Announcing Your Presence

What kills a skunk is the publicity it gives itself.  Abraham Lincoln

I believe Satan to exist for two reasons: first, the Bible says so; and second, I've done business with him.  D.L. Moody

The chief weapon we ought to use in resisting Satan is the Bible. Three times the great enemy offered temptations to our Lord. Three times his offer was refused, with a text of Scripture as the reason, "it is written" (Mt. 3:4, 7, 10).  J.C. Ryle

There are some animals that I am not so partial to.  This weekend I was setting up at a farmer’s market and I heard the person next to me say “There is a skunk.”  I am thinking “We are in the middle of town, how could there be a skunk in downtown Rockwall?”  He comes waddling down the sidewalk, crosses the street and goes under the farmer’s trailer.  You want to get a bunch of farmer’s excited, just throw a skunk into the mix. 

I thought of the cartoon about the French Pepe Le Pew where the skunk Pepe chases after his true love Penelope (a black cat) who can’t stand the odiferous smell he exudes.  The problem with Pepe was he announced his presence before he could get close to his true love. 

When we were kids we lived out in the country so there were always plenty of snakes. One of the more common snakes in Louisiana is the water moccasin also known as a pit viper.  I don’t like snakes.  I admit I am in more danger of injuring myself trying to get away from them than they are of biting me.  I can run really fast with the right incentive. 

We had an open garage attached to our house and during construction we had a stack of paneling on the floor of the garage.  A water moccasin had gotten in between the sheets of paneling.  How did we know that?  A water moccasin gives off a distinct bad odor when they are threatened. It is likened to the smell of a billy goat, but take my word for it they just smell bad.   My dad was used to snakes being around the yard or in the barn so he started taking the paneling off one piece at a time until he found the snake and killed it. 

Wouldn’t it be great if Satan did the same thing?  If he gave off some offensive odor so that you could tell he was getting ready to attack or was in the vicinity.  The problem is he doesn’t warn us ahead of time of his presence.  He sneaks in when we least expect it.  He uses stealth as his weapon of choice and before we know it he has taken over our life and actions.  We have a weak moment and he takes advantage.

Unfortunately, we must always be on guard for Satan to strike because he isn’t going to boldly announce his presence and he isn’t going to warn us ahead of time of the danger.  He wants us to be sucked in so that he can bring us down with him.  God has given us the Survival Guide to denying Satan.  If we don’t use it we are in danger of becoming his victims.  Reading the Bible will give us all the instruction we will ever need to avoid sin and ultimately Satan.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, thank you for giving me the Bible so that I can avoid being caught in Satan’s web of deceit.  Help me to strengthen my armor and uphold Your sword of righteousness so that I won’t fall into Satan’s trap. Satan doesn’t announce his presence so I need every weapon in Your Holy arsenal to protect me from him.   

   

Scripture: Satan Tempts Jesus

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.  And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.  Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’ and, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.’”

 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’”

Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.”

Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’”

Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him. Matthew 4:1-11