satan’s three (3) strategies against you

This morning I felt a sense of unhappiness in my heart. I’ve been unhappy for a few days now but today was a little bit extra. Tried to shake it off, but the negative thoughts that I entertained for a few days now got to me. Kept myself busy all morning, but still that voice I kept on hearing in my head just grows louder. I didn’t want to believe it, and I know the only way to be freed from satan’s lies is to counter it with God’s truth. So here goes God’s revelation to me today. Below are satan’s 3 winning strategies. 1. Inject DOUBT Remember the story in garden of eden? The Lord gave a specific instruction to Adam, Genesis 2:16-17 “And the LORD God commanded the man, 'You are free to eat from any tree in the garden. But you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die." Wasn’t that message clear? However the enemy in his craftiness twisted God’s word and said: Genesis 3:1 “Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" Here’s the thing, the enemy doesnt need to convince you he is right, he just needed to introduce the right amount of doubt in your mind for him to win. When you doubt, he already won half the battle. It’s exactly what he did to Adam. Remeber his words: “Did God really say...?” You see, he didn’t even convinced him to eat the fruit. But by introducing doubt, Adam got confused with God’s instruction, ate the fruit and the rest of mankind fell into sin. And don’t you hear the same thing in your head sometimes? “Did God really say.. He loves you?” “Did God really say.. He will never leave you?” “Did God really say.. you are forgiven?” “Did God really say.. go in that direction?” “Did God really say.. you will prosper?” The enemy will keep on repeating until his lie becomes your truth. Whatever word you received from the Lord, whatever promised he has spoken to you, hold fast to it. God’s word is pure and should be your only truth. "Now, O Lord GOD, You are God, and Your words are truth, and You have promised this good thing to Your servant.- 2 Samuel 7:28 The Lord can be trusted and will never back out on His word. 2. Feed you with FEAR I have a friend who had a brain surgery. He survived it but it it kept him paralyzed for a few months, the doctor said he would be okay and it’s just the brain’s natural response to trauma. His body slowly recovered, but I kept on thinking that trauma is synanymous to fear. Because isn’t that what happens to us when we are afraid? It stops us from moving. I am sure, It’s not God’s way and never is, the Lord never wanted us to be spiritually paralyzed. The Lord may instruct us to wait, be still, but never stop. We have to keep on moving forward. The Lord says, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” - 2 Timothy 1:7 I remember going out to the beach with my friends a few summers ago. Part of our trip is to jump off a cliff and into the water, about 15ft high. When I came to the top, I suddenly realized I might not be ready to jump a cliff that high. And because i’m confident, a.k.a “mayabang” with my swimming skills, I didn’t put any life vest on. It’s either I do it or I don’t. The pressure was on me. And you’re right I was afraid. In fact, the more I look at the water and its distance from where i’m standing, the more I felt afraid to do it. However, I didn’t want to miss the chance and feel the thrill. So I took a deep breath and jumped. The feeling was great, and you know what I did after that first jump? I kept on jumping and jumping. The best part is, it got easier as I kept on doing it. What is the antidote to fear? Simple, it’s Faith. Because it’s the opposite of it. You can’t have fear and faith at the same time. Faith means moving forward while fear is moving backwards or not moving at all. Like what I did that summer, the way to overcome fear is to just take that leap of faith. Stop meditating on how deep the water is, just jump. And as you keep on doing it, believe me, it will get easier. “Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you." - Deutronomy 31:8 3. Develop an attitude of INGRATITUDE There’s a reason why the Lord instructed us to, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” - 1 Thessalonians 5:18 Our spiritual life becomes stale when we start being ungrateful. If the enemy can develop in us an ungrateful heart, we will not be able to experience God’s goodness to the full. People ask, “is the glass is half empty or half full?” Answer is, it depends on how you want to see it. Ingratitude is misdirected focus. Focusing on what you don’t have instead of what you have. I saw this video of a 4-year old girl, her mom got a paper clip, put it in a box and gave it to her as a gift. Her response, “ohhh mommy a paper clip” then she burst into tears of joy. It made me laugh, but replaying that video in my head makes me think how much better the world will be like if people are so much grateful with things as simple as a paper clip. And how deep our experience of God’s goodness will be if we shift our focus from glass half empty to half full. Now that you know the enemy’s strategies, it’s time to feed your mind with God’s truth. Believing God’s word takes anchoring your heart into it day and night and he cannot succeed if your mind is filled with the Lord’s truth. Be in faith dear believer, put on your armor and fight! Prayer: Father in heaven, Thank you for your word and truth. I repent for listening, believing and acting on satan’s lies. Lord I pray that you will shut the mouth of the liars and my spiritual ears will listen to your voice alone. I know that where you have called me, you will show yourself faithful and your promises are true in my life. You will fulfill them in your perfect time so I rebuke any doubt planted in my heart and declare the plans of the enemy over my life powerless. I don’t want to keep on moving in fear so Lord give me the courage to jump off that cliff when it’s time to do so. Help me to always be grateful and let me experience your goodness in a greater level God. Thank you Lord for as long as I am with you, I am always a winner in this life. This I pray and declare in the mighty name of Jesus, Amen.