Faith Inspiration - Be Thou My Vision

This hymn has been inspiring Christ followers for over one thousand years. Originally an Old Irish hymn, the song was translated into English by Mary E. Byrne in 1905, and put into verses by Eleanor H. Hull. (Information take from Hymnary.org).

“1 Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
be all else but naught to me, save that Thou art;
be Thou my best thought in the day and the night,
both waking and sleeping, Thy presence my light.

2 Be Thou my Wisdom, be Thou my true Word;
be Thou ever with me and I with Thee, Lord;
be Thou my great Father, and I Thy true son,
be Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

3 Be Thou my Breastplate, my Sword for the fight;
be Thou my whole Armor, be Thou my true Might;
be Thou my soul’s Shelter, be Thou my strong Tow’r,
O raise Thou me heav’nward, great Pow’r of my pow’r.

4 Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
be Thou mine inheritance, now and always;
be Thou and Thou only the first in my heart,
O High King of heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

5 High King of heaven, Thou heaven’s bright Sun,
O grant me its joys, after vict’ry is won;
Great Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
still be Thou my Vision, O Ruler of all.”

— Be Thou My Vision - Psalms and Hymns to the Living God (From Hymnary.org)

I think this is a beautiful hymn, and one that is rarely sung. Some may say it sounds like a dirge, but I like the lilting, Celtic style music. Let’s take a look at it verse by verse.

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Verse 1 - The writer of the hymn pleads with God to be his vision. He wants God to consume him. He recognizes his own struggle with the flesh and realizes that God’s thoughts are his best thoughts in the day and the night. He desires God be his light.

As we saw last week, our struggle with the flesh is ongoing, but if God is our vision, we can and will have victory, and we will continually be in His light.

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

— Matthew 6:33 (NASB 1995)

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Verse 2 - The author not only wants God to be his Vision, but to be His true word and to dwell in him, and he in Him, always. He recognizes that God is his Father, and he is His son.

“If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”

— John 14:3 (NASB 1995)

“Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him.”

— John 14:23 (NASB 1995)

“15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!”
16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,
17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”

— Romans 8:15-17 (NASB 1995)

God dwells with us if we love Him and keep His word. He is our heavenly Father, and we are His children. Being His children means we are heirs with Christ. We are children of the King!

Image by Donna Kirby from Pixabay

Verse 3 - He knows God is his breastplate, his sword, his FULL armor, his might, his shelter, his tower and his power. His desire is to be raised “heavenward”. This may have had two connotations. It may have referred to his mindset, his thoughts and desires, but it also may have been the longing for finally being home with his Savior.

“13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.
14 Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

— Ephesians 6:13-17 (NASB 1995)

“The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous runs into it and is safe.”

— Psalm 18:10 (NASB 1995)

“4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,
5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, ”

— Ephesians 2:4-6 (NASB 1995)

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Verse 4 - In this verse the author recognizes God is all he needs. He doesn’t run after riches. He doesn't seek the praise of men. He knows the “High King of Heaven” is the only treasure he needs.

“But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal;”

— Matthew 6:20 (NASB 1995)

Image by Tim Hill from Pixabay

Verse 5 - The last verse is a final stand on the foundation of all that is God:

High King of Heaven

Heaven’s bright Sun

Great Heart of my own heart

Ruler of all

God is all these things and more that we cannot comprehend with our finite minds. The author knows that all his joy and all his victory our found in Christ. He also desires that no matter what happens he would keep God as his Vision.

“O sing to the Lord a new song, For He has done wonderful things, His right hand and His holy arm have gained the victory for Him.”

— Psalm 98:1 (NASB 1995)

“...but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

— I Corinthians 15:57 (NASB 1995)

On a personal note, I have always loved this hymn. When I gave my life to Jesus at the age of 12, I knew I wanted it to be for keeps. I wanted Him to be foremost and forever my vision. Unfortunately, ever since that age I have struggled in that desire. My vision is often clouded by doubts, fears, and failures. My eyes often wander to things that might satisfy my flesh such as food, clothes, or fictional worlds.

The counselor I am currently going to said it is absolutely normal to have set backs in life. The difference comes in how long I choose to stay in the setback mindset. The phrase “begin again”, is a mantra we all can put into play. As long as I have breathe I will begin again. I will place my eyes back on His face and know His amazing grace. I will say again, “Be Thou my Vision.”

When Darkness Comes - Part 7: Revealing our True Hearts

I have been doing a series on the darkness as it pertains to times of struggle in our lives. The last two posts revolved around truth; the truth we know about God and the truth we know about ourselves as seen in the Word of God. We cannot, however, have truth and not acknowledge the feelings and emotions that God created us with. As we saw last time, we often put on False Faces, so that we can cope and pretend the truth has penetrated our hearts, but in reality it hasn’t. I have been sharing my own experience with you, because through my own walk in the dark, I have learned that truth must be wrestled with before it can become a part of our inner being.

Image by Herbert Aust from Pixabay

God knows our delicate frame and also knows He gave us a mind that can think, reason and question. However, we must remember our minds were meant to be in communion with Him. The longer we let our minds dwell on what is false, hopeless and destructive, the less we will be able to recognize His truth. When we are walking in the darkness, there is no doubt, the Unseen Enemy will try to manipulate that shadowed path to his advantage. That is precisely why it is so important to stand on the God’s truth, but not just stand, we have to wrestle with it and allow Him to pierce our souls with it.

He has done that with me. Even as I type this, tears come to my eyes, because I realize, as an Almighty being, He owes me nothing. He has no reason to gift me His time or attention. He does so, because He chooses to. The incredible, lavish fact is, He chooses to do this, even when I am at my lowest, ranting about how unfair life is or how hard things are, or questioning impatiently when will this darkness end.

In order to get to this point of allowing God to pierce us, we must acknowledge our feelings, as ugly as they can be. Feelings are often tied to experiences, both good and bad. In my heart I have a room. Inside, there are shelves full of experiences, mostly those with other people. Most of these are bad experiences. When I feel bad, I unlock that room and I go inside, closing the door behind me. It isn’t a comfortable room, filled with fairy lights and comfy, overstuffed furniture. It’s more like an old attic, full of cobwebs, dark corners and lots of junk. I find a place on the hard floor and I start reviewing all that junk…all those times I yelled at my kids; all the angry words between my husband and I; all those feelings of never measuring up…of not being enough…of being invisible.

Image by József Kincse from Pixabay

Most of us have something like my attic room, where we revisit things that happened or didn’t happen. These are part of emotional make up of who we are and God is patient with us. He allows us those moments, but He doesn’t want us to stay there. Eventually, it would be nice if I could hand that key over to Him and walk away. I haven’t done that yet, but I am getting closer.

I am going to share an except from my journal, when I was revealing my true heart to God. I share these things, not to make you feel sorry for me or to make you think how hard I have had it, but I hope by being vulnerable with you, you will choose to be vulnerable with God.

“I guess what it comes down to, Lord, is I am sad that I am invisible. I know there are lots of people struggling with far worse things than feeling invisible. There are wives whose husbands are unfaithful; there are children whose caretakers are abusive; there are elderly men and women fading like an old photograph with no one to visit or care about their needs, or desires. There are people who have felt the pain of divorce, the death of a child or spouse...and here I am feeling sad...that I feel invisible.

But I would not be a healthy person if I did not acknowledge I am sad, and it hurts. It hurts to be forgotten; to have a face that is unmemorable; to have no voice except one that is deemed naggy, bitchy or emotional. I am only acknowledged when I mess up. I am only texted or called when someone wants something...””

— Amy's journal from 5/23/21

Image by Vojtěch Kučera from Pixabay

There are several things I want you to notice. I am acknowledging my feelings. I am unloading. I have remembered God’s truth about Himself and about me, and now I am letting Him know how I feel. My intellect knows what is true…I am not invisible. I have a family who does love me. I have friends…but the acknowledgement of feelings is so important in healing and in allowing God to bring His word into the deep places of our hearts. I go on to make this very point in my journal.

“Lord, I am venting. I know what Your word says. I am not invisible. Your word says You knew me before I was born. You know my thoughts from afar. There is no place I can go to get away from You. I am not invisible to You. (Psalm 139)”

— Amy's journal from 5/23/21

The other thing I want you to notice is that I recognize I am not alone in suffering. There are many who are suffering; many who have it far worse than I do, but that does not diminish my feelings or my need to lay those feelings at His feet. This is a process.

The next step follows: I recognize that some of my struggle is a result of sin, and the work of the Unseen Enemy.

“Lord, I ask Your forgiveness that I struggle with these feelings over and over. I should be mature enough to be so over it, but right now I am not. I am weak.

I ask for Your protection. I know my enemy would like to devour me, my family, but he cannot. Renew my mind, because I cannot. I choose to lean in to You; in to your comfort, mercy and grace; into Your sufferings. I embrace it all and I call on Your name...the name of Jesus, knowing He is the Great Warrior Prince and He will rescue me.”

— Amy's Journal - 5/23/21

Finally, I acknowledge the power and supremacy of the Almighty One.

“Thank you for You hem me in behind and before; that You are my rear guard; that You hold my hand and walk with me through every single valley. You are the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace. You alone are the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.”

— Amy's Journal - 5/23/31

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

Don’ be afraid to let God peer into the deepest places of your heart. Allowing Him access to those attic rooms will eventually bring about true renewal and cleansing. Wrestle with God’s truth. Tell Him how you really feel as you maneuver the darkness of your path. Let Him pierce you deep and He will bring you to new understanding and heights of His love.

Next time we will look at another piece of this refining process as we continue our journey in the darkness. I hope you are able to join me. Thank you for all your support and I pray God will become more real to you today than He ever has before.

Our Unseen Enemy - Part 6: Zoomorphism - The Serpent

I want to finish up this series on our Unseen Enemy before I move on to a new topic on my Faith page. It would probably be beneficial if I start with just a little bit of review, to refresh our minds. Satan is our Unseen Enemy. He is a very powerful angel; a created being of God, but one who became proud because of his beauty and decided to try to usurp the throne of the Almighty One. Due to his rebellion, God cast him out of heaven. He now roams about on the earth seeking to create chaos and destroy. We learned that he is a manipulator, a schemer, a liar and a divider. We are now looking at three images, found in scripture that describe the devil. In the case of the lion, which was the first image we looked at, we discovered that it is his predatory behavior that is most lion like. He prowls, he stalks, he harasses and he kills.

Image by antriksh kumar from Pixabay

This week we are going to look at the image of the serpent. Perhaps the most telling passage on this creature is at the very beginning of the Old Testament, where we see the Serpent in the Garden of Eden. Ezekiel 28:13-17 was mentioned in the introductory post of this series. If you remember it talks about a being who was in Eden, the Garden of God, who was very beautiful, and covered in all manner of jewels. This being, I believe, was Satan in the form of a serpent. (These are just my opinions, and conclusions I am drawing from the totality of the Scriptures. I am not a theologian or Bible scholar. You can do more of your own research by reading the Word and by looking at Bible reference materials like concordances, study Bibles, and texts on the original Hebrew language.)

“Now the serpent was more cunning than any animal of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God really said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” 2 The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; 3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’” 4 The serpent said to the woman, “You certainly will not die! 5 For God knows that on the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will become like God, knowing good and evil.” ”

— Genesis 3:1-5 (NASB)

Image by Michael Siebert from Pixabay

I want to look at several snake characteristics first and then I want to examine the above passage in a little more detail.

Snake Characteristics

Loose, flexible jaw - Most members of the snake family have these loose flexible or hinged jaws. These jaws allow them to ingest their food whole, as they do not have normal teeth for chewing.

Backwards, curved fangs - Unlike most other creatures, including ourselves, whose teeth remain in place by a combination of jaw, roots and gums, the snake’s teeth are permanently fused to the supporting bones of the head.

No eyelids - The eyes, that remain open at all times, are covered by a transparent membrane, also know as ocular scales.

Make no noise - Unlike most animals, snakes make very little noise. Other than hissing and certain types with rattles, they make no noise at all.

Good camouflage - Many snakes live close to the ground in dens, or nests that are not easily visible to the human eye. There are numerous snakes that also blend in with their surroundings, making them less visible to their prey.

Ways they kill their prey - Most snakes prefer to consume their prey live. They do not feed off carrion. They will typically seek out a place where various prey come and go, then lie in wait until they see something they want. After they pick out a victim, they will stalk it, then strike at the opportune moment. Depending on the type of snake they will kill one of three ways: pinning prey to ground, squeezing prey so it can’t breath, or injecting prey with poison.

Now that we have a better understanding of snaky characteristics, let’s see how Satan works like snake. I am using the terms serpent and snake interchangeably.

Image by Denis Doukhan from Pixabay

He knew the habits of his prey - I wanted to address this first, because I feel it is important to the rest of the story. Satan knew where Eve would be at that particular time, on that particular day, because he had been watching her. Don’t underestimate the patience of our Unseen Enemy. He is used to waiting. He waited and watched until Eve was alone. If you read on in the Genesis account there is some debate on weather Adam was actually with Eve when she was tempted or if time had passed and when she convinced him to eat the fruit he was with her. (Here is an article on that point if you are interested.)The main point to take from this is that our enemy knows our weaknesses and he most often attacks when we are alone.

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He uses his jaws - There is an old idiom that most of my older subscribers would be familiar with - flapping your jaws - which means to talk in a meaningless, aimless or idle manner. Satan used his jaws to speak to Eve. He immediately caused her to question God’s love and authority. “Has God really said…” The use of the word really indicated that beautiful serpent was out to deceive Eve from the moment he started flapping his jaws.

Image by Karsten Paulick from Pixabay

He sinks in his teeth and swallows - The wily serpent was, no doubt, beautiful, but don’t look at his smile. Those sharp fangs are ready to grab on and not let go. Isn’t it interesting that Satan didn’t speak complete lies to Eve. He just set her on a path and then gave her a snippet of truth; just enough to get her questioning and wondering. Isn’t it often the case that when we start to obsess over something bad that has happened or the way someone has treated us, that we eventually start begin consumed? A snake swallows his prey whole, slowly causing death by asphyxiation. Satan uses the same tactic. If he can get the bite on you, causing you to overthink, overreact, fuss and fret, then he will gradually attempt to swallow you whole, burying you alive in the villi of his hate.

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

He never stops searching - Remember how we talked about the lion prowling, well the snake is similar, in that it waits for its prey, then stalks its prey. While the snake is waiting, his eyes are always open. Satan is always looking for prey, or for the opportunity to trip up those who follow Christ. He never closes his eyes.

Image by rebekaillesova from Pixabay

He doesn’t make noise - Satan is proficient at quietly creating havoc. Sure, the outcome we see is typically noisy, violent and hateful, but no one would attribute the events going on in our country to an unseen enemy. We are creatures who want to have someone to blame. It used to be funny to say, “The devil made me do it.” Now the devil is merely looked at as a fictitious creature with red skin, horns, a tail and a pitchfork. He is an entity that is used to mock those who actually believe in an Almighty God and the enemy who hates Him. Evil has gone through the cartoon box and come out the other side looking like a character who might have interactions with Bugs, or Daffy.

Image by Engin Akyurt from Pixabay

He is good at camouflage - One of the reasons I began this series on Satan was to help you identify his behavior out in the world. When we review this past year and even what happened recently as people stormed the capitol, we need to recognize that this is not just people with diverse opinions and simmering frustrations. These are blatant manipulations of the enemy. He is hiding behind the scenes, but clearly waiting for the opportune moment to encourage hate, and violence.

Image by S. Hermann & F. Richter from Pixabay

His ultimate goal is our death - Satan doesn’t just want to lie, manipulate, scheme and divide, he wants to destroy. The only thing the snake is concerned about is feeding his appetites, whether it be his appetite for food, safety or sex; his desires are primal, unaffected by compassion, goodness or joy. Satan wants to crush that which the Creator begat, the crown of His creation, us.

Next week, we will look at the last zoomorphic analogy, that of the dragon. I hope you will continue to follow along.

Have a great week!

Our Unseen Enemy - Part 5 - Zoomorphism - The Lion

The idea of comparing a human to an animal, more specifically, comparing the human’s behavior to animal behavior is called zoomorphism. I only know that because I looked it up. Ha, ha. While our unseen enemy is not technically human, he does have human characteristics. The scripture uses three different animals to describe Satan: the lion, the serpent and the dragon. Over the next few weeks we will look at each of these more closely.

Many of you may remember C.S. Lewis’ fictional series, The Lion, the Witch and The Wardrobe. It is an amazing fantasy series, geared especially to young people, but equally appropriate for fantasy lovers of all ages. In C.S. Lewis’ story, Aslan, the Lion was the good and kind King of Narnia. At one point in the series, Aslan dies and then comes back to life. Obviously, there is a direct correlation to the death and resurrection of Christ. As much as we would like the ideal of the Aslan type lion representing God and God alone, there is a verse in scripture that compares our enemy with the king of beasts. Let’s take a look.

The Lion

“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

— 1 Peter 5:8 (ESV)

I want to point out that the most important word in this verse with regard to Satan, is the word “prowls”. God the Father and Jesus are both referred to as the Lion of Judah, so the idea that both God and Satan are compared to a lion is a little unsettling. I had to think about this for a while before I decided what to write. My belief is the lion is used in this verse to better exhibit the actions of our unseen enemy; the action of prowling about.

Remember when Satan came to God at the beginning of Job. God asked him where he had come from and what did Satan respond?

““From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.””

— Job 1:7 (ESV)

There is a distinct predatory vibe in Satan’s response. He didn’t say, “Oh, I was going for a walk and I stopped by the ocean and watched the waves.” No! He was going to and fro. He was walking up and down. I get the definite impression that Satan was pacing. He was looking for something to do; for someone to pounce on.

When a lion prowls, he/she is typically looking for prey. The action of roaring when in tandem with prowling shows the lion’s attitude of dominance. The lion is saying, “Hey! This is my territory. If you are in my territory, I am either going to have you for dinner, or I am going to give you such a butt whipping that you will have to crawl back to your pitiful cave!”

Read 1 Peter again. Satan isn’t just prowling, he is roaring and he is seeking someone to devour. Let’s take just a few moments to talk about that idea. Typically, it is the female lions that stalk and kill prey. The male then comes, often chasing the females and cubs away, so he can have the first morsels of the dead.

“The canines of a lion, which are long, sharp and slightly recurved, are excellent tools for grasping and wounding prey, while the sharp premolars are effective in tearing away chunks of flesh. The molars are rudimentary because their food is swallowed in chunks, unchewed. The skull has large surfaces for the insertion of the powerful jaw muscles.

Male lions usually leave almost all of the hunting to the females, but once a kill is made, they will sometimes drive off the females and cubs in order to be the first to feed upon the prey.

Usually, several lionesses, working as a team, spread out and approach a herd from different directions. They stalk up as close as possible, using every bit of available cover before making a final charge, going for the closest individual. There is a rush and a leap as the lion comes in range of its victim. But, although lions can reach a top speed of 60km/hr for short distances, their prey usually escapes (only about one stalk in six is successful).

Typically, a lion kills a large animal by strangulation, biting down on its throat or, sometimes, on its nose and mouth. Small animals are killed with a bat of the paw or a quick bite to the head.”

— What do lions eat? - Online Biology Dictionary - article by EUGENE M. MCCARTHY, PHD

The above description deserves a little bit of our time. I want to look at three of the lion’s attributes and show how our enemy is very much the same.

The desire to stalk.

Image by Corinna Stoeffl from Pixabay

When I looked up this word in Webster’s online dictionary it lists several definitions, but the one I want to focus on is the verb meaning: “to pursue obsessively and to the point of harassment.” I also found it interesting when I looked at the word origins.

“Middle English, from Old English bestealcian; akin to Old English stelan to steal ”

— Webster's Online Dictionary

A lion is looking to steal a life. He or she searches until they find their prey. Once they find it, they begin to stalk. They follow. They pursue. They obsess. They harass, then they attack and they kill.

Our enemy and his pride of demons behave very much the same way. They search for their prey. Usually, they will look for prey that has wandered from the herd, or attack one that is very young or very old. They follow. They pursue. They obsess. (Can’t you just see the drool hanging off of their sharp fangs?) Then they begin to harass. I think harassment is one of the enemy’s defining characteristics.

Have you ever had those thoughts that you just can’t get rid of; thoughts that keep coming back either dragging you down to the pit of despair, or leading you down the steps of temptation. This is a tactic of our enemy, the roaring lion. The more he harasses, the more discouraged we become.

Often, when a lion is harassing its prey it will run after them trying to catch them and get their sharp teeth or claws in. However, as the above article states this is only effective about 1/6th of the time. The tactic that seems to work best is to gang up on a victim that is young, elderly, injured or ill. Isn’t that just like our enemy to come after us when we are already down? That is part of the dilemma with this long term pandemic. It grates on us, harasses us and just when we are feeling discouraged, it kicks us in the teeth.

The desire to bite.

Image by Cayenne8 from Pixabay

God obviously created many creatures with teeth and the lion is no exception. Look at those fangs! As the above article states the sharp canines of the lion are meant for grabbing hold and tearing flesh. These large incisors enable the large cat to eat the muscular flesh of a zebra or other animal without having to tenderize or cook it first.

Just as with the tactic of stalking, the devil wants to grab hold of us and sink his teeth in. Obviously, we are not talking about real teeth, but let’s go back to the idea of lies. If Satan can get us to hear a lie, and then start listening to a lie, and then slowly start believing the lie, isn’t that very similar to the physical beast sinking its teeth into its victim? Just as every bite the lion or lions can get on their intended prey starts to drain it of blood, sending its body into shock, and eventual collapse, so too our enemy intends that every lie drains us of truth and sends our minds, hearts and souls collapsing into darkness.

The desire to kill.

Whitby England

The final desired outcome for both the lion and the devil is death. They want to end their desired prey’s ability to breath. I found it very interesting that a lion kills a large animal by strangulation or asphyxiation. That is a very disturbing image, especially when we know this current virus is killing many people by literally taking their breath away.

This analogy goes all the way back to the beginning. When God created man, He formed him from the dust of the earth and then breathed life into him. Satan has been trying to remove that life giving breath, both physically in the form of physical death and spiritually in the form of deceit, since the Garden of Eden. If he could he would burn the very image of God from our literal souls…that is how much our enemy hates us and the One who created him.

I know that all of this may seem overwhelming and it can be, but we need to remember we worship an Almighty God who is much more powerful than our enemy. The enemy’s time will come, but until then, we need to stay in the protection and care of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We need to remember truth and dwell on it. We need to remember and claim those precious and magnificent promises.

Sending each one of you hugs and prayers. Have a good weekend!



When I looked up this word in Webster’s online dictionary it lists several definitions, but the one I want to focus on is the verb meaning: “to pursue obsessively and to the point of harassment.” I also found it interesting when I looked at the word origins. The verb came from an

Our Unseen Enemy - Part 4: The Liar - Lies About Others

We are studying our unseen enemy, the devil. We have looked at his ability to manipulate, scheme and the last few weeks have been studying his lies. His greatest work is in the lies he convinces people to believe. Our beliefs about certain things affect our choices, our relationships and many other aspects of our lives. Take, for example, two children who are raised in completely different environments. One is raised in a home that offers stability, love, protection and kindness. The other is raised in a home that showed neglect, verbal and/or physical abuse and possibly abandonment. It will most likely be easier for the child who is raised in the nurturing home, to feel good about themselves, and be able to see good in other people. The child who comes out of the abusive home may struggle with self-acceptance issues, trust and may think that abuse and neglect is the norm, or that they did something wrong to deserve it. Standing on the outside we can see the erroneous thinking on the latter child’s part, but without counsel and without love and consistent examples in their life, he/she will probably always struggle.

Image by DarkmoonArt_de from Pixabay

Satan targets our beliefs and understanding about God, ourselves and others, because he knows that if he can wear away at the foundation, the house will eventually fall. This same analogy is true in our relationships with other people. Satan knows that relationships built on trust, love, self-sacrifice and the desire to truly care for others will stand firm, but relationships that use manipulation, criticism, harshness or deceit will likely fall apart.

Let’s take a look at lies, Satan tempts us to believe in our relationship with others.

You Owe Me

Image by Mediamodifier from Pixabay

This is probably one of the biggest deceits that Satan uses to undermine relationships between people. In a marriage this is especially concerning due to the fact that both partners come into the relationship with their own sets of emotional baggage. If a man is raised in an environment where his dad talked down to his mother and treated her in a derogatory manner, then he will most likely take that into the marriage. He will believe the lie, that because this woman is his wife, she is obligated to be at his beck and call and to be his doormat if he so chooses.

Women can also have this attitude. How many times have you had the thought run through your mind, “Well, I cooked him a good meal, cleaned the house and took care of the kids, now it is his turn. He owes me.” Since when did the marriage relationship become a bargaining table? Unfortunately, this is the society we live in.

Once again, Satan’s tactic is to get us to focus on what we are not getting, rather than focusing on our Heavenly Father and every single thing we have to be thankful for. I am not condoning violence, abuse or any sort of degradation in a marriage. If you are in a relationship of this nature, please contact someone who can help you. Many cities have domestic abuse hotlines.

We see this same attitude among many people in our society today. They believe that they deserve something. Whether it be government aid, freedom of speech (especially with regard to things that are unnecessary or vulgar), or the ability to do whatever they want, whenever they want, people, especially in our country, have forgotten that things like hard work, commitment, investment, education and other factors are what make a difference in the world, not freebies that they think are owed to them.

“Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.”

— Romans 13:8 (ESV)

We have all felt the need to receive compensation for our hard work at times, whether it be a mom who just wants to hear, thank you, a wife who wants to hear, I love you, or an employee who wants to be commended for his efforts. It is not wrong to want these things. The lie of the enemy is when the desire becomes an obsession and drives our thoughts and attitudes.

You Offended Me

Image by Alexas_Fotos from Pixabay

Would I be snarky if I started this off by saying, “I hope I don’t offend anyone?” I believe that offense is a result of the fall. If there were no sin, there would be no offense. What does the Bible say about offense?

“A brother offended is more unyielding than a strong city, and quarreling is like the bars of a castle.”

— Proverbs 18:19 (ESV)

“Whoever covers an offense seeks love, but he who repeats a matter separates close friends.”

— Proverbs 17:9 (ESV)

“Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.”

— Proverbs 19:11 (ESV)

“as it is written, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.””

— Romans 9:33 (ESV)

Taking offense seems to be a natural part of who we are, but that does not make it right. It is even more disturbing that in our current circumstances people are taking offense over things that never should have been part of our society. The Bible is clear though, that we will do better if we seek to overlook an offense.

I have noticed in the last ten years the excessive use of foul language in books, movies and in social settings. It used to be, the use of such language was offensive. Now you can see the F-bomb on tee shirts, book covers and music titles. I personally find that offensive. However, I do not control what publishers publish, movie makers produce or what the fashion industry finds trendy. I do control me, or at least I try to. Ha, ha.

The problem is, the above example is just a symptom of an internal darkening; a belief that everything is allowable. God never said that, Satan did. Today, what people are finding offensive is the expression of truth, God’s truth. The Bible is clear in its stance on many behaviors that people engage in. It does not mince words. The message is clear, certain things are sins and sin is wrong. That offends people.

In the Romans 9:33 passage Jesus is the “stone of stumbling and a rock of offense…” and the passage does not end there, it says that if we believe in Him we will not be put to shame. Satan is manipulating the world and lying to them. He is wooing them to sleep with his song of freedom and equality, which really is a song of enslavement and imprisonment.

It’s All Your Fault

Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay

As we have seen in the first few chapters of Genesis, the blame game has been around since the beginning of time. Adam blamed Eve. Eve blamed the Serpent. What Satan started in the Garden of Eden has carried through to the current age. Children, tweens, teens, young adults, middle agers and the elderly have all been guilty of ascribing blame.

The idea of individual responsibility is pertinent to ending the blame cycle. Every individual is responsible for their own attitudes, actions and beliefs. No matter what the Father of lies is whispering in your ear, you are responsible for you.

I had to talk to my grandson about this a week or so ago. He had gotten several answers wrong on an assignment. The words he was supposed to use to fill in the blanks were at the top of the page in a bolded box. I told him the answers were right there. He started telling me he didn’t see that box, the instructions weren’t clear, the teacher isn’t a good teacher and so on. Once again, I explained that he is responsible for making sure he reads the whole paper. He is responsible for him self. The sad and funny thing was, when his mom got home and I told her about it, she looked at the paper and began to make excuses for him saying she wouldn’t have seen the box either, there weren’t clear instructions on the sheet and a few not so impressive remarks about his teacher.

I am not saying this to put my grandson or my daughter down. She is doing a great job as a single mom and he is doing pretty well in school, so I can’t really complain. However, I do think it shows a tiny sample of what is going on in our society nationwide. No one wants to be responsible.

- Can’t do your job? Blame your boss.

- Burn your dinner? Blame your kids.

- Have an affair? Blame your spouse.

- Get pregnant? Blame the sperm donor.

Satan has pretty much convinced hundreds of thousands of people they are not to blame; they are not responsible; they do not have to deal with the consequences.

“1 Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.
2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
3 For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
4 But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor.
5 For each will have to bear his own load.”

— Galatians 6:1-5 (ESV)

Our unseen enemy doesn’t care who you are, what color your skin is, how much power you have, nor how much money you earn, he is only interested in your failure and one of the ways he can get you there is to convince you, you are not to blame and you are not responsible.

Satan is the Father of Lies. What greater deceit could an enemy have than to convince the world he is not real? Take out the enemy factor and we are left with a world full of suffering, death, violence and hatred, all brought about by people. So much for the idea of ongoing evolution. We are not evolving into smarter, better human beings. We are devolving back into the primordial goop that we came from.

Image by jaymethunt from Pixabay

I would much rather believe we are on a battleground, fighting for our lives and the lives of those around us from an enemy that is beautifully deceptive and seeking whom he may devour!

There are many other lies our unseen enemy temps us to believe. The best way to know a lie is to know the truth and make a stand on it. Believing even one small lie, opens our hearts and our minds to believing others. Knowing God’s words as they are written in the Bible helps us separate the truth from the lies. I challenge you to be in His word and to regularly ask yourself, “What do I believe to be true, and does it coincide with the Scripture.”

Have a great weekend everyone!

Our Unseen Enemy - Part 4: The Liar - Introduction

We have seen that Satan is a manipulator, and a schemer, but one of the characteristics that we most often associate with this unseen enemy is that of lying. We often hear of Satan referred to as the Father of Lies. Jesus called him this in the following passage.

“39 They answered him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works Abraham did,
40 but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did.
41 You are doing the works your father did.” They said to him, “We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one Father—even God.”
42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me.
43 Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word.
44 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me.
46 Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me?
47 Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.””

— John 8:39-47 (ESV)

Image by GeorgeB2 from Pixabay

The Bible doesn’t talk a great deal about Satan being a liar, yet there are various passages that talk about lying, our thought life, and being truthful. It makes sense that a being whose sole desire is the fall of what God created, and whose characteristics include scheming and manipulating, would also feel at ease with lying.

God has commanded us to not lie.

“11 “You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another.
12 You shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.”

— Leviticus 19:11-12 (ESV)

“Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord,
but those who act faithfully are his delight.”

— Proverbs 12:22 (ESV)

“9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices
10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.”

— Colossians 3:9-10 (ESV)

“12 “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done.
13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”
14 Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.
15 Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.”

— Revelation 22:12-15 (ESV)

It would seem that God absolutely does not approve of lying, in fact, to Him it is an abomination. Those who practice lying will not be allowed into the Celestial City of God. I am a firm believer in honesty. Have I lied? Yes, and I have always felt bad about it and tried to repent as soon as possible.

Do you know why Satan uses this tactic so frequently? He uses lying because it is easy. His ability to prod and manipulate a person might cajole them into telling a small lie, but the small lie becomes another, and soon another, and eventually, lying is a chronic condition. All Satan had to do was get the ball rolling.

Image by Smim Bipi from Pixabay

An analogy comes to my mind about the ferocious carnivore, the Tyrannosaurus Rex. It has long been touted that this beast was the king of dinosaurs, tromping about in prehistory, gobbling up his prey like a toddler would gobble up candy that was within his grasp. While it is true that he was large, toothy, and made a formidable opponent, many times he fed off the carcasses of other beasts that had previously died. It seems Mr. T-rex wasn’t always the most motivated when it came to obtaining his supper.

Satan is much the same way. He will do as little work as possible to obtain his desires. He knows the sinful nature of humanity will go a long way to achieving his goals; all he need do is arrange a meeting, whisper a lie, and let hatred, pride and lust take over.

“Listening to counsel or ways of thinking that are not according to the Truth is the first step in developing wrong beliefs that will ultimately place us in bondage. Once we have listened to the lie, the next step toward bondage is that we . . . DWELL ON THE LIE.””

— Nancy Leigh DeMoss - Lies Women Believe: And the Truth that Sets them Free

In order to do this tactic of Satan justice, I feel that I need to divide this into three more posts. It is essential that we understand what this tactic looks like and how it affects our world view. Over the next three weeks I am going to look at three areas that are affected by our unseen enemy’s lies and how these are brought about. I will divide these posts as follows:

1 - Lies that affect our view of God.

2 - Lies that affect our view of ourselves.

3 - Lies that affect our view of others.

Our Unseen Enemy - Part 1: Introducing the Devil

I thought it might be good to look at the goings on in our world from a different perspective. We can become so caught up in the news feed, the social media arguments and just the day to day effort of trying to live in this new environment, that we forget a significant truth. We have an unseen enemy, whose primary goal is our destruction. I am sure, that is the last thing you want to hear, but let me try to explain in these posts, why it is important to remember.

Image by saarvendra from Pixabay

Many of you who are my age will remember The Rolling Stones. Songs like I Can’t Get No Satisfaction, You Can’t Always Get What You Want, Honky Tonk Woman and many others still grace the air waves on many classic rock stations around the world. The song that came to me as I started writing this article was, Sympathy for the Devil. Take a look at the lyrics and have a listen if you want.

“Please allow me to introduce myself
I’m a man of wealth and taste
I’ve been around for a long, long year
Stole many a man’s soul to waste

And I was ‘round when Jesus Christ
Had his moment of doubt and pain
Made damn sure that Pilate
Washed his hands and sealed his fate

Pleased to meet you
Hope you guess my name
But what’s puzzling you
Is the nature of my game

I stuck around St. Petersburg
When I saw it was a time for a change
Killed the czar and his ministers
Anastasia screamed in vain

I rode a tank
Held a general’s rank
When the blitzkrieg raged
And the bodies stank

Pleased to meet you
Hope you guess my name, oh yeah
Ah, what’s puzzling you
Is the nature of my game, oh yeah

I watched with glee
While your kings and queens
Fought for ten decades
For the gods they made

I shouted out
Who killed the Kennedys?
When after all
It was you and me

Let me please introduce myself
I’m a man of wealth and taste
And I laid traps for troubadours
Who get killed before they reached Bombay

Pleased to meet you
Hope you guessed my name, oh yeah
But what’s puzzling you
Is the nature of my game, oh yeah, get down, baby

Pleased to meet you
Hope you guessed my name, oh yeah
But what’s confusing you
Is just the nature of my game, mm yeah

Just as every cop is a criminal
And all the sinners saints
As heads is tails
Just call me Lucifer
’Cause I’m in need of some restraint

So if you meet me
Have some courtesy
Have some sympathy, and some taste
Use all your well-learned politesse
Or I’ll lay your soul to waste, mm yeah

Pleased to meet you
Hope you guessed my name, mm yeah

But what’s puzzling you
Is the nature of my game, mm mean it, get down

Oh yeah, get on down
Oh yeah

Oh yeah

Tell me baby, what’s my name
Tell me honey, can ya guess my name
Tell me baby, what’s my name
I tell you one time, you’re to blame

Oh, right

What’s my name
Tell me, baby, what’s my name
Tell me, sweetie, what’s my name
”

— Source: Lyric Find. Songwriters: Keith Richards and Mick Jagger

Doesn’t that sound a lot like what is going on in our world right now? I’m sure some of you will agree, the devil is alive and well on planet earth and doesn’t need our sympathy.

I am going to divide this up into several posts over the next few weeks, so I hope this will hold your interest and you will follow along. As Christians we do not need to fear our enemy. We have the power of the Almighty Living God on our side. I do think it is good to understand the events in our country and our world are being manipulated by a powerful being. One who has a bone to pick with our God. Let’s start by looking at a few foundational scriptures. These will give us insight into who Satan is and where he came from.

“13 You were in Eden, the garden of God;
every precious stone was your covering,
sardius, topaz, and diamond,
beryl, onyx, and jasper,
sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle;
and crafted in gold were your settings
and your engravings.
On the day that you were created
they were prepared.
14 You were an anointed guardian cherub.
I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God;
in the midst of the stones of fire you walked.
15 You were blameless in your ways
from the day you were created,
till unrighteousness was found in you.
16 In the abundance of your trade
you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned;
so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God,
and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub,
from the midst of the stones of fire.
17 Your heart was proud because of your beauty;
you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor.
I cast you to the ground;”

— Ezekiel 28:13-17 (ESV)

I read a very interesting article titled, Why did God Create a Devil? from this site called, Consider the Gospel. While I know that angels, just like humans, are created beings, I never really thought about what this would have been like for an angel. We are familiar with the story of the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve and how sin came into our world, but what went through Satan’s mind when he came into existence? And why was it that he wanted to rebel against God? Reading the article will definitely give you a few things to chew on. Here is another passage that is often referenced when talking about Satan.

Image by OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay

“12 How you are fallen from heaven,
O Day Star, son of Dawn!
How you are cut down to the ground,
you who laid the nations low!
13 You said in your heart,
‘I will ascend to heaven;
above the stars of God
I will set my throne on high;
I will sit on the mount of assembly
in the far reaches of the north;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High.’”

— Isaiah 14:12-14 (ESV)

There are many scholars, with much more theological training than I, that look at these passages and believe they only refer to the physical kings to whom each passage is being addressed; Ezekiel to the King of Tyre and Isaiah to the King of Babylon, but I believe God is not confined by what theologians say. It seems to make sense to me that both of these passages are viable descriptions of Satan’s origin and of his downfall. These are just my opinions, so doing research on your own is the best way to reach your own conclusions.

If then, these are possible references to Satan, what can we learn from these passages?

He was important and powerful.

Ezekiel’s passage shows how he was adorned with all manner of jewels and says that he was, “…anointed guardian cherub.” Now, was Satan set over the Garden of Eden as a serpent, or did he take on the form of a serpent when he talked to Eve? We don’t know for sure, but we can learn something from The Genesis passage.

“Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.”

— Genesis 3:1 (NASB)

The word, crafty, is not talking about the ability to make things out of paper, yarn and egg cartons. Crafty as it is used in this verse means: prudent, wise, sensible or shrewd. Isn’t that a bit surprising? I often think of being crafty as being deceptive and manipulative, which Satan is as we read further. You can read the entire account in Genesis 3. Satan takes the words God spoke to Adam and Eve and he twists them. We’ll look more at his tactics next week, but for now just know that Satan wasn’t just a janitor. He had a pretty important position in the heavenly realm.

He was beautiful.

As we see in verse 13 of the Ezekiel passage he was adorned with every precious stone. You know how much I like bling. I can only imagine, if Eve saw this being who was covered with these dazzling jewels, how easy it would have been to be completely taken in by his beauty. In addition, it was this beauty that eventually caused his downfall.

He was blameless.

Once again, Scripture is perfectly clear, “You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you…” God did not create angelic beings to be sinful, just as he did not create you and I to be sinful. All of His created works were made for His glory, but in order for this to be established, He had to create us with a free will. I used to think angels did not have a free will, but now I believe they do, but unlike humans, angels were created as God’s co-workers: ministers, protectors, messengers, and warriors are all ways angels work for God to care for His ultimate creation, humanity. So what happened with this one particular angel?

Image by Stefan Keller from Pixabay

He became proud.

Pride was ultimately what drove Satan to think he could be better than the Creator.

“Your heart was proud because of your beauty;
you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor.
I cast you to the ground;
I exposed you before kings,
to feast their eyes on you.”

— Ezekiel 28:17 (ESV)

Notice how it says his wisdom was corrupted for the sake of his splendor. He was all that. Can’t you just picture him walking about the garden, knowing he held a place of importance, and then he notices himself in a pool of water. How handsome and beautiful he was. He began to look around at all that God had created and he found everything else lacking; everything but him. He was the most beautiful….

“If I am the most beautiful, then certainly, I must also be the most powerful. I must be even more powerful than God himself!”

It really isn’t a far stretch to the imagination to see what was going on in Satan’s mind. Aren’t we all a little guilty of this thing called pride? Oh, but look how pride corrupts and eventually brings low. We will look at that more next week too.

“My precious!”

If you have seen the Lord of the Rings trilogy or read the books by J.R.R Tolkien, you know about Gollum. He was born a Hobbit, but evil turned him into a creature that lived in the darkness of caves and the underworld, scampering about with only a loin cloth and his jagged teeth, eating raw fish and searching for his, “Precious.” Precious was one of the original rings forged, under the deception of Sauron, which when worn, gave the wearer certain powers and abilities. When Gollum was a Hobbit, his name was Smeagol. He obtained the ring after killing his relative who had found it in a river. From then on Smegol was obsessed with the artifact, and its evil gradually turned him into the creature.

Image by Pau Llopart Cervello from Pixabay

The analogy I want to draw here has to do with this next verse in Ezekiel.

“In the abundance of your trade
you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned;
so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God,
and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub,
from the midst of the stones of fire.”

— Ezekiel 28:16 (ESV)

Satan became obsessed with his beauty. He also developed an attitude of pride. Rather than going to his Creator and confessing his wrong, he dwelt on it. He became more and more obsessed with his life and what he deemed as his right to become like God. Apparently, he became violent. It says he was filled with violence. The violence, probably masterfully controlled for a time, finally gave way to sin. Just as Gollum could not get over the ring, Satan could not get over himself. Reread Isaiah 14:12-14 and you can see just how full of himself he was.

He was cast down and banished.

Not only was Satan no longer able to fellowship with the Almighty Creator who had made him, he was banished. The verse above says, “destroyed”, but it is also translated as “banished.” Banishment in many cultures throughout history was a proclamation, worse than death. One would think, death would be worse, but banishment had a taint to it that was life long and went with the person wherever they went. In many societies, banishment meant that person was no longer allowed in that land and no one could help them on penalty of banishment or death.

He is not alone.

Satan wasn’t alone in his desire to rebel against God. He was also not alone in his banishment. Look at this verse from Matthew.

Image by Alexas_Fotos from Pixabay

““Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”

— Matthew 25:41 (ESV)

Apparently, Satan had a following when he began his desired ascension to god-hood. For whatever reason, these other angels decided to join him. Maybe it was his crafty personality or his beauty that drew them. Whatever the reason, Satan does have his own band of workers who do his bidding.

Next week, I hope to continue this look at our enemy by focusing on his tactics. These will be important to know and understand when looking at how our world is being affected by them.

I would also encourage you to refresh yourself with Ephesians 6:10-18: the armor of God. We need to be battle ready.

Until next time. Have a great weekend!