Under Attack?

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Ephesians 6:12

It's early, but not early enough for me to have enough time to get all my thoughts in print. Last night I asked Calvin if he thought that people REALLY believe in Spiritual Warfare. We talked about it for a moment, but nothing really settled in my heart.

This morning I awoke before the alarm with the same question on my heart.
"Do people REALLY believe in spiritual warfare?"
More to the point, do Christians really believe what 1 Peter 5:8 says?

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

To prowl is to move about in a predatory manner...to hunt.

Devour is a graphic word! It means to destroy completely. Completely:to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent.

Satan is not just milling around hoping to stumble across someone that he can ruff up a bit. He is on the hunt, and he is hunting for someone to completely destroy.

And yet, we are surprised when we are attacked.

Even more disturbing to me at this moment is the casualness in which Christians will say "I am being attacked"....perhaps they do not realize that Satan's goal is NOT to cause them discomfort, but to completely destroy them?

I have to sign off and get the kids up and ready for school and myself ready for work, but before I do...

I noticed something for the very first time this morning....look back at 1Peter 5:8. What does the first of that verse say?

Be self-controlled and alert.

I believe that herein lies the battle. If we TRULY believed that Satan was hunting for someone to destroy, saying "I am under attack" would sound more like "HELP! SATAN IS DESTROYING ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GET HIM OFF ME!!!! CAST HIM OUT!!!!!" If we truly believed that Satan was hunting for someone to destroy, we would not let our guard down and allow gossip, slander, lust, envy, hatred, unforgiveness, greed, jealously, and such to enter our lives. In fact, we would hate these things. We would love Self Control. We would be alert to any change in our environment that would indicate that the predator of our souls is near.

Instead, we casually say "I'm under attack" and go one about business as usual, allowing Satan to devour us at his leisure.

okay, i REALLY have to go to work,...

More on this later...

Trust You'll Treat Her Well

Dear World:

I bequeath to you today one little girl ... in a crispy dress ... with two brown eyes ... and a happy laugh that ripples all day long ... and a flash of brown hair that bounces in the sunlight when she runs.

I trust you'll treat her well.

She's slipping out of the backyard of my heart this morning ... and skipping off down the street to her first day of school. And never again will she be completely mine. Prim and proud she'll wave her young and independent hand this morning and say "Good Bye"... and walk with little lady steps to the schoolhouse.

Now she'll learn to stand in line ... and wait by the alphabet for her name to be called. She'll learn to tune her ears to the sounds of school-bells ... and deadlines ... and she'll learn to giggle ... and gossip ... and look at the ceiling in a disinterested way when the little boy across the aisle sticks out his tongue at her. And now she'll learn to be jealous. And now she'll learn how it is to feel hurt inside. And now she'll learn how not to cry.

No longer will she have time to sit on the front porch steps on a summer day and watch an ant scurry across the crack in a sidewalk. Nor will she have time to pop out of bed with the dawn to kiss lilac blossoms in the morning dew. No, now she'll worry about important things. Like grades ... and which dress to wear ... and who's best friend is whose. And the magic of books and learning will replace the magic of her blocks and dolls. And now she'll find new heroes.

For five full years now I've been her sage and Santa Claus and pal and playmate and mother and friend. Now she'll learn to share her worship with her teachers ... which is only right. But, no longer will I be the smartest woman in the whole world. Today when that school bell rings for the first time ... she'll learn what it means to be a member of a group. With all it's privileges. And it's disadvantages too.

She'll learn in time that proper young ladies do not laugh out loud. Or kiss dogs. Or keep frogs in pickle jars in bedrooms. Or even watch ants scurry across cracks in the summer sidewalk.

Today she'll learn for the first time that all who smile at her are not her friends. And I'll stand on the front porch and watch her start out on the long, lonely journey to become a woman.

So, World, I bequeath to you today one little girl ... in a crispy dress ... with two brown eyes and a happy laugh that ripples all day long ... and a flash of brown hair that bounces in the sunlight when she runs.

I trust you'll treat her well.

God, What do YOU want to do in this situation?

Our Ladies Bible Study lesson last night was on Looking for Christ in all things. The majority of the lesson was on listening to God. (you can see the whole lesson by following the link to the For Ladies Only blog)

Of everything that was discussed, 2 sentences stood out to me:
“When we find ourselves confused, frustrated, or overwhelmed by situations around us, the best question we can ask is ‘Father, what do You want to do in this situation?’ Asking that question immediately shifts your focus off the problem and onto the One who has all the answers and provision in His hand.” (Charles F Stanley, Practicing Spiritual Disciplines)

I have played these words over and over in my head for almost 2 weeks now. I have replayed situations and circumstances where I desperately wanted God to tell me what He wanted me to do and...ah ha! Did you see it? Did you catch the problem?

I wanted God to tell me what He wanted me to do.

As I keep replaying events and choices and circumstances and other stuff in my head, I see over and over again that everything worked out about the same time that I gave up. (I have to laugh at that) In giving up, I essentially said, “Okay God, what do You want to do here?”

I think that many times God doesn’t want ME to do anything but step back and trust HIM to work things out. I wonder how much more quickly problems in my life will be resolved if I start asking God “What do You want to do in this situation?” instead of asking Him what He wants me to do.

One thing I do know for sure. When I take the focus of myself and what I need to do in a situation and put the focus on GOD and what HE wants to do THROUGH a situation, everything in me changes. God always heals my heart and calms my fears and soothes my nerves when I shift my focus to Him.

Kris