I was always afraid. I saw Satan as a powerful predator. Lurking in the shadows and slowly inching toward me, he could attack me at my first misstep. So, I was constantly tiptoeing, looking over my shoulder and easing around each corner. Then, a preacher put 1 Peter 5:8 (my scare scripture) in perspective. “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” AS a roaring lion he pointed out. Just because Satan wants to devour doesn’t mean he can. His roar is all he has unless we give him opportunity for more.
While Satan is subtle, he’s seldom the quiet type. He roars to get our attention, knowing that if he can make us afraid, we will stay immobile. As we listen to his threats and watch him pace back and forth, we begin to focus on his big, yellow teeth and envision ourselves imprisoned within his jaws. Paralyzed in fear, we become trapped by our reaction, locking ourselves in a prison of our own making. Proverbs 26:13 says, “The slothful man saith, there is a lion in the way; a lion in the streets.” Giving the lion our attention saps our motivation. Instead of making spiritual progress, we look for a place to hide, a place where we don’t feel threatened. Settling into a corner, we get as comfortable as we can; then, we give up.
We fail to see that Satan is only able to seek. Oh, he wants to get us. He wants to swipe us with his paws and devour us as his meal. But he can’t. Not if we are sober and vigilant. When we are sober, we are “calm and collected in spirit; temperate, dispassionate, circumspect.” If we are vigilant, we are watching, cautious, “taking heed, lest through remission and indolence some destructive calamity suddenly overtakes” us. Being vigilant means that we stay fully aware of Satan’s tactics. We know that he’s prowling and looking for an opportunity to pounce, so we don’t meander in front of him wrapped in the raw meat of our own righteousness or taunt him with our sticks-and-stones human strength. Instead, we are sober. Being calm and collected in the face of our adversary indicates we see him and hear him, but we are NOT afraid of his power, and we are NOT frightened by his roar. We are courageous because we have tuned in to another sound.
Our bravery announces loud and clear that we know the One who is stronger than our enemy and that our confidence lies in Him. It says we know what Satan wishes, but because of Jesus, he doesn’t get what he wants. Therefore, we don’t have to cower in fear or run in panic. We are empowered to resist him and to stay steadfast in faith.
Proverbs 28:1 says, “The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion.”
See, there’s another Lion in the mix. The Lion of the tribe of Judah. It is HE who has prevailed over the adversary and has given us power over the enemy. “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper, and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgement thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord,” (Isaiah 54: 17). Our Lion has repeatedly proven Himself. Knowing who God is and who we are in Him gives us spiritual audacity to confront our adversary and to fearlessly counter his attacks. We know it isn’t us; rather, it’s the power of the Spirit working through us. So, we open our mouths and thunder our own God-roar.
Tip/Tidbit: Be courageous and stay the course. God is on your side, and it is He who causes you to triumph.
While Satan is subtle, he’s seldom the quiet type. He roars to get our attention, knowing that if he can make us afraid, we will stay immobile. As we listen to his threats and watch him pace back and forth, we begin to focus on his big, yellow teeth and envision ourselves imprisoned within his jaws. Paralyzed in fear, we become trapped by our reaction, locking ourselves in a prison of our own making. Proverbs 26:13 says, “The slothful man saith, there is a lion in the way; a lion in the streets.” Giving the lion our attention saps our motivation. Instead of making spiritual progress, we look for a place to hide, a place where we don’t feel threatened. Settling into a corner, we get as comfortable as we can; then, we give up.
We fail to see that Satan is only able to seek. Oh, he wants to get us. He wants to swipe us with his paws and devour us as his meal. But he can’t. Not if we are sober and vigilant. When we are sober, we are “calm and collected in spirit; temperate, dispassionate, circumspect.” If we are vigilant, we are watching, cautious, “taking heed, lest through remission and indolence some destructive calamity suddenly overtakes” us. Being vigilant means that we stay fully aware of Satan’s tactics. We know that he’s prowling and looking for an opportunity to pounce, so we don’t meander in front of him wrapped in the raw meat of our own righteousness or taunt him with our sticks-and-stones human strength. Instead, we are sober. Being calm and collected in the face of our adversary indicates we see him and hear him, but we are NOT afraid of his power, and we are NOT frightened by his roar. We are courageous because we have tuned in to another sound.
Our bravery announces loud and clear that we know the One who is stronger than our enemy and that our confidence lies in Him. It says we know what Satan wishes, but because of Jesus, he doesn’t get what he wants. Therefore, we don’t have to cower in fear or run in panic. We are empowered to resist him and to stay steadfast in faith.
Proverbs 28:1 says, “The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion.”
See, there’s another Lion in the mix. The Lion of the tribe of Judah. It is HE who has prevailed over the adversary and has given us power over the enemy. “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper, and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgement thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord,” (Isaiah 54: 17). Our Lion has repeatedly proven Himself. Knowing who God is and who we are in Him gives us spiritual audacity to confront our adversary and to fearlessly counter his attacks. We know it isn’t us; rather, it’s the power of the Spirit working through us. So, we open our mouths and thunder our own God-roar.
Tip/Tidbit: Be courageous and stay the course. God is on your side, and it is He who causes you to triumph.
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