Skip to main content

In The Garden...Danger!

A friend and neighbor called an exterminator because of snakes in her garden!  Yes, it's true!  She had the most beautiful garden on the block and yet snakes were nesting there.  They found a place hidden away behind the beauty and multiplied. 

Momma's English Dogwood


The first garden had a snake, but he was not like the snakes in my friend's garden.  This snake was a killer of a different sort.  He was called Serpent.  He approached Eve with a specific purpose; planting seeds of doubt.  Doubts about what God really said.  Doubts about God's goodness.  Doubts that would choke and kill Eve's trust in God's Word.  This snake was set on the destruction of her relationship with God!

He's called by many other names.  The Bible refers to him as Satan, the devil, our enemy, the deceiver, accuser, a roaring lion.  The Bible also warns that the enemy's goal is to steal, kill, and destroy.  He wants to steal our joy, confidence, and identity in Jesus.  He delights in hurting God by hurting us.

Our enemy uses our desires against us, and dangles temptations with the promise of pleasure.  He wants sin to rule our lives and steal our freedom.  He schemes, plots, and plans ways to deceive us, discourage us, and provoke us into doubting the truth of God's Word.  He doesn't want us to know sin will multiply until it's a nest of sin filled with guilt, shame, and heartbreaking consequences. 

Big praises!  God doesn't lie and His Word is true.  We can overcome evil with good by the strength of the LORD.  Our desires change as we delight more and more in the LORD.  We stand firm against the lies of the enemy when we're armed with the truth of God's Word.  Sin and death have been defeated by the blood of Jesus; the King of kings and LORD of lords!

Now the serpent was more crafty than any wild animal which Adonai, God, had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You are not to eat from any tree in the garden’?”  
Genesis 3:1 (CJB)

 Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.
2 Corinthians 11:14b (AMP)

 The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows].
John 10:10 (AMP)

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.
1 Peter 5:8 (NLT)

 Rather, each person is being tempted whenever he is being dragged off and enticed by the bait of his own desire.
James 1:14 (CJB)

 Delight yourself in the LORD: And He will give you the desires of your heart.
Psalm 37:4 (NASB)

 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Romans 12:21 (NASB)


Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.
Ephesians 6:10-11 (NASB)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

1 Corinthians 12:27 - Now you are the body of Christ, and individual members of it.

Okay, call me crazy, but this is where my mind is today.  Everyone of us who has confessed with our mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in our hearts God raised Jesus from the dead, are saved (Romans 10:9). All believers are IN Christ. We are IN Him, He is IN us, and He is IN the Father. You can check it out for yourself in John 14:20. Every believer is IN Christ. Thinking about being IN Christ and a part of His body got me thinking about how a body is filled with cells. Well, you know me, I had to do a Bing search and find out what I could about the anatomy of a human cell and its function. This is what I found: "The human cell is the basic unit of life that can replicate itself." There are trillions of cells in one human body and they don't all have the same purpose or function within the body. But no matter what the purpose or function, every cell must replicate. No exceptions! Okay, translate that into us being cells in the body of Christ. We are not all th...
Post a Comment
Read more

2 Peter 1:2 - May grace and peace be multiplied to you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

I've been away, but I've not been idle. I've been healing and learning. Healing from all the grief our family has experienced in these last few years, and learning from the LORD during the healing process. No! I didn't quit life, but I did spend most of my time in our Heavenly Father's lap surrounded by His love and comfort. The problem was, I was a hot mess whenever I crawled out and tried to get back to living life as usual. Believe me when I tell you I've cried a lot of tears, but God was there to capture each one and continued to love and comfort me. He was also there to pick up the pieces when I unexplectedly boiled over like oatmeal. Believe me, it was just as messy and just as hard to clean up.  Please don't misunderstand, it wasn't because the people in my life weren't there for me, but many of them were grieving too. Each death brought more grief, bringing me to a place where I finally realized I needed someone to help me see my way forward....
2 comments
Read more

Help Wanted?

Anyone who has ever gotten a new pair of glasses knows the struggle of adjustment. Climbing stairs, stepping off a curb, and even reaching for something creates a need for added attention and care. The optometrist warns us against switching between our old and new glasses. Why? It creates added struggle and delays our ability to see with clarity through our new lenses. Jesus-followers encounter the same type of struggle. Our old selves see everything through the lens of our own understanding. Holy Spirit helps us see everything through the lens of God’s word. Yep! Reading God’s word causes us to see people and circumstances from God’s perspective, and our old understanding is challenged. It’s kind-of like putting on a new pair of prescription glasses. Every new perspective revealed in God’s word, challenges our perspective. I’m sorry to say, but just like those times when I’m tempted to wear my old glasses, I’m also tempted to refuse God’s perspective. I’ve even tried to justify ...
Post a Comment
Read more