Recognizing the Roar

“Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in faith…” 1 Peter 5:8.

I grew up as one of four daughters wherein hormones and emotions were usually the fare of the day. My mother did an awesome job of wading through the demands and arguments of four girls, while my dad seemed unaware of the swirling chaos. He had developed a mode for surviving life with five women – tuning us out during those diva times!

I cannot judge him too harshly since he was one of the most amazing men I have known. In addition, I am also guilty of tuning things out. There are times when the enemy of my soul, Satan, is hurling insults, discouragement and lies to tear me down. You would think that I would recognize the roar but instead they seep into my mind and heart like a gentle whisper. I tune out that he is the originator of everything bad, discouraging and life defeating. After hearing the same roar of lies over and over again, it becomes reduced to a quiet hum. I slowly buy into the lies that he has been chanting into my mind.

We must arm ourselves with awareness of how the enemy tears us down in our thinking. We have to realize that when we feel condemned, Satan is gnawing at us. We must be watchmen over our own thoughts with the help of God. We also have the danger of tuning out the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The day to day circumstances build in crescendo making all kinds of noises, creating the possibility of tuning out the dangers of the enemy or the truths in the Spirit. Through leaning on God and keeping our spiritual radars on the right frequency, we will not tune out the reality of who is speaking to us.

The enemy condemns, the Spirit convicts;
The enemy tears down, the Spirit builds up;
The enemy enslaves, the Spirit liberates;
The enemy kills, the Spirit redeems;
The enemy hates, the Spirit loves.

Let us tune our ears to the Spirit.