The Enemy Is Relentless

The Enemy Is Relentless by Anne Peterson
 “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” - 1 Peter 5:8 One thing happened after another. I’d almost catch my breath and another thing would go wrong. My daughter and I looked at each other as we said in unison. “This is warfare.” It was interesting. The first thing Jessie asked me was, “Mom what were you doingright before all this happened?” At first, I wanted to minimize what she was asking me, but instead, I cleared my mind and recalled exactly what I was doing. I was singing to the Lord, praising Him. And I knew it was warfare. The enemy of our souls doesn’t want us worshipping God. The one he used to worship. And just knowing what was going on helped me know what to do. I needed to focus on truth, instead of believing the lies that were being shot atme. Satan Is the Father of Lies Just so you understand, Jesus himself was approached by Satan. And Jesus, the Son of God didn’t try to fight Satan on his own. He continually referred to God’s Word. He responded over and over, with the words, “It is written…" Satan is the one who tries toconvince us that God doesn’t care about us. But he doesn’t tell us this when we are confident, or when we’ve just been victorious. He waits till we are weary. He waits till we are weak. But the good news is that the Holy Spirit who lives within those who have trusted Christ is stronger than Satan (1 John 4:4). His Tactics Have Not Changed Even back in the Garden of Eden, Satan set out to deceive Eve. He didn’t do it blatantly, but instead, Satan took what God had told Eve and made her question God’s words to her. He loves to just take things and twist them a little. “You shall not surely die,” the serpent said (Genesis 3:4-5). If Satan can get us to question God in any way, we are sliding down aslippery slope. Satan Wants Us Confused One helpful thing to do is to call another Christian when you start getting confused about a situation. The ESV version of 1 Corinthians 14:33 states that God is not a God of confusion. So you can bet that the enemy is trying that tactic to muddle up your mind, which makes it difficult to concentrate on the truth. Satan Hates the Truth Satan only knows how to lie. He hates the truth, so there is no better way to defeat him than by staying in the truth. Meditating on the truth and even memorizing it. The more we are in the Word of God, the easier we can discern when the enemy is in the picture.For example. Satan will try to convince us of things that would keep us stuck. When we are praying to God about a concern, Satan will either tell us that God doesn’t care about what we’re going through, or he’ll tell us that we don’t deserve for God to helpus. Either tactic will get us to doubt the God who loves us. Satan Wants to Thwart God’s Work When we are responding to the Lord and using our gifts to follow God, the enemy has to try and stop us. If we’re successful, others may be watching and we may lead others to follow Christ. So Satan is continually trying to stop what God is doing. Being awareof this is so helpful. We can then jump back into the Word, bathing ourselves in what God has told us. And we will be refuting what the enemy is trying to do. But he has more than one tactic. Another One of Satan’s Tactics One thing that the enemy of our souls will do again and again is make us feel guilty when we have blown it. What I’m referring to, is when we feel encumbered with guilt. How freeing to learn that guilt is not from God. Paul tells us there is no condemnationto those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). God’s Holy Spirit is the one who convicts us when we sin, but it is Satan that heaps guilton us when we do wrong. He tells us how worthless we are and continues from that point on. Knowing what God says about us is the only way we can recognize it is the enemy who is whispering lies to us. When Jesus took our sins on the cross, God took out His wrath on Jesus. Always be aware of the father of lies. My Favorite Weapon against the Enemy 1 Peter 2:20 tells us: “When we suffer for doing wrong and we endure it, how is it to our credit? But if we suffer for doing good and weendure it, this is commendable before God.” Wanting to please God is what motivates me to go even further. So I’ve been praising God for who He is when I hurt because of the actions of another person. The truth is God is always worthy of ourpraise, and yet, sometimes when we’re hurting, we’re not in a place of praising God. I’m so glad we are free to choose. 

We were the joy set before Jesus when he endured the cross. And we can let Jesus be the joy set before us when we suffer. Because oneday, we will no longer have the fiery darts to deal with. One day. Intersecting Faith and Life: The longer we walk with the Lord and study His Word, the better equipped we will be when Satan tries to defeat us. What lies has Satan told you? What have you found helpful in those times? Lord, I pray that you give us wisdom as we are in this world. We thankyou that we were not left alone, but that you are with us. We thank you that you have given us your Word so that we can stand against the evil one. Thank you, Lord, that one day we will live in a world without Satan. We pray all this in your Son’s preciousand Holy name. In Jesus’ name, Amen. Always There My Child, I see you are burdened 
by the cares of your world day and night. So please, take my yoke on your shoulders,
learn of me— for my burden is light. The enemy tells you the trials you face
are proof that I never have cared. But the enemy lies, and he will till he dies. I have promised I’ll always be there. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Reminder That God�s Grace Is Sufficient By Aaron D'Anthony Brown �Concerning this, I pleaded with the Lord three times that it would leave me. But he said to me, �My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is perfected in weakness.� Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses,so that Christ�s power may reside in me. So I take pleasure in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and in difficulties, for the sake of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.� (2Corinthians 12: 8-10) Afraid to Share, Afraid to Think There�s a lot of things we readily bring to conversations. We talk about our career, family life, pets, impending vacation, and even what we had for breakfast that morning. What we�re far less likely to bring to the table is our suffering. These days, in ourconstant flow of information, the worst news we hear or share is about other people. Not ourselves. We tuck away our struggles and imperfections behind smiling faces and picture-perfect posts when in reality, we�re in a battle for our minds. Why are we so hesitant to share our suffering with others? Are we afraid of condemnation or afraid of what we�ll find inside ourselves? The latter is much more common than we believe. And one of the truths we discover is just how powerless we are sometimesin life. Paul provides us with the perfect example. He looked within himself and desired change. As any Christian would, he prayed to God. However, Paul didn�t get what he asked. God didn�t change the circumstance and Paul�s suffering continued. Paul was powerless. Sometimes when we share our suffering we want to do something about our situation. And if we can�t, why talk about it? Sometimes we want God to change things. And if he won�t, then why talk about it? A lack of control shouldn�t mean we ignore our situation.Paul didn�t. That�s why we can read his words today. Moreover, Paul�s unfulfilled prayer didn�t mean God looked at him unfavorably. Paul didn�t need to be a perfect person living a perfect life to be loved by God. That�s the truth we need to remember ourselves. God�s Grace Is Sufficient! Paul reveals that God taught him a valuable lesson - His power is perfected in our weakness. This is an affirmation that we don�t need to be picture-perfect people at all times of the day. We will face suffering, and that suffering is real (John16:33). Acknowledge that for God, for others, and for ourselves. Ignoring our struggles not only prevents us from moving closer to a solution but also prevents us from remembering God�s grace. If life�s perfect we don�t need His grace. Yet, when life�sa mess we can�t live without Him. With a bit more introspection and honesty, we can be more like Paul writing to the church of Corinth. The shift in perspective requires us to think less about how or why we�re suffering and focus more on why God�s grace is enough for any ordeal. Intersecting Faith and Life: Pretending life is bliss doesn�t erase our suffering. In fact, ignoring our circumstances could make things worse. With loneliness, depression, and other issues on the rise in society, we need to talk about issues in order to address them. Paul was willingto bring his situation to God and share it with others. Who are you willing to share with today? When was the last time you got honest about your own suffering? Learning to communicate can help us find solutions for school, marriage, work, addiction, and more. God created us to be in community with one another. Moreover, He created us to be in fellowship with Him. We don�t always know when or if the suffering will end. Instead of dwelling on the negative, we can focus on thatone great truth, God�s grace is sufficient. Every day, and in every season, especially the seasons of suffering. If God�s power is perfected in weakness, this means you don�t have to rely on yourself. You don�t have to rely on people or situations. Turn to Him, every day, without the smiles, without the pretending. For when we were weak, then we were strong. Further Reading (and Listening): •John 16:33 •Romans 8:26 •Proverbs 27:17 •Philippians 4:13 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Peace, Joy, and Contentment Nehemiah 2:1-8 Discouragement can rob peace, joy, and contentment. But I have great news if you feel disheartened: You�re not stuck! I�ve known people who appeared to be in an impossible situation. A few years later, however, they were in a terrific place, either in terms of their circumstances or their emotions. The reason? They never gave up. Instead of sulking in self-pity, they choseto believe God, step out in faith, and climb out of the emotional pit. Nehemiah is a good example. He had every reason to feel defeated, because his people were in trouble. After receiving news that the city wall had been destroyed, this man of God acknowledged profound disappointment and grieved. Though pain flooded his soul,he didn�t allow himself to stay in that low place. Instead, Nehemiah cried out to God, seeking direction. Sadness in the presence of royalty was punishable by death. But the Lord answered Nehemiah�s prayer with amazing power, prompting the king to notice his servant�s sad countenance and then toask what he could do to help. This miracle led to the rebuilding of the wall and the redemption of God�s people. The Lord can take an impossible situation�no matter what it is�and move in ways mightier than you can imagine. Do you live in eager expectation of what the Lord will do? Or have you chosen to linger in the depths of despair? Like Nehemiah, turn your disappointment into a petition for God�s help. He can restore your hope and prevent negative emotions from gaininga stranglehold on your life. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------