I have been thinking seriously about the enemy of our soul. Whatever you want to call him—devil, adversary, Satan—he has one goal. He wants to hurt God and thinks the best way to do that is to devour those whom God calls His own. We need to think seriously about his influence in our lives.
1 Peter 5:8: “Be serious! Be alert! Your adversary the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.” [HCSB]
Peter urges his readers to be serious as well as to stay alert when it comes to the adversary. That means recognizing that the devil is prowling around us all the time. That is his job – to prowl and destroy. He and his little minions do not take a day off. They lie in wait, seeking opportunities to enter our lives.
The problem is that too often we do just that – give him an opportunity to enter.
Paul reminds us in Romans 12:2 that we must not be “conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of [our] mind, so that [we] may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.” [HCSB]
From that verse we learn where the battle with the enemy of our soul always begins … in our minds. When we listen to the world’s counsel, we invite the devil in. When we succumb to negative thinking, we invite the devil in. When we do not cooperate with the Spirit of God who wants to lead us in all righteousness, we invite the devil in. When we do not read and study the Word of God, so that we might know His ways, we invite the devil in.
Many of our problems are of our own making when we give place in our minds to the enemy of our soul. He is always prowling around us looking for that opening. When he sees it, he will not hold back! He will take every opportunity to influence us. Eventually, we will grow deaf to the Spirit of God’s pleadings, and find ourselves in bondage to the world, the flesh, and the enemy.
If you have given the devil a place in your thinking, it is time to oust him! Seek the leading of the Spirit of God, get into the Word of God, and take authority over your mind. God has given us the means to transform our minds, do not let that go to waste and spend another day in slavery to fear, doubt, or discouragement!
