WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS…..
I have never been one to give up, I am hard headed, stubborn and often a bit of a perfectionist. I often find that the devil uses those areas to make me feel overwhelmed at times. I am bad about complaining about how my husband never lets me sleep in and then when he does I purposely start thinking of everything that needs to be done so that I am restless and cannot sleep. I end up getting up early when he was willing to let me sleep in and letting my emotions overcome my happiness. I have this thing about me that if everything is not checked off by the end of the day I am not doing all that I should and that is ALL the devil. The devil likes to take the things that get to use, dig in deep and turn them so tightly we feel that we cannot breathe. If we act on those emotions as I tend to do so many times we get a knot in our stomachs that screams, “you are never gonna get it all done.” Matthew 12:30
“Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
The devil wants us to feel overwhelmed, bogged down, overly exerted and fatigued all the time. He knows that if he can only get us to that place of discomfort we will spend all of our time and energy focused on that feeling rather than our God. Any time that we take away from God is a rush of emotions for the devil and that is simply NOT ACCEPTABLE. We have to be strong enough and fast enough to see the devil and his malicious schemes and be one step ahead of him at all times. If we get too busy doing other things, just know it is going to take you longer to accomplish your list and LET IT GO! I am preaching to myself right now!!! So what if the house is not perfectly clean by the end of the weekend, so what if the laundry is still sitting in a basket on Sunday night at 8pm, and so what if the kids toys are still sitting on the floor from where they had a hysterically good time earlier. Learn that the moments that make you smile need to outweigh the times you have it turned upside down. Don’t stress that little wrinkle up in the middle of your forehead simply because you are fixated on the things that “need to be done,” but instead focus on the things “that matter the most.” 1 Peter 5:8
Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
I have learned over the years a very hard and repeated lesson about staying alert to the devil and what he might be thinking about next. I don’t like surprises of any kind. I like to know what I am up against and just how I will be prepared to handle those issues. The devil likes to fly by the seat of his pants and could care less how you are equipped to handle his fire balls he likes to throw right when you feel like you have enough on you. He likes to hit you blindsided and make you so weak that you start thinking there is no way up in each situation. He wants you to be so dependent on someone other than God he will stop at no links to make sure you are fully engulfed in all the tragedies around you and that the end is nowhere in sight. He doesn’t want you fully committing your life to God. We have to be strong enough to resist the devil and all his temptations. We have to be clothed in the armor of God so that at any time we are fully prepared to jump out with our faith shining bright and deflect the devil right back to where he belongs. The devil doesn’t tire very easily and I believe he thinks it is hysterical to find that one area of our life that we struggle with and take a full swing at us. He laughs as we fall, but God says do not be afraid, have faith in me. God doesn’t want us to stumble, he wants us to have our feet firmly planted in his word and knows that whatever the devil brings, God can remove it. Whatever the devil throws at us, God can come to bat for us. Whatever the devil takes from us, God can supply better. Just trust in God to fill the void that the devil keeps digging at day in and day out. Romans 15:13
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Don’t fill that void with anything that would bring the devil pleasure. Don’t fill the voids with alcohol, sex, drugs or other sinful things, let go and let God. Let God be your rock, your addiction. Let God see your through every single darkest time in your life. Don’t tell the devil, “ok I give up, you win,” the devil never wins when it comes to our lives. If we firmly believe in our hearts that our God, our Lord and Savior loved us enough to send his only son to die on a cross for our sins to be washed away then the simplistic arrows the devil shoots towards us should bounce right off. Let nothing that comes from the devil turn your thinking towards negative. You give the devil a nice taste of his own medicine by ignoring his nagging calls. Don’t let him tell you that you are not worth it, a worthless person or a person that doesn’t ever have it together. You stand up for yourself and you do it the right way, in Gods eyes. You put yourself high enough to where the devil has to ask your permission to even try to persuade you into thinking something negative. You believe in you just like God does and if it doesn’t get done, let it go. If the list you prepared keeps doubling in size then just buy an extra pen. Don’t let yourself become weary that your life is always a good run of bad luck. You put your shoulders back, chin up and you walk the talk. Strut the stuff, be the blessing, and forget the gut and go with God.
Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.
Your day is not going to be perfect and it is much easier if you just take “easier and perfect,” out of your vocabulary that way there is no chance you will ever stumble over these obstacles ever again. Instead of being discouraged, be dedicated and strengthen your walk with Christ every single moment of every single day. You look to God for direction and strength and keep your size 8’s on for when the devil tries to knock you off course tomorrow!
We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.
Stop trying to be better than you are capable of being. Be who you are and when you start to get frustrated all at you think you “have” to do, remember that God only expects one thing from you,
They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”
The Dented Bucket
KD
KD
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