So the problem with declaring that you
are going after the devil with full intentions of kicking his a** and
doing so in front of all ten of the people that read your blog is
that then you kind of have to........a-hem......do something. Like go after
the devil and kick his a**. Or you look sort of dumb.
I made that grand declaration here: Reintjes Chronicles - 2048 Days
After I hit publish on that blog post
and had time to think about my little tirade, I may have had second
thoughts and wanted to delete it. But I figured that by the time I
did, maybe two people would have taken time out of their days to read
it and then I was already accountable to them. Damn.
It has been a few days and I haven't
dethroned satan yet, but I am taking the threat seriously. So, step
one. I went to church, after I hadn't had the energy to go in a long
time. And lo and behold if the sermon wasn't about kicking the devil
in the a**. Huh. (Well, maybe it wasn't worded exactly like that,
but totally the same idea.)
And then I was gifted a very
encouraging conversation. And then I went for prayer and just said,
“I am not sure what I need prayer about.” And then proceeded to
receive prayer for a new “mission”. Then as we were leaving, my
husband reminded me of a conversation that I had wanted to have a few
months ago with our youth Pastor. So I went and had the
conversation, and the youth Pastor's response? “I've been praying
for someone to ask me that question.” Huh.
So, that is probably the most
instantaneous resolution of one of my little fits of spiritual crazy
that I have ever experienced. Take that devil.
So now I feel like I have to explain
why I seem obsessed with the devil. As that might be a little
concerning to some people. Firstly, I would like to mention a fact
that was mentioned in the sermon last night and that I have felt in
my spirit to be true since I started understanding I had a spirit.
The most effective scheme the enemy has
right now for a culture such as ours is to lull us into a false sense
of security and spiritual dullness and to MAKE US BELIEVE HE DOESN'T
ACTUALLY EXIST. After all, if we are just going with his program and
not causing any waves, our days will pass and before we know it, they
are over and we wake up and realize what we have missed.
Secondly, I grew up in a violent,
alcoholic home. I made stupid choices as a teenager that put me
smack dab in the middle of the kingdom of darkness – even though I
knew they were stupid choices. At least one of those choices almost
cost me my life. I did not know Him at the time, but He knew me.
And He saved me from my own stupidity.
The topic being discussed at the first
home group I ever attended happened to be, “satan and spiritual
warfare”. Interesting. You don't normally start “newbies” off
with that particular topic. But my spiritual mentors at the time did
not mess around and thank goodness they did not. When I heard about
the kingdom of darkness, bells went off, flood lights snapped on, and
my whole entire existence suddenly made sense.
I had an enemy and he had been after me
my whole life. It made more sense than anything else had ever made.
Wisely, after providing me with this
revelation, my mentor explained that Jesus was the answer to the
meddler. If you picked God's team, the devil was likely to lose
against you every time. It seemed like a no-brainer to me, I picked
the right team.
In the 20 or so years since that home
group, I have been given ample opportunities to experience the loving
side of God and the people He calls His. He is always my main focus.
But the part of me that usually rises up in any sort of spiritual
situation is the one that wants to kick the enemy's a**. I think
that is the part of Jesus that was destined to crush the serpent's
head, the part of Jesus who returns and “treads the winepress of
the fury of the wrath of God Almighty”.
There is not much gentle
about that Jesus, that is a warrior Jesus.
