Deliver Us From Evil

'And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.' Matthew 6:13

When you say the Lord's Prayer do you ever stop and break it down and think about what it really means? The statement "deliver us from evil" for instance? 

Evil represents Satan and the despicable things he does. Lies, deceives, kills, steals, destroys. The dictionary defines it is as wicked,bad, wrong, sinful. Sinful, ah there is that word that when Christians speak up against 'evils' in society we are told be tolerant. 

There is good and there is evil. Period. Former President George W Bush on 29 January 2002 referred to countries sponsoring terrorism as the 'axis of evil'. 

Our enemy Satan is real. He will do anything he can to manipulate minds, cause people to have wrong beliefs, and weave his evil web. Often people are captivated or in a trance so to speak over how he accomplishes his evil deeds. I Peter 5:8 warns us he "roams around like a lion seeking whom he may devour." Stay alert!

PRAYER: One way Lord I know to ward off the evil one is to quote scripture at him. Help me Lord to stay in the word of God for it is my most powerful weapon for beating Satan at his game. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Not Politically Correct, But God Correct

"If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. " John 15:18-19

We Christians are in a battle of good and evil, right versus wrong. Even Christians who know the truth are acting like the 'world' many times and caving in to what they know in their hearts is not right. Our media saturated society makes it seem like conservative Christians are mean, hateful, terrorists, homophobic, islamaphobic and the bad guy. It breaks my heart to think how misled the world is becoming. But hey, no surprise there, when we allow a President to try to divide us instead of unite us. 

Our job as believers is to love. None of us is perfect. We are to pray for our enemies. We are to pray for these people who think because we believe a certain way it is hate. We are to pray for those who disagree with us. We are to pray for those who label us hateful just because we stand for truth and love this country and care about national security and Israel.  Satan has done an excellent job deceiving millions of people and his trickery is entering mainline churches too. This is why it is ever so vital to stay saturated in God's word and know the truth. 

Our job is to pray and pray some more. Stay away from too much media or it will make you angry. Spend more time in God's word and less watching news. Ask God to give you a heart to love the unlovable. Above all pray for those who have authority over us to be transformed and to know Jesus. 

PRAYER: Lord Jesus there is no one I hate. I confess my anger at the lies the enemy tried to spread. Lord Jesus some I love are being captivated by the enemy. Protect them Lord. Above all help me share God's love in these perilous times. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Evil In Our Midst!

The soul of the wicked desires evil; his neighbor finds no mercy in his eyes. Proverbs 21:10

There is good and evil. Right and wrong. Wicked, bad, wrong, and immoral is how the dictionary defines the word evil. Satan is evil. God is good. You are either for God or against Him. You are either doing God's work or being sucked into the world's system. Satan is called the 'prince of the power of the air' in Ephesians 2:2. Many people may be serving him and assisting him without being aware of it because he is sneaky, deceiving, and subtle. And oh yes, did I mention, evil?

In these United States right now evil seems to be winning out when a government tries to dictate rules and behaviors to its' formerly freedom loving people. Guess what? God is still on the throne.  Psalm 37:1 reminds us not to fret because of evil doers and we in fact should not. We as believers need to pray we are not taken captive slowly by things of the world that can get us believing wrong or acting wrong. Stay in God's word and do not change it to be politically correct but instead insure it is 'God correct'.  Because of immoral laws passed by a Supreme Court who is only supposed to interpret laws we as Christians stand up against a society accepting of evil practices and may soon find ourselves ostracized for standing up for the truth.

Do not fear but make it your daily aim to get into God's word and know right from wrong. God and His laws and truth will win out over any evil in the end.

PRAYER: I am very thankful for my Bible. Many countries believers can be jailed or killed for speaking out for Christ. May we never get to that point here. Help those I know stand on guard against deception often masquerading as something that is okay. In Jesus' name. Amen.