Tag: lie

Silencing the Tempter

Published on by amylinneaLeave a comment

And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from him for a season. Luke 4:13

The devil will come tempt you when you were at your weakest.

That’s when he comes.

Do you know when he came to Jesus?

After Jesus had fasted for 40 days.

Luke 4:2 says Jesus was hungry.

Probably the understatement of the year after not eating for 40 days am I right?

After fasting 40 days, Jesus was physically weak.

But that’s when the devil came.

When does the devil come for you?

When does he visit, tempting you to sin or simply help you off the straight and narrow?

When you are weak.

When is that exactly?

Is it after certain situations?

After you listen to lies in your head?

Do you feel weak every day?

When the devil tempted Jesus, He rose up in his weakened state and refused every lie the devil threw at Him.

He refuted the devil’s statements with scripture.

God‘s living word.

Every drop of God’s word breathes life with the power of the Almighty behind every single syllable.

God reminds us, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

Put your name in that.

God’s grace is sufficient for me.

God’s power is made perfect in me.

Absolutely incredible. Looking at verse 10, when we are weak, we KNOW God’s power is working through us.

When I am weak, I am strong because Jesus covers me with Himself.

When I am weak, I am strong because Jesus’ strength literally replaces my weakness.

Replace means exchange, so my weakness is exchanged for the strength of Almighty God.

Reminds me of 1 Peter 5:7 which calls you to cast all your anxiety on Him because he cares for you.

Put your name in there.

I cast all my anxiety on Jesus because He cares for me.

Time to tell the devil enough.

Next time he tempts you, because he will never quit, stop him with the word of God.

You’ll send him packing, wondering if he should return.

Photos by Mike Hindle on Unsplash

Belief in the Truth

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Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long. Psalm 25:5

Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name. Psalm 86:11

How often do you believe only what you think is the truth?

How do you know it’s true?

What if it’s only partial truth? Or actually a complete lie?

Here’s an example. The Israel/Palestinian conflict is generations old.

Long-held beliefs passed down within families.

Each side seems justified in their own minds.

But what is their focus? Peace or war?

How do they teach their children to live among their enemies? Love or hate?

Recently, Hamas surprised innocent Israelis, killing civilians, capturing others as hostages.

Most shockingly, babies were found murdered, some with heads and some without.

Many people were required to witness the carnage. It’s almost unbelievable this level of evil exists.

The witnesses were there for one reason: to testify what they saw.

It’s what Allied troops did when liberating concentration camps in WW2.

Witnesses were necessary as people wouldn’t have believed it otherwise. How could they when one couldn’t imagine such evil?

And some don’t, still to this day, believe the holocaust existed.

They want to believe their own narrative instead.

Thinking about the recently murdered Israeli babies, there are protestors who deny this happened.

Say it’s propaganda.

They believe what they want instead

To keep the hate going.

What truth do you refuse to see in your own life?

What addiction, habit, or attitude do you regularly engage in that seeks to block you from seeing God’s truth?

What lies do you believe in your mind about your true identity in Christ?

What lie wraps you in fear, disabling your ability to see the truth?

Evil is real. Satan is real.

And both want to destroy you, the people you love, and any hope of peace in this world.

Oh God, let us see Your truth.

Let us humble ourselves under Your authority in our lives.

May we humbly see the errors of our ways, wanting instead for You to make known Your perfect way, which leads us in Your truth.

Photos by Timothy Eberly, Jeremy Yap, & Carlos Magno on Unsplash

Zero Opportunity

Published on by amylinnea1 Comment

And give no opportunity to the devil. Ephesians 4:27

That seems like a no brainer, doesn’t it?

Why would we ever want to give the devil an opportunity to reign in our lives?

To take anything over?

Why would we grant the devil a foothold into our lives?

If refusing the devil an opportunity is common sense, why would the Bible need to remind us?

Because we need it.

Constantly.

We are always inviting the devil back into our lives when we sin.

Through our thoughts.

Our actions.

Our words.

Sometimes all three.

Do we consciously invite him?

Like offering him a physical invite?

No.

But we do when we fight with our loved ones.

We do when we cause others to sin.

We give the devil opportunity when we listen to his lies planted into our mind.

Fights with your spouse come to mind.

Ever think the other person acted a certain way when they didn’t intend to?

Calm the heck down and lovingly talk with them.

Or, you can react within yourself, recoiling in anger.

That allows the devil his opportunity.

How about your child’s selfish retort towards your careful cooking?

Into your head pops a lie from the pit.

If you allow that sudden untruth to cement into true reality, you’ve given the devil his opportunity.

Cheating at work?

Or on your taxes?

There are millions of ways we can provide the devil an opportunity to step into our lives.

He’s literally standing right there, simply waiting to jump back.

He can’t wait.

Let’s make him wait.

Purpose in your mind to close the door on his schemes.

It takes God’s strength in you to fight off the earned selfish retorts you could honestly repay others.

When others hurt you, that’s when Satan comes full force as we seem weak.

And we are when we are hurt.

We start believing his lies about our loved ones.

Stop.

Stop giving the devil any opportunity in your life or your relationships.

Praise the name of the Lord instead.

That will send the devil and your self-pity ways screaming down the road.

And oh ya: don’t let the door hit you on the way out 🙂

Photos by Brina Blum, Van Tay Media, Jan Tinneberg, Maick Maciel, & Wolfgang Rottmann on Unsplash