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| Satan before the Lord (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
You are a righteous God
and judge our thoughts and desires.
Stop the wickedness of evildoers
and reward those who are good.
Psalm 7:9
Good News Translation (GNT)
I've never served in the military, yet I've been at war all of my life. My enemy rarely comes across as anyone who wants to hurt me or kill me. The temptations offered by Satan are often enticing and seemingly to my benefit. But are my gains in this world necessarily good for me?
When we get what we want, what we receive does not always come from God. My true blessings have been from God. Those blessings have lasted and remain with me. Other temporal blessings that seemed nice at the time were not from God. Those false blessings caused problems for me in the end and I regretted having been duped by the evil one.
It's the assailing of my mind that weakens me and ultimately deceives me. As I've grown older, I've grown wiser. Still I'm susceptible to that which can cause me to sin. Sometimes I feel like if I could just stop thinking then I might be safe from the wretched influence of Satanic forces. But then if I stopped thinking I would miss the beauty of the Word that will save me from this influence.
A spiritual battle rages on and tries to claim all of us as victims. Christ frees us if we accept Him and run from wickedness. Just as Lot's family was warned when fleeing Sodom, we should not look back toward old sinful ways.
God will provide us what we need as is our due. Our faithfulness to Him will lead us to the answers we need in life. We must offer ourselves as living sacrifices. And if we think that we are our own and don't have to answer to anyone but ourselves, then think again. Ultimately we belong to one power or another. Who do you want to claim you?
Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”
2 Timothy 2:19
New International Version (NIV)
Great and thoughtful post to read Lee.
ReplyDeleteYvonne.
Hi Arlee! This is my first visit to your blog.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE that opening line about not being in the military, but at war. I will remember that for a long time. I guess we all can say that too.
Being a living sacrifice is hard work. But I know I have to do it. Thanks for the reminder!
Peace in Christ.
Ceil