No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. [Romans 8:37-39 (NLT)]
Last week, I wrote about the emotional vampires that can plague us, but there are other demons even harder to spot than those two-legged ones. Invisible, they’re Satan’s minions and go by the names of guilt, anger, doubt, fear, self-pity, shame, regret, fear, and worry. They haunt us with “if only,” “what if,” “should have,” and “could have.” Leaving us discontented, sullen, resentful, frightened, or anxious, they are the hobgoblins whispering lies and half-truths in our ears. They tell us we’re unlovable, contemptible, unforgiven, helpless, inadequate, or worthless. They demean our accomplishments and demoralize us. Whether because of our appearance, age, education, weight, race, background, inexperience, or past, they tell us we’re damaged goods. Friends of the enemy, they keep us from living boldly, stepping out in faith, and leading the fulfilling and joyful life Jesus promised.
It’s time to declare war on these monsters; they have no place in our lives. In the old movies, evil was repelled by the crucifix—a mere religious symbol. In real life, however, it is the power of Jesus that defeats the enemy! Through His power, we can banish those demons that steal our joy and suck the life from us. We are the beloved children of God—children He loved enough to sacrifice His son for us! As such, we can face our secrets, shed our shame, forgive others (and ourselves), know we are loved, release our anxiety and fear, trust God, and choose His truth. Let the voice we hear be that of the Holy Spirit rather than the unsettling accusatory voice of the enemy. With the power of the cross, we will be able to step out of the haunted house of our lives—not in fear, but in faith—not in darkness, but in light.
Heavenly Father, help us look into the dark corners of our lives. Shine your loving light on them so the hidden monsters slink away in fear! Banish the demons that keep us from the abundant life you promised.
The scariest monsters are the ones that lurk within our souls. [Edgar Allen Poe]
God had a Son that had no fault, but He never had a son that was not found fault with. God Himself was slandered in paradise by Satan. Let us not expect, therefore, to escape from the venomous tongue. [Charles Spurgeon]
The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. [John 10:10 (NLT)]
And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. [Philippians 4:8-9 (NLT)]
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At an elevation of 12,388 feet, the oxygen at the summit of Japan’s Mt. Fuji has two-thirds the density of oxygen at sea level. With an elevation gain of about 5,000 feet, the climb up takes from 5 to 10 hours and the descent down about 3 to 4 hours (not including time taken for much-needed breaks). Covered with snow most of the year, Mt. Fuji’s trails are closed from September 10 to early July because of freezing weather and hazardous conditions. Nevertheless, in April of last year, a 27-year-old university student attempted to climb to its peak. Unfortunately, his adventure ended when he had to be airlifted to a hospital because of altitude sickness.
Recently, our pastor asked what amazed us. I thought of his question and Agur’s observation about snakes when we were at the zoo recently. I was amazed watching the 12-foot Burmese python effortlessly slither into the water. Her roommate, a 19-foot 200-pound reticulated python was equally amazing as he slowly unfolded and glided along the enclosure’s edge.
Last Christmas Eve, people stood in long lines at gas stations and convenience stores to make a last-minute purchase, but it wasn’t for a Christmas gift; they wanted a Powerball ticket! Christmas morning, someone woke up to discover they won $1.817 billion and had become a billionaire overnight! By choosing the lump sum payout of $835 million, their status dwindled to multi-millionaire. Once taxes were paid, approximately $550 million remained which, in anybody’s book, still counts as a fortune!
The only prayer found in Proverbs is that of Agur in Proverbs 30. While he probably was one of the sages of Solomon’s day who helped compile the proverbs, other than saying he was the son of Jakeh, we really know nothing about the man. In his prayer, Agur asked for two unusual things, the first of which was that God would, “Remove far from me falsehood and lying.” His second prayer was that God give him neither poverty nor riches. These are not typical requests and I suspect that we’ve prayed neither prayer. The first one because we don’t see the need and the second because we can’t imagine not wanting something a little more than just enough!
When writing about enemies earlier this week, I couldn’t think of anyone with whom I interact who qualifies as an enemy. But, when I broadened my search and considered the various people Satan uses in his evil schemes against God, I realized I have several—some whose names I know and others whose names I don’t. When they become Satan’s agents, they become God’s enemies, and, if they are God’s enemies, shouldn’t they be mine? So, who are they?
