Day 341--A Loud No...A Quiet Yes
2009-02-28

It's Saturday morning, and I'm up pretty early for me. I guess I slept too much on Friday during the day. I did sleep longer than I intended to.


Strangely, today's prayer for the President is the same as yesterday's. I guess they forgot to update or something. So...I'll post a pray request from the mainPresidential Prayer Team web site.

Give thanks for President Obama�s message Tuesday night, asking that God will continue to guide our nation and her leaders, uniting us to serve His purposes and will. Pray for the effective implementation of those initiatives he announced regarding energy, healthcare reform and education, asking God�s wisdom and guidance on those who will work on these areas. As the President has called for a recovery that will arise, in part, from the strength and resourcefulness of the American people, pray for God�s help, that we may regain hope and work together.

I get a weekly update from the site that includes many prayer requests. It always updates on Thursday.



Psalm for Today: 19:7

The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul;
the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple;

"It is doubtless true, that if we were not very dull and stupid, the signatures and proofs of Deity which are to be found on the theatre of the world, are abundant enough, to incite us to acknowledge and reverence God; but as, although surrounded with so clear a light, we are nevertheless blind. This splendid representation of the glory of God, without the aid of the word, would profit us nothing, although it should be to us as a loud and distinct proclamation sounding in our ears. Accordingly, God vouchsafes to those whom he has determined to call to salvation, special grace, just as in ancient times, while he gave to all men without exception evidences of his existence in his works, he communicated to the children of Abraham alone his Law, thereby to furnish them with a more certain and intimate knowledge of his majesty."

(Commentary from Heart Aflame: Daily Readings from Calvin on the Psalms)



Day 341 in The Message//Remix:Solo

James 4:7-10

This is an interesting passage of contrasts. So much so, that the book suggests, after the initial reading, reading every other sentence, then going back and reading the other sentences. Here's how that would look.

So let God work his will in you. Say a quiet yes to God and he'll be there in no time. Purify your inner life. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. Get serious, really serious.

And then...

Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Quit dabbling in sin. Quit playing the field. The fun and games are over. Get down on your knees before the Master; it's the only way you'll get on your feet.

Very interesting.

There are two usual ways that people think of Satan. A lot of people (and I see this, much to my dismay, especially in Christians) give him way too much credit. Every time something "bad" happens to them, Satan is harrassing them. There are several problems with this way of thinking. First, the devil is not omnipresent. He is a finite being and can only be one place at a time. Therefore, you would need to be pretty darned important for him to be messing with you personally. Right? Second, the devil is not omniscient. He does not know everything. He cannot read our minds. Did you know that? I don't believe for a minute that Satan can know what we are thinking. (I could be wrong, but I see no Scriptural evidence to back up that idea.) And third, the devil is not omnipotent. He is not "all-powerful." Again. He is finite.

But there are other people who go to far the other way. They don't give him enough credit. He is active, and this passage in James indicates that by telling us to resist him. If we, in Jesus's power, simply say "no" to him, he will flee. Oh, you can be sure he will be back (or one of his "minions," more likely), but we can make him "scamper."

How have we seen Satan work to our own destruction? Or maybe to destroy those around us? I know that I have fallen into traps laid by Satan (keep in mind when I say that "Satan" laid a trap for me, I'm simply referring to his "company;" I'm relatively certain that Satan, himself, has never messed with me, personally) that have almost destroyed my family. Heck, they almost destroyed my life. Had it not been for the hand of God on my life, I would certainly be long dead by now. I have seen friends of mine grow cold in their faith. Several of them have been distracted by some temptation or device that Satan placed in their way. One friend's marriage finally disintegrated. The last time I spoke with him, his faith was pretty much shattered.

All of these things can be avoided, if we simply heed God's word to us. But, as we all know, Nancy Reagan's slogan is not as simple as it sounds. "Just Say No." Obviously, Nancy Reagan was never addicted to something. Nevertheless, we can reach a point where we can "yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper."

But what do we do then? After we yell that "no" to Satan, we "say a quiet yes to God and he'll be there in no time." It's not enough to just say "no" to the devil. We must, in turn, say "yes" to God. Have you ever done that? Have you experienced the release that comes with saying "yes" to God? It's pretty amazing.

I especially like the contrast of the last sentence in this passage. "Get down on your knees before the Master; it's the only way you'll get on your feet." It's true. If we have hit bottom, the only way to get back up is to get on our knees (or even our face) before God.



Father, there have been many times in my life where I have neglected to yell no to Satan. I have paid dearly, both physically and spiritually, for those times. But you are teaching me. You are strengthening me. I am finding it easier to depend on your power. I pray for your continued strength to say "no" when necessary, and then to say "yes" to you. As I fall more in love with the Scriptures, let that simply be a part of my everyday existence, saying "yes" to you every step of the way. Help me to rest in your promises.


God has power in our lives over Satan. We need to remember that. We are not powerless over him! Remember that Jesus Christ has already won the war. We may not see that final result yet, but we have confidence that this is truth.

Carpe vita eternus, friends!



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