“Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the
devil. He prowls around like a roaring
lion, looking for someone to devour.
Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all
over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.”
1 Peter 5:8-9 NLT
Stay Alert!
As I
write this, I am observing a 21 day fast.
During one of my devotional times, the Lord revealed some things to
me. One day during the fast, I was
wrestling and rationalizing with myself over what was ‘ok to eat’ on the list
of acceptable foods for the fast. I had
to chuckle at myself because I realized you can rationalize almost anything if
you work long and hard enough. Then the
Lord revealed to me that’s how easily sin creeps in and takes over before you
know it. First, it starts out as one
little ‘white lie’. And before you know
it you’re asking yourself, ‘how did I get here?’. Little by little.
1 Peter
5:8 tells you to ‘Stay alert!’. Some versions say, ‘Discipline yourselves’. No
matter what version of the scripture you use, the message is clear, always be
on guard. In Genesis 4:7, the Lord says
to Cain, “You will be accepted if you do
what is right. But if you refuse to do
what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control
you. But you must subdue it and be its
master.”
But
here is the good news . . . God never leaves us alone. He’s ever present, willing to help us . . .
if we want it. 1 Corinthians 10:13 put
it this way, “No temptation has overtaken
you except what is common to mankind.
And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can
bear. But when you are tempted, he will
also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” So whenever you rationalize yourself into a
tight spot, look to the Lord for your escape plan.
Margaret Slaughter
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