March 13, 2016

Be Alert At All Times

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

Last night our downtown hosted a Girls’ Night Out event. It was filled with fun and talk and meeting new people and old. I visited a store where my friend once operated her business. So much had changed. But not everything.

The young girls working heard me telling someone about the history of the store. It was once a funeral parlor. The old elevator with pull cords is still there. That’s how they got the bodies up to the second floor, where the embalming was done.

One Saturday my friend’s mother was working. She had one of her sweet dogs with her. She’d gone upstairs and the dog went with her. Something spooked the dog, who went running downstairs. Her Mom said she could see some clothes moving but nothing else. The dog would never go back upstairs.

One of the girls was totally freaked out and told us she works there most days by herself. There couldn’t be spirits, she insisted. When a person dies, you either go to heaven or hell. I didn’t want to get into the whole spiritual warfare topic. Honestly, I wasn’t sure she could handle it and I knew it was neither the time nor the place. I may stop back in one day and talk with her, though that’s another thing.

My advice: If something scares you tell it in no uncertain terms and in Jesus’ name to go away. She practiced. I hope she believed me because as simple as it sounds, it works.

We live in a fallen world where there is a spiritual battle going on around us all the time. It’s not some mystic mumbo jumbo. It’s real. And we’ve got to realize what is happening in order to fight against it. Be alert, as Peter says. Understand that the closer you get to doing something God has called you to do, the more Satan will attack you.

Know also your buttons. What are you afraid of? What makes you angry? Know where you are vulnerable to attack. Know what is most likely to cause you to sin and be prepared to fight against it -- in Jesus’ name and with His power and wisdom.

I have no idea what freaked the dog out that Saturday afternoon. But I do know it’s another reminder to us to always be aware of what is happening in the spiritual world that we do not see.

February 21, 2016

How Vulnerable Are You?

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

Where do you think you are most vulnerable to an attack by the enemy? What is your button, the one issue where you are most likely to fall into sin?

Not sure? You’re at a great risk of falling into the enemies hands because I can guarantee you Satan knows where you are most vulnerable.

Our Sunday school class has been studying The Battle Plan for Prayer by Stephen and Alex Kendrick. This is a question they posed. It’s one I’ve honestly never thought about.

Don’t get me wrong. I know my buttons. I do. What that really means is that I know my fears. I know what I am most afraid of and that is the area where I am most vulnerable to an attack by the enemy.

We all have vulnerable areas, whether we recognize or admit it or not. When we understand where we are vulnerable we can create a battle plan.

Most of us would prefer to ignore the enemy but that is just so dangerous. He is real and he will do all that he can to stop us from serving God.

It’s hard for me to grasp, this invisible foe that we all face. I don’t like horror films. I’m not into the supernatural. I like things cut and dried, to borrow a well-worn cliché. I don’t like games of subterfuge. There’s just been too much of that in my life.

But I also don’t want to be Satan’s victim. So I take those vulnerable areas to God and ask for protection. I realize that I am not strong enough, smart enough or mighty enough to take on Satan or his minions. God is all powerful, all knowing and mightier than anything or anyone, in this world or in the spiritual realm.

So let me ask you again: Where are you most vulnerable to an attack for Satan? Think about it. Seriously. And create a battle plan that involves taking it to God. Satan will come after you. Be prepared.

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Hold On To Hope and Joy

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. -- 1 Peter 5:8

Palm Sunday is a day filled with hope and promise. Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, something Zechariah had proclaimed. The disciples, the followers of Jesus, did not know or understand that this triumphant entry would soon be replaced with deep sorrow and pain.

That’s how Satan works. He comes upon us when we are least expecting his presence and he tries to steal our joy, our happiness, our peace. Peter warns us to be wary, watchful, wise.

It’s just so easy to focus on what’s wrong in our lives rather than what is good. A woman is slowly getting her health back after suffering from a serious condition. She’ll always have the condition but she is now mobile and able to do most of what she wants to do. That’s a long way from not being able to stand by herself or even pour herself a glass of sweet tea.

But instead of focusing on her recovery, she is obsessing over what she can no longer do. It is so frustrating. There is no joy in her life because she refuses to see the good. And that makes everyone around her miserable. I’ve no doubt that Satan is cheering her on.

A dear man has been slowly reaching what we laughingly refer to as the twilight years of our lives. He cherishes card games and time with friends and family. Then he was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and given only a few months to live. He is angry and bitter, on tranquilizers for the depression that haunts his every waking moment.

I pray that he’ll find peace, and soon. His friends have rallied and his pastors are regular visitors and counselors. It is a hard road and I am not making light of it. Nor am I claiming to understand how he feels. I only know that anger and bitterness will rob him of the joy and peace he could experience during these months he has left on earth. Satan wants it that way.

In our lives many times we face circumstances we can not change. We can either be joyful where we are, giving God glory and total control of our lives, or we can let Satan rob us of God’s peace and strength. It isn’t always easy. I fail repeatedly to reach that moment where, as Paul says, I can be content in all circumstances. But I’m trying every day.

What about you? Are you choosing to be joyful or are you letting Satan have his way with your life? Today is all about hope and promise. Grasp it firmly and don’t let Satan take it away from you.

Monday, October 17, 2011

Care For God’s Flock

Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers -- not just because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. -- 1 Peter 5:2-3

What has God entrusted to you? Who has God entrusted to you? Because God didn’t place us on this earth to merely exist. He gave us abilities and talents, responsibilities and possibilities.

We are here to serve Him, our Creator, our God, our Father. All that we do is meant to glorify God and care for His sheep.

So, I ask you again: What and who has He entrusted to you? Do you have children to nurture and raise? They could be our own. They could be students or the neighbor’ children. They could be nieces and nephews. But if God places a child in your path, do all you can to protect that child and see that he/she knows Jesus.

Some of us care for aging parents. Others care for siblings. Or elderly neighbors who are alone. One friend has taken it on himself to roll out the garbage cans of his elderly, widowed neighbors to the road the night before garbage pickup, then take the receptacles back to their house after garbage pickup. A simple task -- but a really big deal to someone who has trouble walking. My friend believes God put him in the midst of five widows for just such tasks as these.

Maybe you teach a Sunday school class or pass out bulletins at the front door of the church. Maybe you‘re the one who makes sure coffee is ready before everyone else arrives. Maybe all your kids’ friends gather at your house to socialize, to play, to feel welcome and safe.

We never really know sometimes how our actions effect the lives of others. When I was a small child, my great aunt taught me the words to “Jesus Loves Me.” It was one of my few memories of the time before my parents stopped attending church. The words of that song echoed in my mind many nights as I nursed my broken and rejected heart. I thanked her one day several years ago. She didn’t even remember it. We never know how what we‘re doing may impact someone else.

God put you where you are for a reason. Look around. Measure your words. Be free with your smiles. Let others see Jesus reflected outward from you. God has entrusted you to keep watch over His sheep. Don’t let Him down.

Wednesday. November 17, 2010

He Is Always There

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." -- Philippians 4:6-7

It was a day. I was thankful for the rain. I was thankful for the opportunity to earn extra money. I spent time talking with a friend I hadn't spoken with in weeks. I was painting a really cute table and chair set. And on and on and on. Before the day was done, I figured I would be in a straight jacket. Seriously.

I sometimes joke that I have one nerve. I usually make that joke when someone is getting on said nerve. Well, today that nerve was stretched so tight that it was fraying in the middle. I just knew it would snap at any time. You probably think something major happened to derail my day. You'd be wrong. It was just lots and lots of little things that suddenly seemed to add up. Ever been there?

I was driving at night, in the rain, fuming over the juvenile antics of someone who'd done something really smelly to a wonderful vehicle. It was the final straw in my day. I finally calmed down enough to start repeating the above verse. I said it again and again. God even found me a wonderful radio station. Of course, I also told Him all about my anger and how I wanted Him to make Satan leave me alone. I sounded just like a small child. I felt like it too. But, then, I am His child and I needed my Yahweh!

"Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." -- 1 Peter 5:7

Yes, He does. He loves me even when little things add up and almost drive me crazy. He loves me even when I have to loudly count my blessings so that I won't throw a tantrum. He loves me when I am nuts in a driving rain on a black night. He is there to calm me and care for me and love me right where I am. God is so much more than I could ever imagine. He is just the greatest! I am so glad, so grateful, that He calls me His.