Tag: devotion

liz goss

Satan is a One Trick Pony

by Liz Goss2 Comments on Satan is a One Trick Pony
St. Michael expelling Lucifer and the Rebel Angels
Artist: Peter Paul Rubens (ca. 1622)
Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid

In Isaiah 14:12-15 we read why Satan was thrown out of Heaven. Oh yes, he was an angel once but… “How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low! You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’ But you are brought down to Sheol, to the far reaches of the pit.” Satan wanted to be like God.

But enough ancient history, let’s look at how humanity fell from the perfect relationship with God we once shared in the garden. We all know it was Satan who tricked her but what exactly did he say? Do you know? I mean most people brought up with the Bible know the story but I bet you can’t quite put your finger on what he tempted her with. It wasn’t just a delicious apple. Genesis 3:5 tells us that Satan told Eve, “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” It was a calculated, diabolical move that Satan knew would get us separated from God like he had been once before. Satan convinced Eve she could be like God.

And Satan is a master at gaslighting humans. He manipulates the world in such a way that leads us to question our thoughts, memories, and the events occurring around us. His greatest weapon is… forgetfulness. Because if he can get us to lose track of EXACTLY what happened in the past we just might fall for it again. Oh and he loves to try his one trick on us all, whispering:

Do you really need to tithe when you could use that money to buy new clothes? You don’t need to follow what God says, you can decide what’s right just as well as God can. ☠️

Gluttony is not a sin in 2021. It’s been a hard year. It’s called self care. Okay so it’s in Proverbs 23 but those are “proverbs” not laws. You do you. ☠️

Sexual immorality? That whole phrase is super vague. I mean… in Matthew 5 it says that if you LOOK lustfully at a woman you have committed adultery in your heart. Don’t you think that’s an impossibly high standard? ☠️

Every time Satan suggests that “it doesn’t really matter this time” he is asking us to believe we are just as good at judging right and wrong as God is. Friends… this the the ultimately audacity of blasphemy straight from Satan. We are not like God. We were created to be in close relationship with Him but that does not mean we are on His level.

Satan is a one trick pony. He has one trick. Just one. And that is to convince you and me and all of humanity that we are just as good as God. It’s what caused him to fall from heaven and he’s good at spreading his fall by causing us to forget. But we won’t! Remember that you will do what is right because God is God and we are not. He is our loving Heavenly Father who would never withhold any good thing (Luke12:32). We can trust his heart. He is for us (Romans 8:32). So next time you wonder if choosing the right really matters… it does. For the love of Christ compelled us (2 Corinthians 5:14-15).

Uncategorized

Time For God

by justicepoole3 Comments on Time For God
Time For God

How often do you make God a priority in your life? Do you give Him the time and attention you give to other priorities in your life? 

A relationship with God is the same as any other relationship in your life; if you want it to grow- you have to put in some effort. If your spouse or partner all of a sudden stopped talking to you for a couple of days- you’d probably be super worried about your relationship. And yet we cut the communication line to God all the time. Then all of a sudden life gets rough and we call on Him like a genie in a bottle. 

Our God is THE God of relationships! We clearly see this in one of the most famous verses in the Bible: John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” God created us for relationship with Him. In the beginning, Adam and Eve walked with God in the garden and talked with Him every day. They screwed up (as we all would have) and now we have to deal with the consequences. We can’t see when God is with us and we don’t get to directly hear His words. That doesn’t mean He isn’t with us or talking to us- but we have been separated from God because of our sin and now we have to put in some extra effort in our relationship with Him.

This is all a lesson I’ve been learning myself. I knew I needed to spend more time with God and I didn’t know how- so I did some research and here’s what’s worked for me:

  • Journaling- just writing down your thoughts, thanksgivings, prayers, etc. Write it out to lessen distractions.
  • Waking up early- the biggest distraction I face is a busy household that has T.V’s, phones, and conversations all on. Now I wake up early in order to spend some quiet time with God and God alone.
  • Bible Plan- Having a set plan before you makes reading your Bible SO much easier. Instead of just flipping to a random page you have a goal in mind.
  • Accountability- I’m in a great Discipleship group and we meet once a week and discuss what we’ve read. I know I’ve got to read a certain amount of chapters every Tuesday and the group is a HUGE motivation.
  • Devotional- As someone who recently read the Bible in a year- I didn’t feel like I was getting a spiritual workout when reading through again- so I bought a devotional book called ‘New Morning Mercies’ by Paul David Tripp. It’s been amazing to see a different outlook into the scriptures and be able to apply verses to my own life that I might not have given the time of day before.

Don’t be afraid to try something new if you feel like your time with God isn’t fruitful! But put in the effort that God deserves!