Game On

Years ago I had a friend give me two wonderful pieces of advice. One, was to play worship music in my house twenty four hours a day. It plays quietly in the background. I was told that evil does not want to subside where worship is going on. I love how it sneaks praise into my day. The other thing I was told when my children wanted to argue was to quote a truth back to them. It stopped the arguing. No one can argue with Scripture. Not to preach to them, that would do no good. But speak to their hearts and show grace which can be hard. One scripture that comes to mind is Luke 10: 27, "He answered, 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'" It seems we need God's Truth for every aspect of our life.

Even Jesus was tempted by Satan and he fought back with Scripture. Matthew 4: 3-11, "The tempter came to him and said, 'If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.' Jesus answered, 'It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 'If you are the Son of God,' he said, 'throw yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’ Jesus answered him, 'It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’ Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 'All this I will give you,' he said, 'if you will bow down and worship me.' Jesus said to him, 'Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’ Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him." As humans we have lost the battle but as children of God, we have already won because of 1 John 4: 4, "You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world."

Jesus answered the devil with clarity and truth. We all have that same ability. We can not use it if we do not know it. We must know our enemy. He targets our mind with doubt and unbelief. His weapon are lies. His purpose is to move us out of God's will. Billy Graham said, "Satan is masterful at using just enough of God's truth to capture a person's attention and then mix it with his devious potion that will lead believers astray." We must know the Truth because our defense is God's Word. We can fight him with Truth. Isaiah 59: 19, "When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him." While claiming the blessings for us, we can rebuke the devil.

Satan may try to knock you off of your game, but you just strap on your Belt of Truth, look him in the eyes and say, "Game on! My God is so much bigger than you will ever be!"