage was the 'total confusion' the enemy experienced. God may not do a 'grand work' of displaying his power in our lives, but we can rest assured he will send our enemy into 'total confusion' when we speak forth the all-powerful name of Jesus. Our enemy cannot 'work through' the confusion God brings when we speak the name of Jesus. The powerful wind that dried up the Red Sea's bed and piled high the waters is nothing compared to what God is doing for us in 'places unseen' with the naked eye when we proclaim the majesty and power of Jesus.

Paul wrote to the Ephesians that Satan is the ruler of the evil powers that are above the earth. The spirit of those powers is at work in our world all around us. (Ephesians 2) We may not see the forces that come against us, but we can trust that God will bring 'utter and total confusion' to their plans, intent, and 'doings' in our lives. We are not subject to these evil powers but have the ability to counter their attack by speaking the name of Jesus. There is no more powerful name, for by his name all creation is subject to move into action! 

The next time you sense there are enemy forces attempting to hold you in some place of bondage, try speaking the name of Jesus. Pray in the power of his name, taking authority of the one who really has no authority over a child of God anymore. You could just see the utter and complete confusion that brings into the armies that stand in opposition to your forward progress! Just sayin!

Stop bullying me!

Has it been one of those seasons where no matter how hard you try to move one step forward, you feel like you are taking two steps backward? No matter what you do, you just cannot seem to break free of whatever it is that is keeping you in the muddle and trials you are in. Sometimes I think this 'muddle' is just my own doing - because I have bitten off way more than I can chew. My plate is overloaded and the only way to be clear of the pressure is to get some of the stuff off my plate which really doesn't belong there in the first place. There are other times when I just cannot tell you why I am feeling a little oppressed and pushed down, but it happens more than I'd like to admit. I think those times might just be when the enemy of my soul wants me to get distracted from what is important in life - adding muddle and mess wherever he can. How about you? Sometimes you just need to push some of the stuff back off your plate, other times you might just need to push back against the one who is "bullying" your soul!

God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. (Ephesians 6:10-12)

The devil beats us up unnecessarily for he is already defeated - he is just doing his best to convince us otherwise! If we'd learn to put on the full armor we are given and actually use it to resist the attacks of the enemy of our souls, we might just be able to hold our ground against his attacks! Lest we think he doesn't know where to attack us in our lives, be assured of this - there is nothing "uncommon" in our struggles that others have not already struggled with. He just knows how we ALL struggle - so he uses these "common" areas as a means to get us focused on the stuff that gets us down and under the weight of life in general. Lest we think our enemy has no plan of attack - let me assure you, we probably give him some "hints" about how it is we can be attacked! Hints like us not being very kind in our responses when we are tired, or like when we don't plan ahead well and leave late for a specific appointment, then get all bogged down in traffic. We sometimes like to blame him for these events, but in actuality, these are common struggles for all of us, so if he can use them to his benefit, he will! He doesn't necessarily make us tired, nor does he send the traffic - but he will use them to get us to take our eyes off what really matters.

He will often get us to focus on what more can be added into our day, and this gets us into our trouble. If someone does something that we may not normally react to, but in our tiredness, we somehow "read more into it" than we should, we might respond with the feeling a bit of stress added to our day. We "add into" the situation because of our own interpretation of the circumstances viewed through already overextended and over-tired eyes! We know we need to spend time within our relationships - "quality time" - while not being distracted and focused intentionally on each other. Then we get this genius idea to just combine a little work with the pleasure and we somehow no longer have this non-distracted, intentional focus in the "quality time". He will get us to considering the "alternatives" to the way we know we should go, and we get duped again. We could do something this way, OR we could do it another way, often presented as the easier way. We could sweep the floor, or just kick the crumbs under the throw rug! The alternative which seems so much easier is presented to us, usually in such a way that suggests we were entitled to have it be this easy in the first place. Just a little advice here - what appears too easily accomplished or obtained is usually not the best plan!

Adding things into our day adds complications we didn't need. Taking the easy way presents short-cuts which really do little to simplify our lives and usually just delay the original plan. Since the Garden of Eden, our enemy has been using the same two tactics. If we become aware of how he operates, we might just be able to resist his attacks a little easier. God is strong and he wants us strong. What we do with the wisdom we are given will ultimately determine how strong we will stand. What are we given? "Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out." (Ephesians 6:13-18)

Be prepared. The only attacks which are successful in our lives are when we don't prepare well. If we did a little "up front" consideration of what we put on our plate, or what will impact our ability to finish well, we might take a little less into our grasp! We cannot handle this alone. We need others who will come along side, especially the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We want relationship, but we don't take the time to invest in it. We are robbed of one of our greatest weapons against his attacks whenever we attempt to stand alone. The value of well-developed relationships is best understood in the times of our deepest personal need. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation - weapons in their own right. Truth sets us straight, so we aren't duped into believing our own vain imaginations. Righteousness helps us stand upright when all of our enemy's hosts would want us to look backward at our failures. Peace determines the steadiness of our walk and gives us the assurance we don't walk alone. Faith keeps us directed on what we cannot see, but what we have come to accept and stand on as true in our live. Salvation is the anchor which holds us when we might want to drift.

We need to talk WITH God. Prayer is more than talking TO God - it is talking WITH God. Two-way conversation - open to receive what he gives. We sell ourselves short when all we come to do is TELL God and never stop to LISTEN TO God. Most of the time, it is in these listening times where we discover we have been giving into the "AND" and the "OR" tactics of our enemy. In these moments of being WITH Jesus, we discover we didn't need the "AND" and we cannot count on the "OR". Time to stop being 'bullied' into believing otherwise! Just sayin!

Don't be 'dull'

Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You're not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It's the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won't last forever. It won't be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.

(I Peter 5:8-11)

Today we find a reminder of the importance of keeping our guard - never, never letting it down because when we do, the dangers lurk.  This is a call to stay alert, aware of our surroundings, attentive to things that cross our path - it won't be smooth sailing all the way and we need to be 'aware' of all that comes our way.  Here we see a picture of the Devil being "poised to pounce" much like a large jungle cat just laying in wait for its prey - eyes fixed, every muscle tense with the power to just explode into action at the moment the chance presents itself. What does it take to stay alert and stand our ground in faith?  We will go through times of testing, much like a refining process, that will purify our faith - so it is important that we figure this out as quickly as possible.  A pure faith is one that can stand confident in the midst of trial and temptation.  How is our faith purified?  The trial (times of testing) brings to the surface things that otherwise would be hidden from our attention and allows us to lay those things before God, trusting him to remove them.  

We need to be involved in our daily walk with a passion and a purpose - not just lazily accepting our lives as already being all they can be (although this would make life it a whole lot easier).  In other words, we stay committed to growth - doing what it takes to grow up in Christ.  This may mean doing what we don't necessarily feel like doing - daily time in the Word, gathering together in regular times of worship and teaching, etc.  It means that we don't accept "good enough" as the basis of our Christian walk - we ask God for the best, and pursue it with the passion that he enables us to develop.  We also need to realize the importance of love in our lives - because it is the manifestation of how God has worked in us, creating a new life within. We are to be attentive to the needs of others, not always focusing on our own wants/wishes, but truly being sensitive to the plight of the other person. Love is learned at the feet of Jesus - love is lived out in the daily example we set to a lost and dying world. Love involves being kind with our words, encouraging in our actions, committed in our attitudes, and industrious in our work.

It is very easy to indulge our ego at the expense of our spiritual walk. Whenever we focus on our wants before God's desires for our lives, we are putting self first.  This is a place of danger for us!  We are called to do good with both heart and soul - that makes us unstoppable in the kingdom of God.  We cannot focus on our needs above those of another.  We cannot control the outcomes of a man's life, but we can impact the outcome by the choices we make, the example we set, and the love we display. We won't go very far in being ready for attack without a complete change of thinking - not dwelling on the old sinful ways of thinking any longer.  In other words, we need to have our minds (thoughts and attitudes) cleansed by the power of God's Word and his Holy Spirit.  The exchange of thought pattern from that of focusing merely on self, sinful passions and pursuits, to that of how God would have us to live is a process of growth.  We learn to "put on" the mind of Christ as we learn to bring each thought, desire, and attitude before him for his approval.  Those thoughts we entertain that do not bring him honor begin to be pointed out, while God faithfully reveals to us what we need to lay down in the process and what we need to replace those thoughts, desires, and attitudes with.  God is in the business of pointing out what needs to "go away", but he is also so faithful to provide what needs to "be put into" our lives.

Last, but not least,we need to be aware of our surroundings - standing our ground, alert, ready for the attack of our enemy.  Satan is like a prowling lion, waiting to pounce, just looking for the opportunity to trip us up in our walk and impede our progress with God.  He most common weapon is doubt - causing us to question the sincerity of our heart commitment, planting little seeds of doubt that cause us to focus on what we are NOT, instead of what we ARE. Be alert! Be ready!  That is the call.  Don't let the enemy of your soul trip you up with his discouraging words, immobilizing thoughts, and tantalizing temptations.  Stay on guard - in other words, don't grow lazy in your walk!  Be prayerful, study often and study well - not just to study, but to actually learn.  The best antidote to a lack of growth is to learn to take in that which will spur us to growth again - regular time in his Word, committed relationships with others walking with him, and attention to times of special communion with our God.  Just sayin!

Is it "AND" or perhaps "OR"

Do you ever feel beat up?  You know, like when no matter how hard you try to move one step forward, you feel like you are taking two steps backward?  No matter what you do, you just cannot seem to break free of whatever it is that is keeping you in the muddle you are in.  Sometimes I think this is just my own doing - because I have bitten off way more than I can chew.  My plate is overloaded and the only way to be clear of the pressure is to get some of the stuff off my plate which really doesn't belong there in the first place.  Then there are other times when I just cannot tell you why I am feeling a little oppressed and pushed down, but it happens.  I think those times might just be when the enemy of my soul wants me to get distracted from what is important in life.  How about you?  Sometimes you just need to push some of the stuff back off your plate, other times you might just need to push back against the one who is "bullying" your soul!

God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.  (Ephesians 6:10-12 MSG)

According to this passage, the devil beats us up unnecessarily for he is already defeated - he is just doing his best to convince us otherwise!  If we'd learn to put on the full armor we are given and actually use it to resist the attacks of the enemy of our souls, we might just be able to hold our ground against his attacks!  Lest we think he doesn't know where to attack us in our lives, be assured of this - there is nothing "uncommon" in our struggles that others have not already struggled with.  He just knows how we ALL struggle - so he uses these "common" areas as a means to get us focused on the stuff which just gets us down and under the pressure of life.  Lest we think our enemy has no plan of attack - let me assure you, we probably give him some "hints" about how it is we can be attacked!  Hints like us not being very kind in our responses when we are tired, or like when we don't plan ahead well and leave late for a specific appointment, then get all bogged down in traffic.  We sometimes like to blame him for these events, but in actuality, these are common struggles for all of us, so if he can use them to his benefit, he will! He doesn't necessarily make us tired, nor does he send the traffic - but he will use them to get us to take our eyes off what matters.

Two things he uses in our lives is this concept of "AND" and the idea of "OR". In the first case, he will often get us to focus on what more can be added - the "AND" gets us into our trouble.  For example, if someone does something which we may not usually react to, but in our tiredness, we somehow "read more into it" than we should, we might respond with the "AND" scenario.  We "add into" the situation our own interpretation of the circumstances which are being viewed through already overextended and over-tired eyes!  We know we need to spend time within our relationships which is "quality time" - not distracted, focused intentionally on each other.  Then we get this genius idea to just combine a little work with the pleasure and we somehow no longer have this non-distracted, intentional focus in the "quality time" - the AND factor.  In the second case, he will get us to considering the "alternatives" to the way we know we should go - the "OR" factor.  We could do something this way, OR we could do it another way, often presented as the easier way.  Like when we could sweep the floor, or just kick the crumbs under the throw rug! The "OR" factor usually presents an alternative which seems so much easier, or like we were entitled to have it be this easy in the first place.  Just a little advice here - what appears too easily accomplished or obtained is usually not the best plan!

AND adds complications we didn't need.  OR presents short-cuts which do little to simplify our lives and usually just delay the original plan.  Since the Garden of Eden he has been using the same two tactics.  If we become aware of how he operates, we might just be able to resist his attacks a little easier. God is strong and he wants us strong - get hold of that word of instruction. What we do with the wisdom we are given will ultimately determine how strong we will stand.  What are we given?  Perhaps we'd do well to read on in our passage:  "Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out."  (Ephesians 6:13-18 MSG)

- Be prepared.  The only attacks which are successful in our lives is when we don't prepare well.  If we did a little "up front" consideration of what we put on our plate, or what will impact our ability to finish well, we might take a little less into our grasp!

- We cannot handle this alone.  We need others who will come along side; especially the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  Now, here is the rub - we want relationship, but we don't take the time to invest in it.  We are robbed of one of our greatest weapons against his attacks whenever we attempt to stand alone.  The value of well-developed relationships is best understood in the times of our deepest personal need.

- Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation - weapons in their own right.  Truth sets us straight, so we aren't duped into believing our own vain imaginations.  Righteousness helps us stand upright when all of our enemy's hosts would want us to look backward at our failures.  Peace determines the steadiness of our walk and gives us the assurance we don't walk alone.  Faith keeps us directed on what we cannot see, but what we have come to accept and stand on as true in our live.  Salvation is the anchor which holds us when we might want to drift.

- We need to talk WITH God.  Prayer is more than talking TO God - it is talking WITH God.  Two-way conversation - open to receive what he gives. We sell ourselves short when all we come to do is TELL God and never stop to LISTEN TO God.  Most of the time, it is in these listening times where we discover we have been giving into the "AND" and the "OR" tactics of our enemy.  In these moments of being WITH Jesus, we discover we didn't need the "AND" and we cannot count on the "OR".  Just sayin!

Napping is bad for your health!

Ever feel like you have a "personal enemy" just lurking at your back?  You know, that eerie feeling that you just cannot escape some sense of doom and gloom that hangs heavy over your head?  Yep, we all go through that on occasion - no matter how "spiritual" we are!  Guess what - we DO have a personal enemy - he is called Satan.  His mission in life is to make our life miserable as much as possible - especially if we have committed to living by the principles laid out in scripture and entered into the grace God extends through the life of Christ.  He makes it his point to muster his forces to attempt to dissuade us from that pursuit.  Here's the good news - you'd not be the object of his attacks if you weren't living the way Jesus wants you to!

Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You’re not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It’s the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.  (I Peter 5:8-11 MSG)

So, in the midst of realizing we have a personal enemy, here's what scripture tells us - keep a cool head!  Don't get overwhelmed by the attack - but see it for what it is!  It is a cleverly manipulated scheme designed to get us off track with Jesus - plain and simple!  Something you may not have considered is the attacks from our "personal enemy" will not stop!  They may lessen from time to time, but they don't stop.  Why?  He wants company in eternity!

Four things come to mind as excellent opportunities for our "personal enemy" to overwhelm us - those times or seasons in our lives when it makes it just a little easier for him to get an inroad into our lives.  What are they?  The times when we are hungry, lonely, angry, or tired.  

- Hungry for the wrong stuff.  Our "personal enemy" plays on our emotions - he wants us to develop wrong appetites in life.  Not so much for the foods we eat, but for the stuff which will whittle away our time, sap us of our energies, and the like.  He wants us to misdirect our attentions to those things which really don't amount to much in the end.  If he can get our eyes off of Jesus and onto ANYTHING or ANYONE else, he has succeeded in taking us from a place of being satisfied in Jesus and being hungry for something else instead.

- Lonely seasons are the toughest seasons to navigate through.  Why?  Isolated people make good targets.  If you have ever watched the nature shows, you know the lion doesn't hunt the herd, he hunts the one who stands apart, who wanders out into the open.  This is a hunting tactic used by those who take their prey from the beginning of time.  If you think Satan is any different in his "hunting" tactics, he isn't!  He looks for the isolated because they make easy prey.  The work of separating them from the herd is already done!  So, to counter this attack, we need to be aware of our surroundings - know when we are getting on the fringes of the "herd" and in danger of pulling away from those who actually act to keep us in a place of safety.

- Anger is probably one of our toughest struggles in life - it is an emotion which is hard to understand sometimes.  We don't always "break down" our anger to see what is at the root of it, so it keeps emerging when we least expect it.  The result of anger is further relationship breakdown, the result of the further breakdown is the chance for isolation, or at least being surrounded by a crowd who may not help you be hungry for the right things!  The sad part of anger is its destructiveness - not just of others - but of us.  It eats at us until it forms a cavernous "ulceration" which just bleeds and festers all the time.  So, if our enemy can get us focused on what we see as something we might just want to get a bit miffed about from time to time, he gets us working on the responses which lead us to form more frequent bouts of anger.  It is cyclic.  If he can get us angry with God - he scores extra points on that one!

- Weariness or being continuously tired is probably the hardest one of these to counter.  You see, our personal enemy begins with our focus.  If he gets us distracted, he can get us to wander a bit.  If he gets us wandering outside of protection in our lives, he can get us to feeling isolated and isolated people find it easier to get angry when things don't go their way in life.  Distracted, isolated, and angry people don't rest well!  In fact, we drive harder, trying to outdo ourselves and others - eventually succumbing to the fatigue which acts as a shadow or cloud over our lives.  The fatigue makes us vulnerable to attack!  See it for what it is - his tool to make it easier for him to take us down!

I don't know about you, but recognizing what it is our "personal enemy" may be up to in our lives seems like a good idea to me.  If you know the plan of attack ahead of time, you can counter the attack.  Just sayin!

Authority without power is no authority at all

^18-21We know that none of the God-begotten makes a practice of sin—fatal sin. The God-begotten are also the God-protected. The Evil One can't lay a hand on them. We know that we are held firm by God; it's only the people of the world who continue in the grip of the Evil One. And we know that the Son of God came so we could recognize and understand the truth of God—what a gift!—and we are living in the Truth itself, in God's Son, Jesus Christ. This Jesus is both True God and Real Life. Dear children, be on guard against all clever facsimiles.

(I John 5:18-21)

Be on guard - the alertness of spirit and mind that immediately recognizes anything that is not truth and rejects it as such.  We are surrounded on all sides by that which is untrue - there may be elements of truth, but at the core, that which presents itself as light may not always be light!  Satan is a real enemy - but he is limited in his power over the child of God.  He may be the tempter, the deceiver, and the accuser of man, but his power is limited by the fact that each child of God is protected by God himself.

As the tempter of the brethren, Satan works overtime to stimulate desires within us that will get us entwined in activities and pursuits that are not the best for us.  Our heart has a way of betraying us - it exposes our real desires and areas where our determination to serve Jesus with obedience is less than fully committed.  As the enemy of our soul sees those weak areas, he uses them for his advantage - to attempt to get us to love those things that are both outside of God's priorities for our life and outside of those things that bring honor to him.  Seduction is simply being led away - there is something that appeals to that which is really at the heart of our being.

Satan is the number one authority on rebellion - but he does not have the market cornered!  He has a lot of company in that "rebellion" ring!  Every time we choose our own way, we are really choosing who will be in authority in our lives.  That is the nature of rebellion - WE want authority!  One thing to keep in mind - authority without the power or ability to back it up is really no authority at all.  Satan is really without authority when it comes to the child of God.  That is because his power has been destroyed by the cross.  Sin is, and always has been, a question of which authority we will listen to - Self, Satan, or God.  Whenever we choose any other authority than God, we are asking that authority to back up that authority with its power.  

The power of Satan is limited by the hand of God.  The power of self-desire is limited by the investment we make into elevating self over any other authority in our lives.  At best, that "limiting" effect we have over self-desire is minimal.  We need a more powerful authority in our lives - therefore, we need God's authority to rule.  

Satan works to deceive us.  I think this is his greatest weapon in his arsenal.  He has many lies.  Have you ever noticed how effective he is in the use of those lies?  He brings the exact lie that fits the exact circumstance or choice we find ourselves in.  We are presented with three choices at every moment of decision in life - Satan only wants us to see the choices that don't align us with God's authority or power.  We can choose to believe Satan's lie, our own self-deceiving desires that are not placed under God's authority, or the reliable authority of God.  There is only one authority that is truly backed with the power to accomplish anything of value - God's.

As Satan came before God in heaven one day, God asked him what he'd been up to.  Satan's immediate response was that he'd been out, going to and fro throughout the earth, taking in all the activities of man.  God's next question may confuse you a little - he asks Satan if he'd considered the activities of one of his children, Job.  Now, I don't know how that makes you feel - but for some, we'd wonder if God actually loved Job!  In our minds, we'd think, "If you really loved Job, you'd never want Satan to consider him for one moment!"  The question is telling in that Job immediately answers, "Yes, I have!"  When you understand that Satan is not concerned with the activities of those that don't serve God, but is intently aware of the activities of those that do, you understand God's question!  He knows Satan wants nothing more than to deceive, tempt and try his hardest to get Job to compromise his loyalty to God!

At best, Satan is nothing more than our accuser, one who attempts to bring deception, and the opportunities to tempt us into sin.  At every opportunity, he is "considering" our actions - hoping to present us with one opportunity that will drive a wedge in between us and God.  Little does he know that his authority has no backing!  His power has been broken - we are "God-protected" beings!  As such, we need fear no evil.  No temptation presents itself without a way of escape.  No deception is offered without the opposing truth of the Word to contradict its lies.  At best, Satan offers "clever facsimiles" of the truth - we have the "original" to counter his facsimile!

There is comfort and security in knowing that we have no need to fear one who possesses no power!  We will do well to remember the truth that all of Satan's power is bound by the hand of God.  He may tempt, bring accusation and offer deceiving alternatives to every truth we embrace from God, but his power is really not there to back up his efforts to dissuade the soul committed to the purposes of God!

Be alert! Be ready!

^8-11Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You're not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It's the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won't last forever. It won't be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.

(I Peter 5:8-11)

As Peter wraps up the first letter to the churches, he sums up with a reminder of the importance of keeping our guard.  There is a call to stay alert, aware of our surroundings, attentive to things that cross our path.  Peter paints the picture of the Devil being "poised to pounce" much like a large jungle cat just laying in wait for its prey.  

What does it take to stay alert and stand our ground in faith?  He has given us some key points throughout this short epistle.  First, he reminded us that we will go through times of testing, much like a refining process, that will purify our faith.  A pure faith is one that can stand confident in the midst of trial and temptation.  How is our faith purified?  Peter tells us it is through trial - times of testing.  The trial brings to the surface things that otherwise would be hidden from our attention and allows us to lay those things before God, trusting him to remove them.  

Second, Peter reminded us that we need to be involved in our daily walk with a passion and a purpose - not just lazily accepting our lives as already being all they can be.  In other words, we stay committed to growth - doing what it takes to grow up in Christ.  This may mean doing what we don't necessarily feel like doing - daily time in the Word, gathering together in regular times of worship and teaching, etc.  It means that we don't accept "good enough" as the basis of our Christian walk - we ask God for the best, and pursue it with the passion that he enables us to develop.

Third, Peter spent a great deal of time expounding on the importance of love in our lives - because it is the manifestation of how God has worked in us, creating a new life within.  We are to be attentive to the needs of others, not always focusing on our own wants/wishes, but truly being sensitive to the plight of the other person.  Love is learned at the feet of Jesus - love is lived out in the daily example we set to a lost and dying world.  Love involves being kind with our words, encouraging in our actions, committed in our attitudes, and industrious in our work.

Fourth, we are reminded that it is very easy to indulge our ego at the expense of our spiritual walk.  Whenever we focus on our wants before God's desires for our lives, we are putting self first.  This is a place of danger for us!  We are called to do good with both heart and soul - that makes us unstoppable in the kingdom of God.  We cannot focus on our needs above those of another.  We cannot control the outcomes of a man's life, but we can impact the outcome by the choices we make, the example we set, and the love we display.

Fifth, Peter pointed out the importance of a change of thinking - not dwelling on the old sinful ways of thinking any longer.  In other words, he is telling us we need to have our minds (thoughts and attitudes) cleansed by the power of God's Word and his Holy Spirit.  The exchange of thought pattern from one of focusing on self, sinful passions and pursuits, to that of how God would have us to live is a process of growth.  We learn to "put on" the mind of Christ as we learn to bring each thought, desire, and attitude before him for his approval.  Those that do not bring him honor he begins to point out, faithfully revealing to us what we need to lay down in the process and what we need to replace those thoughts, desires, and attitudes with.  God is in the business of pointing out what needs to "go away", but he is also so faithful to provide what needs to "be put into" our lives.

Last, but not least, Peter tells us to be aware of our surroundings - standing our ground, alert, ready for the attack of our enemy.  Satan is like a prowling lion, waiting to pounce, just looking for the opportunity to trip us up in our walk and impede our progress with God.  He does this through doubt - causing us to question the sincerity of our heart commitment, planting little seeds of doubt that cause us to focus on what we are NOT, instead of what we ARE.

Be alert!  Be ready!  That is the call of this book.  Don't let the enemy of your soul trip you up with his discouraging words, immobilizing thoughts, and tantalizing temptations.  Stay on guard - in other words, don't grow lazy in your walk!  Be prayerful, study often and study well.  The best antidote to a lack of growth is to learn to take in that which will spur us to growth again - regular time in his Word, committed relationships with others walking with him, and attention to times of special communion with our God.