If the devils lies were bricks, I'd be living in a brick mansion.
To be honest, I don't know about anyone elses walk. Maybe none of you face the same things I do. If you don't, maybe you just read my blog so you can go to bed at night with a sigh of relief saying "there but for the grace of God go I!"
But I blog on. And you read on. I hope it's useful.
Driving in to work this morning I made a really sad realization. It's one I've been aware of before, maybe even stopped to think about it before, but it pierced a little more deeply this time I believe.
Sometimes, I've chosen to believe the devils lies, because it's easier than hoping.
For every lie, there is a truth. The devil says I'm worthless. God says I'm worth dying for. Look at yourself, which one is easier for you to believe? Is it easier to shout at the devil that you're worth dying for or to cry out to God that you're worthless?
I know my answer. And unfortunately I spend way too much time crying out to God the devils lies.
But just because the lies are easier to believe., doesn't make them any truer.
Imagine, just for a moment, if you threw all the lies of the devil out the window for just one day.
For just one day, you didn't believe people were out to get you.
For just one day, you believed you didn't have to be afraid.
For just one day, you weren't afraid to trust, love, hope, or step out of the boat.
For just one day, you knew everything would be ok.
For just one day, you didn't think fill in name was beyond Gods reach.
For just one day, you didn't think _________ was impossible.
For just one day, you didn't think you were alone.
For just one day, you didn't think fill in person/church/event/relationship was going to fail.
I don't really believe that the biggest problem is that we can't tell the difference between the lie and the truth. I generally know the devils lies. I know when he's lying to me. But, I also know the devils way seems deceptively easier. It's easier to believe _______ is impossible, than to step out of the boat and take a risk.
10 years later though, maybe even just a month later, you realize life is a lot more difficult because you didn't step out to grab the impossible.
Not 20 minutes ago, my 5'5" co-worker was chased down the hallway by a big roach looking thing with wings. She stepped into the restroom, and popped right back out with a shout I can't repeat on a Christian blog. For several minutes I listened to the sounds of her trying to exterminate him. She's got a good 5'4" on this guy, but he had wings, and could run fast. This bug has been predetermined to be nasty and so she didn't want to touch him. Afraid that he would touch her, she ran.
I went back there, finally, and stepped on him.
Here's the moral.
The devil will fill your mind with his nasty little lies. He'd be happy to. He's got plenty of time on his hands. I can either spend my time running away from his lies, hoping they won't touch me and make me feel bad. Or I can march over to it and stomp on it. I can't handle this? STOMP. My friend will have to figure out how to live with and control the pain of her fibromyalgia? STOMP. God won't provide? STOMP. That guy looks too dirty to offer him a ride? STOMP. God has condemned me? STOMP. I'm not smart enough about biblical things to witness? STOMP.
I want a bug free life. I want a bug free mind. Peace, real peace doesn't come from running from those bugs the devil has hatched in my mind, but from killing them. And then clinging to the truth. The Truth. For every lie, there is a truth. And I will never find freedom, peace, joy, until I find the truths that God has provided for each lie, and cling.
I just long for freedom. I long to see people experiencing freedom around me. Not just people running from the enemy, but grabbing onto God. There's a difference. Too much religion is about running from the devil, and not about running to God. I'm longing. Longing for better for myself. Longing for better for everyone around me.
And if I'm longing for that, I can only imagine how much God is longing for that. But first I have to stomp that little bug that says God doesn't spend time longing for me.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
8 comments:
That was one excellent piece of writing in absolutely every way!
Crazily enough, the only paragraph that got completely zapped from this post was the one saying how dissatisfied I was with the post. That it didn't bring out everything I was trying to say - the heart of it.
I'm glad God used it anyway! Thank you for the encouragement! It really does keep the coals burning to do more, and better.
I completely agree with slw - very good and thought provoking!! Keep up the good work! - Louie
you do realize that unless you are in an invested place, that the STOMP is just a minor interruption to your normal walk.
And having been in an infested places once or twice in my life I recommend leaving rather than stomping madly.
Take joy in your walk and just scrape your shoe clean and walk on after you STOMP.
thank you for the encouragement to look to the truth.
nancy
....he's under my feet, he's under my feet, satan is under my feet.
I heard all my life that I should rebuke the devil and tell him to get behind me. Well, I don't want him behind me, then I can't see what he's up to. Under my feet is a much better place. Actually, I aggree with 'one-sided'. It is time to scrape him off and walk on.
to paraphrase a song i say "we wlak on, we walk on, we walk on, we put our hands in God's hands and we walk on..oh we walk on" thanks God led me to this just in time. i thought the aDevil was only "bugging" me.
Anonymous,
I'm glad God did lead you to this post. It's among my favorites.
It's easy to come to think that no one struggles with lies and torment that way you do. I think there's a lot of freedom in knowing that the world is just chock full of people struggling the exact same way that you are. The devil's tactics haven't really changed. And we aid him in his efforts by being quiet about our struggles.
Sometimes you just accept struggles as a fact of life, I think when everyone comes together and realizes, wait... he's doing this to ALL OF US??? That's when the righteous indignation rises up and we begin to rebuke the devourer and his holds on our lives.
That's when things begin to change.
Post a Comment