Blindsided

Lately I have been struggling with some things that a friend of mine pointed out to me as spiritual warfare. Things that I never used to struggle with or that I haven't struggled with in a long time are rearing their ugly heads! Recently, as I talked with this friend about some of these things, she reminded me that Satan is not at all happy with me right now and with the journey I am on. And he will try anything, anytime, to derail me on my way to Brazil. And she's right! So I've been trying to be more diligent and do 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." Now I've always thought that analogy was interesting. Lions attack sick or young animals. Or those that have strayed away from the flock or herd. They strike when the animals are alone or not alert. Peters warns us to watch out for Satan when we are suffering or being persecuted. When we focus on our troubles we often feel alone, weak, helpless, and cut off from other believers. And we forget to watch out for danger. It's in those times that we are vulnerable to Satan's attacks. But, in reality, there is no rhyme or reason to when Satan chooses to attack. For instance, today I had a really great day. I'm studying through the book of Ruth with a couple friends and this morning I went to a coffee shop to do a bit of reading and had a great time with God. I was reminded that I am Yahweh's image bearer! And I took that with me for the rest of my day and "meditated" on what exactly that meant for me. I think that because I had such a great day with the Lord I must have let my guard down a bit. Because I was blindsided by "the enemy" tonight at worship rehearsal. Of all places! A place where one would think one just might be safe from temptation, right? Not so much. No one, and no place, is immune from being Satan's playground. Thankfully I had a great day and I recognized this temptation the moment it reared it's ugly head and was able to not dwell on it. But it really opened my eyes to what it means to be alert. I like what 1 Peter 5:8 says in the the NLT - "Stay alert!" It's not enough to just "be alert" at certain times when we think Satan might attack. We must STAY alert! At all times! And the only way to do that is to stay close to Jesus' side. Good reminder for me today...

Maybe you're reading this and recently, or not so recently, you've found yourself in a place of temptation and you gave in. Believe me I know all about carrying that burden of guilt. But I want to remind you, as God so often reminds me, that you are forgiven! Do not let the enemy torture you for one more day. We all have things that we deeply regret doing, things that we struggle with, or that we wish we could do over. The God I serve does not see me this way. He sees me as pure and clean...through the blood of Christ. He ransomed me. The dictionary defines ransomed as, "to deliver especially from sin or its penalty; to free from captivity or punishment by paying a price." My favorite attribute of God is that He is my Redeemer. I simply love that word! We have been redeemed (bought back)! And what He used to buy us back and free us was His blood. That is what God sees when He looks upon me. His Son's blood covering me...I've been redeemed!