Desiring God Over the World

"We have no sufficient strength of our own. All our sufficiency is of God." - Matthew Henry

The believer in Christ must always be on guard against the plots and schemes of Satan. After all, Scripture warns us:"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour" ( 1 Peter 5:8).

Without a doubt, much attention and warning is placed on Satan in the world, and rightly so. But we also must be aware of other adversaries that lurk about ready to ambush and ensnare the unprepared Christian.

This enemy may, in a sense, pose an even more dangerous threat to us than the Devil. It is familiar to us as: the world. This is not the "physical" world with all of its God-given beauty, resources, and abundance (1 John 2:16).

This "world" is that which is governed by lust, greed, vanity, and pride of heart. It also plays to the bodily appetites satiated by the pleasure of our external senses, such as: touch, taste, and smell.

We are all subject to the weaknesses of the flesh. There are no exceptions. The prince of this world has many different weapons at his disposal to take advantage of the weak or floundering Christian (Psalm 73:26).

The path leading up to "the narrow gate" is literally a minefield laid out by an evil, clever, and crafty opponent. Satan will fight you every step of the way. He will stop at nothing in order to detour us through "the wide gate" (Matthew 7:13).

The believer must love God above all else; seeking his happiness not in the things of this world but in Him. Only by doing the will of (obeying) God can the mislead, bewildered, and disheartened emerge victorious in the end (1 John 2:17).

Scripture: Romans 8:8; Galatians 5:16; Romans 13:14; Colossians 3:2; Matthew 16:26 

Prayer: Dear Lord, as the apostle Paul declared, "I can do all this through him who gives me strength. Please strengthen me for my daily battles; and shore up my spirit against Satan's constant thrusts, amen. 

Blessings always,

Cyndy