Apples of Gold

When I was growing up, the church world seemed to be going through a phase where almost everything was blamed on the devil. The devil made me eat that chocolate cake. The devil made me late to work…. This extreme view was unhealthy as it seemed to negate personal responsibility for our choices and behavior. Our basic daily decisions often have much more to do with our personal desires and discipline, or lack thereof, than they do with an intervention of the evil one.

Listen to the words of King Solomon, wise guy that he was:

A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls. Proverbs 25:28

I started paying attention to nutrition many years ago and generally try to be mindful of what I am eating. I sometimes find myself overly busy, having to grab meals on the run which inevitably leads to poor choices. If I don’t put the brakes on quickly, I can find that my wall of self-control has completely broken-down and the floodgates are now open. I don’t know about you, but I find that the unhealthy choices are often quite addictive in nature and as Lays potato chips used to boast: “No one can eat just one” becomes the mantra that leads to a downward spiral, ultimately ending with me not feeling so good and wondering what happened to my self-discipline.

The lack of self-control in our society is evidenced by a financial crisis faced by so many who find themselves consistently living beyond their means. The obesity epidemic also points to our propensity to do what feels good in the moment, opting to face the impact of future consequences in order to have a moment of pleasure.

Scripture admonishes us to live a balanced, healthy life that displays the transforming work of God through the fruit of the Spirit.

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to this cross and crucified them there. Galatians 5:22-24

This is certainly a daily cooperative process of submission to the conviction of the Holy Spirit and obedience to Scriptural standards. There are days that we do this well and others, well-not so much. I recently stepped out of my comfort zone and ordered my groceries for pick-up. I usually avoid this because the shoppers tend to fail to observe the condition of the produce they are tossing into my cart. Well, sure enough, as I pulled the strawberries from the bag I noticed they were already moldy and the mushrooms had seen better days. When I shop in person I carefully examine my fruit, looking for the best quality product. We would do well to take a look at the quality of the fruit our lives are producing. Refusing to settle for the cultural trend of a self-serving approach but instead giving our time, talent and treasure to the Lord results in spiritual growth and fruitful lives.

On the flip side, while blaming everything on the enemy isn’t a good idea I think that we have perhaps gone too far in the other direction and sometimes fail to recognize his tricks.

Not too many years into our marriage I remember realizing that the enemy had influenced my focus in some things my husband and I were facing by painting a target on my husband. I had temporarily fallen for it and now understood that I was fighting the wrong battle. We were actually on the same side in this struggle and needed to work together, not against each other.

2 Corinthians 2:11 …so that Satan will not outsmart us. For we are familiar with his evil schemes.

Most of us have likely been in a classroom setting where we were asked to write 5 of our biggest weaknesses. Without hesitation a flood of options rushes through our minds and the most difficult part is choosing which ones to put down. The next question however-write 5 of your strengths-often leaves many grasping desperately to find even one quality worth writing down.

We are familiar with our flaws. In the same way, we understand the ploys the enemy tends to use to trip us up: Question who God is, what he says and who we are in him. This is one of the reasons I am such an advocate of pounding out your theology thoroughly and precisely.

People believe a lot of things about God that are not supported biblically. Our theology must line up with the true meaning of the text and not a cleverly crafted rouse designed to ensnare the untrained believer. When we allow an unbiblical view of God to guide our thoughts we empower the enemy to wreak havoc on our minds and hearts.

Our weaknesses are often evident to all who know us well. We can be sure that the enemy is aware of them as well-but so is our God. Not only is God aware of them, but he is prepared to glorify himself through them.

We can learn from Paul’s experience:

Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 2 Corinthians 12:9

If weakness is the qualification for usefulness to God I can wholeheartedly volunteer for service! The enemy wants to discourage us and claims we are too broken to be useful. Our Father looks at our mess and sees an opportunity to bring glory to himself, as only his power could bring good out of it.

Our task is to bring balance to this concept, accepting responsibility for our own decisions while remaining aware of the spiritual battle raging around us at all times.

Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith… I Peter 5:8-9