OBEDIENCE OVER TEMPTATION

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

^1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

A little FACEBOOK post from a friend yesterday…

THANK YOU GOD!!!!!!!! MY PRAYER HAS BEEN ANSWERED !! THE DEVIL WAS WORKING OVERTIME AS I WAS ON MY WAY TO MY BLESSING...MY GOD WAS THERE TO GUIDE MY EVERY STEP AND I AM GRATEFUL !

There is quite the story behind this little exhortation. I may share it down the road with the author’s approval. In short, my friend got a first-hand, front row seat to this truth yesterday. So did I!

Ephesians 6:12

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

She spent about an hour smack dab in the middle of an attack from these spiritual forces and she passed the test and emerged blessed and rewarded!

She recognized temptation. She recognized its source. She weighed the consequences and she chose wisely.

SHE CHOSE OBEDIENCE!

We all face it; all day long in all sorts of shapes and sizes; sexual temptation, addiction temptation, gossip opportunities, irritations that lead to anger. The enemy gets up early and stays up late laying challenge after challenge, obstacle after obstacle and trap after trap all in his quest to separate us from our blessings, provision and closeness with GOD.

And while each of us is vulnerable (I know I am), we don’t have to yield to temptation. We can face the enemy and look him dead in the eye and turn him away because we who believe have God’s Spirit living within them–a force that is much more powerful than any attack from the tempter’s hands.

James 4:7

So let God (and HIS SPIRIT) work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper…

1 John 4:4

That’s because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

And scamper he will, just as he did with my FACEBOOK compadre’yesterday.

So like her, we all have a choice. We can say no! And GOD loves it when we do!

Deuteronomy 28:2

If you will obey the Lord your God, all these blessings will come to you and be yours:

Let's never forget that these temptations are opportunities for obedience. And as we can clearly see, obedience leads to blessing.

Today, JOIN ME (because I can certainly use it) in prayer that we would be made sensitive to God’s Spirit whenever we feel the attack of the enemy threatening. Pray that we realize there is a learning process involved in obedience. One my friend experienced first hand!

And like her, this is how we grow and learn to avoid the enemy’s traps and schemes set for us even today.

...blessings will come to you and be yours:

I love you all!

Freedom Church

Pastor GDelaney