Vigilance

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12 NIV)

The new testament is filled with this message – Be vigilant as the devil seeks to destroy and separate us from relationship with God.   The frequency of this biblical narrative should be sobering.  Make no mistake about it.  The devil wants to destroy our future.

CS Lewis felt compelled to dedicate a full book to the devil’s strategies in The Screwtape Letters. The popular book chronicles in fictional form a series of letters from a senior demon called “Screwtape” to his nephew “Wormwood” a junior tempter. The following strategies as quoted from Screwtape are worth noting:

“There is nothing like suspense and anxiety for barricading a human’s mind against the Enemy.” (Here, the Enemy being referred to is God).

“All extremes, except extreme devotion to the Enemy, are to be encouraged.” (this an important truth to remember).

“He wants them to learn to walk and must therefore take away His hand; and if only the will to walk is really there He is pleased even with their stumbles. Do not be deceived, Wormwood. Our cause is never more in danger, than when a human, no longer desiring, but intending, to do our Enemy’s will, looks round upon a universe from which every trace of Him seems to have vanished, and asks why he has been forsaken, and still obeys.” (trusting and obeying in a good God even when we don’t understand).

“Never forget that when we are dealing with any pleasure in its healthy and normal and satisfying form, we are, in a sense, on the Enemy’s ground. I know we have won many a soul through pleasure.  All the same, it is His invention, not ours. He made the pleasures: all our research so far has not enabled us to produce one. All we can do is to encourage the humans to take the pleasures which our Enemy has produced, at times, or in ways, or in degrees, which He has forbidden.”

“A moderated religion is as good for us as no religion at all – and more amusing.” (let’s be careful to not ignore or deemphasize truths that may not be culturally popular or lined up to our personal preferences but nevertheless are part of the Bible and Christ’s teachings).

“Indeed the safest road to hell is the gradual one – the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.” (we easily recognize extreme sin but it is the gradual that many of us have more difficulty seeing).

“Tortured fear and stupid confidence are both desirable states of mind.”

“Surely you know that if a man can’t be cured of churchgoing, the next best thing is to send him all over the neighborhood looking for the church that ‘suits’ him until he becomes a taster or connoisseur of churches… The search for a ‘suitable’ church makes the man a critic where the Enemy wants him to be a pupil.” (this a big one in our consumption-driven culture).

“For as things are, your man has now discovered the dangerous truth that these attacks don’t last forever; consequently you cannot use again what is, after all, our best weapon – the belief of ignorant humans, that there is no hope of getting rid of us except by yielding.” (Good to remember that attacks will subside and to hang in there instead of yielding).

“…You will find that anything or nothing is sufficient to attract his wandering attention. You no longer need a good book, which he really likes, to keep him from his prayers or his work or his sleep; a column of advertisements in yesterday’s paper will do…You can make him do nothing at all for long periods.” (Today this could be internet viewing habits or sports).

So…what are some of the devils more popular current strategies not directly called out above?

• He wants to hook us on secret sins and subtle idols that dull our pain and take the edge off (e.g. internet porn, food, alcohol, sports, excessive media and social media consumption, living our life vicariously through our children)
• He wants to separate us from deep relationships with our spouses and others with endless focus on alternatives, including “not being present”
• He wants us to value, invest and think more about our entertainment and personal consumption than on His promises and plans to expand the kingdom
• He wants us to prioritize our children’s sporting activities above our involvement in the local church (this speaks volumes to our kids view of their parent’s priorities… and was one that Sherri/I struggled with in various seasons)
• He wants to convince us that God is distant and uninterested and lacks power
• He wants us to become more focused on how others view us…versus God’s view of us
• He will do anything to distract us from daily spiritual disciplines such as prayer, bible reading and fasting that connect us to God

It is clear that God has more than equipped us by his Holy Spirit to win our earthly battle. And yet as Paul admonishes, it is important to understand and remember our enemy in this critical battle of life.

What if we asked the Holy Spirit to provide greater revelations for our internal weaknesses and vulnerabilities so we could be better equipped to battle?

What if we became more vigilant about putting on the armor of God, including bible reading and prayer, versus pursuing any of of life’s current distractions, including social media consumption, internet activities or sports?