Lions, Teams, Battles, Oh My!
My Rowland loves animals! National Geographic, all of those beautiful yet boring Netflix nature shows, all of them can keep his attention for hours. Animals are his thing. The only person who could match him with his animal facts may be Eli Gannon with his dinosaur facts. We watched a lion show the other day on the couch together, and I couldn't help but watch his reactions. The lion was in hiding. The lion was quiet. The prey had no idea the lion was there. The sounds in the bushes that lured the prey didn't phase the prey and it thought nothing of it. No preparation. No knowledge. My Row wasn't scared because he knew what was coming. He also wasn't scared because he knew that the lion couldn't touch him personally.
Have you ever felt like no matter where you turned, another problem, issue, or confrontation arose? If you don't feel that way now, it is likely you have felt that way or will soon. The last few months in the world around me all of this has been evident. I have watched friends struggle and family members try to start over. There has been world chaos and destruction one event after another. Satan is alive, and he is so real. He always has been. I think sometimes we believe that if we don't see a little guy with a pitchfork or experience a huge travesty, that he isn't active in our lives. The Bible tells us that our enemy is crouching around just like a lion looking for someone to devour. Just like that nature show, we are the prey. He's quiet and stealthy.
But it isn't all doom and gloom! Just as the ladies have been talking about on Wednesday night, understanding that our battle isn't against each other but against Satan is key. Sometimes we lose sight of that and reconciliation and peace are more difficult. And understand, just as we all are reminded as Easter approaches, God wins! We shouldn't be scared because we have assurance of the end result. We must understand that Satan is active and be prepared and on guard. We must pray for each other and we must lift one another up.
Our children at church know the real reason for Easter. They are so very smart! When I asked them why Jesus had to die, the answers varied. I got every-thing from "to save us" "to win the battle" "so that we can live with Him forever" "because we had sinned". All of this is true. But rejoice and take courage that the battle has been won. He did rise on the third day and astonished the world. Satan has no hold on Him. We are all on the same team, and what a blessing to know that we have won!
“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wicked-ness in high places.”