We all find ourselves surrounded by the wilderness throughout certain moments of our walk through life; as born again believers, we sometimes encounter the learning of lessons through said wilderness. We begin to be strengthened in our walk as a result. Regardless of whether we plop ourselves into the shades of the forest or life just throws a spear into our field of vision, we must always remember to consider Christ. The largest web the wilderness weaves is the spirit of deception. A spirit that becomes proud. We begin to question our need for God. We soak ourselves in self righteousness. We pursue the flesh and its many desires, instead of pursuing His word and wisdom. The minute that we take a bite from the fruit of deception, the seed is fiercely wedged into our soul, and the only plant that grows is one of destruction.
Life can become difficult in the blink of an eye. Your health may fail in one way or another. Unforeseen circumstances might be throwing you for a loop. Whatever the case, we must fight against the device of deception.
How, you may ask?
1) Be Still: The most important component of fighting against a proud spirit is choosing to become quiet and allowing the Lord to work on you to correct any discrepancies in your walk of faith. You may find yourself in a situation that you have no power to repair. Maybe you've tried every possible way to fix it yourself. Be still and let God move you forward onto a clearer path. Surrender your power and let Him move you.
2) Let Him Humble You: Throughout my journey on this Earth, a humble spirit is one thing that I have had to fight tooth and nail to hold onto. I've missed out on blessings all because I possessed a proud spirit. I thought "I don't need any help." What a sad day it is when we fall through the cracks of life and we think we don't need Christ. When is there ever a time when we don't need Him? Hindsight always provides me with the thought of, "Man, I should have handled that situation better. I should have acted maturely." If you aren't humbled, you need to seriously be in prayer. It doesn't take you long to receive humility once you address it in prayer, but if you never do, you will not receive it. Your proud spirit will continue to destroy you until you have nothing left but God.
My anxiety issues are a device the devil uses against me; and he often defeats me because I don't really fight back. I admit it. I am inconsistent in everything I do. I am horrible at remembering to take my medication daily and worst of all, there have been times (even recently) where I never considered prayer or other people's lives or needs. Anxiety is terrible and mood issues are extremely real, but life is all about how we deal with those circumstances. It is important to realize that our decisions not only affect us, but they impact those around us as well. One of my main problems that is being worked on through Christ is my not so wonderful talent of speaking and acting before I think.
3) Pray & Be Grateful: As I have mentioned earlier, prayer needs to become a daily occurrence if one wishes to truly overcome the device of deception. We are all human, so we will always be imperfect, but we must strive to do our best in serving and loving God. As an example, I have traveled through a recent wilderness that saw my focus fall completely off of Christ. I stopped enjoying being a writer. I had no inspiration. I had no drive. I lost sight of what I was doing with my life. I had a million voids that needed filled. We all fall into the trap of ingratitude in one way or another. When we aren't thankful, nothing the Lord has given us is enough. We might not have the life we want. We might not be able to jump in the car when we want to. We might not have the amount of friends that someone else has. We might not be blessed in the same way that someone else is. Our talents aren't making us famous. Any reason to cry "Woe is me", humans find a reason to do so. I am guilty of this so much and I admit it publicly. Life may not be what you pictured, but it is wise to be grateful and enjoy it. Follow your passions and pray over them. You may not become famous, but in everything the Lord will use you if you choose to make yourself available to Him.
I chose to write on this topic because this is a struggle I have faced in my own time of wilderness. I watched a service at my church on this topic recently and I felt it so deeply in my soul that I had to share. I don't have a specific verse to go along with my message this week, these are just words I had laid on my heart. I truly hope this helps someone out.
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