We can pretend he doesn’t exist, but the fact is, Satan is real, and he wants you dead. Some of you might know the Christian worship song “Waymaker.” There’s a line in there, speaking of God, which says, “He never stops working.” While this is wonderful news, we must also keep the same concept in mind about the devil.
In the biblical book of Job, when Satan presented himself humbly at God’s throne, the Lord asked the devil what he’d been up to lately.
“Satan answered the Lord, ‘I have been patrolling the earth, watching everything that’s going on'” (Job 1:7b, Job 2:2b, emphasis added).
Yes, he’s “watching everything that’s going on.” To purposely misuse the “Waymaker” lyric about the devil, “He never stops…he never stops working. He never stops…he never stops working.”
He’s always on the prowl; he never rests, he never sleeps. Every ounce of love, compassion, mercy and all other positive emotions were ripped from him when God cast him out of Heaven. He’s the epitome of hate, lust and murder, and he wants ONE thing:
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy” (John 10:10a, emphasis added).
But you don’t have to be scared! Notice the second half of the verse when Jesus said…
“I have come that they may have life, and have it more abundantly” (John 10:10b, emphasis added).
Jesus wants you to come to Him, pure and simple. It’s really just as easy as this:
God wants to give you life; Satan wants to kill you.
Please note: the devil doesn’t do this in one fell swoop. He doesn’t whisper into the ear of a child, “Take your own life.” He’s no fool, he knows that wouldn’t work. So what does he do? He’ll chip away at our self-esteem, at our hope, at our love, at our mercy, and at everything which brings light into our life, until we have nothing left.
He beats us down and beats us down and beats us down until we either die by our own addictions or at our own hands. As an example of this “spiritual beatdown,” check out this before-and-after picture of me when I was a kid versus a few weeks ago, when I took a picture of one of my KISS shirts, to show it off on Facebook:
I’m not sure what I was laughing at in the picture on the left, but whatever it was, apparently I found it hilarious. Laughter came easy when I was a kid, but that was before I was molested, bullied, began having chronic pain and then depression problems, attempted suicide, had two back surgeries and slowly watched my chronic pain issues get worse and worse. Now I barely sleep, and am in pain 24/7. My pain is like a prison, which exacerbates the depression.
Satan has slowly chipped away at my health and, lately, my sanity, to where I don’t feel there’s much left. That smile you see on the right? It’s forced, as are many of my smiles. The only ones which seem to come natural these days are the ones when I’m with my family:
Those smiles when I’m with family are genuine, which is why, even as an introvert who craves time alone, I try not to spend too much time by myself. The devil has tried to take my joy, my very life away, just as he has your life, but we’re still fighting him. With God’s help, we must never stop fighting this murderous, vile spirit!
Jesus said, “(Satan) was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44b).
Don’t just take my word for it. Check out the “grid pics” I created below, with before-and-after pictures of celebrities who were once full of joy and life. After many years of being beaten down, however, they looked so exhausted, so defeated, and eventually either took their own lives, or died from their own addictions.
Satan beat these people down until they had nothing left. I don’t write this to depress you, but rather, to make you think! I want you to ask yourself:
“What have I allowed the devil to take from me? Joy? Sparkle? Laughter? Fun hobbies? Happiness? Zest for life?”
It’s happened to all of us, believe me, but here’s the good news:
Just as Hell, the devil and his fallen angels are real, so are Jesus, Heaven and our chance to spend eternity there with Him. We know from Revelation 20:10 that Satan will be permanently defeated someday:
“Then the devil, who had deceived them, was thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur, joining the beast and the false prophet. There they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Revelation 20:10).
Romans 16:20 says, “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” We also know you can, through the power of Jesus Christ, defeat the enemy of our soul:
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes” (Ephesians 6:10-11).
We know you don’t have to be scared of defeat: “But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one” (2 Thessalonians 3:3).
We also find this promise of Satan’s defeat in our personal lives in James 4:7:
“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (emphasis added).
We’re also told Jesus has rescued us from darkness and brought us into light:
“For He (God) has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of His dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins” (Colossians 1:13-14).
The verse below admits we will have troubles in this world, but gives us a wonderful promise to hold onto:
“I (Jesus) have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
Satan might have taken much from you, but just the fact that you’re reading this means you’re alive. As long as you’re breathing, there’s still hope. Now, I hope not too many are offended by this, but I’m not saying you should spend 10 hours a day in prayer and Bible reading. That’s not practical for the majority of us.
Yes, it’s vital you grow closer to Christ, but look to the practical side of things as well. Get out and do what makes you happy! Softball, cat-sitting, movies, dancing, whatever. Go visit someone you haven’t seen in a while, or ask them over for tea and crumpets (or in my case, Chinese take-out and a Batman movie).
Don’t let the devil take any more of your joy, laughter or hope! Stand up to him in the name of Jesus! He trembles at that Name, so you’re safe in the Lord’s hands. Alone, you’re ripe for the pickin’, but when God has your back, you may get knocked down, but you’re never out.
Praying for you! Love you guys. Blessings.
Broken People 
True exhortation
LikeLiked by 1 person