The Patient Lion

  "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around  like  a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” 

I Peter 5:8 NIV

   

   The animal shows on television have always held my attention. I’ve found that I learn several new facts about almost every animal. One that particularly caught my attention is the lion. Is he majestic? Yes. Would I pass out if we met face to face? Absolutely! But the “King of  Beasts” has an unusual way of  hunting his prey that surprised me.  

    Because lions are huge and strong and not intimidated, I thought that, as they came upon a possible “meal,” they would roar, rush in, attack their victim and enjoy a snack. But they don’t. Instead, they patiently take their time. They will lay down and act as though they couldn’t care less about their prey but it’s all part of a well thought out plan. So they wait - sometimes for hours at a time. And the reason for this hunting tactic?

   Lions, as big as they are, have limited stamina and must spend a good part of their day conserving their energy for their attack on their target. Oh, they may roar fiercely but it is only a trick. The roaring stops. And it lulls their victim into a false sense of security: “The lion doesn’t want to eat me. He has stopped roaring. He is only resting. I am safe.” And with that false thinking, they do not keep watch as the lion casually moves closer and closer to them until they experience his surprise fatal attack - and instant  death.

    I cannot help but compare a lion’s attack with the attack Satan uses on us. He is content to slowly, carefully move closer to us as he whispers that what we are doing is okay. For example, it may start out slowly, with a personal compliment from a co-worker.(“He/she was just being nice.”) and the warning from the Spirit is ignored until it becomes a dinner to discuss work and ultimately moves to a relationship outside of marriage. Or it could be a justification for viewing porn (“It’s not wrong because you aren’t actually cheating with a physical person.”) and a marriage falls apart. Or gossip (“I’m sharing this so you can pray for them.”) and a life is shattered.

    Never forget that Satan hunts down the children of God: the prayer warriors.Those willing to stand in the gap for Truth. He is not concerned about those who already belong to him but he is frightened of  those who spend time in prayer and speak the name of Jesus wherever they are. He knows that warriors will never bend a knee to him but will fight with everything they have. So he works hard to spiritually  kill them and their witness subtly and slowly.  

    His arsenal of weapons?  Shame because of something in your past; layers and layers of “if only” and “what if” that land on your heart and shove you into a state of “I will never be good enough” or strong enough. But never forget that even though those attacks cause pain - physically, emotionally or Spiritually - they will NOT destroy the children of God!

     So what is the answer? Get into God’s Word today! Go to your War Room! If you don’t have one, make one! It may be an actual closet that you move things around in so you can pray in calm and quiet or it may be in a chair in your bedroom. Ask Jesus to remind you of the armor He has for you to wear daily! Put it on. Never take it off. Trust the Lord to battle for you and with you as you learn how to recognize and defeat  the subtle lies of the enemy. 

    

    Father, please show me daily where I am being subtly attacked and give me strength and courage to battle with Truth from your Word. In Jesus’ Name. Amen. 

R.A.P. it up . . . 

Reflect

• Think of a time that you did the exact opposite of God’s will for your life.

• How did you get to that point? 

Apply

• Journal the power verses every morning until you have them memorized.

• Make a war room in your home. Sit quietly in it and ask the Lord to show you clearly where Satan is attacking so you can be on guard.

Power

• I Peter 5:8 (NIV)  "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around 

like  a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” 

• Ephesians 6:13 (NIV) "Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”

•  James 4:7-8 (NIV) “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you”