Banging On Doors

“…how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man?  Then he can rob his house.” Matthew 12:26

Growing up in the country I always felt a sense of safety and security.  We lived in the middle of five acres with few houses in our community.  When I married Bruce, I moved into his home which was in the middle of six acres with very few neighbors.  Moving into my new life with him felt like going home.  I felt a continued sense of safety and security and most times I never locked our front door.  I would leave and return many times throughout the day and never think twice about walking into an unlocked home.  When Bruce began traveling with work the days turned to nights and still the doors remained unlocked until bedtime.  Thankfully and by the grace of God, I never experienced any break-ins or robberies.  Now that I have gotten older and more mature, I realize how I had left myself vulnerable for unnecessary peril and dangerous situations.

In our spiritual lives the entrance to our heart is no different.  If we leave the doors unchecked we become vulnerable to Satan’s invasion.  If we allow the windows of fear to remain open, Satan will climb in and rob us of our peace.  He will ransack our faith, opening memories of past failures and fears taking us hostage in our heart.  If we do not check the locks on every emotion daily we run the risk of being bound up and tied to them forever.  We must be a watchman over our heart and look for what God says in every situation.

“This is what the Lord says to me:  ‘Go, post a lookout...’ ‘Day after day, my Lord, I stand on the watchtower’” Isaiah 21:6, 8.

1 Peter 5:8 warns us that we are to be alert to Satan’s attacks through the self-controlled actions of our daily walk.  As we meditate on God’s word, the door slams shut.  As we enter into intimate fellowship with God, the bolt slides over.  As we surrender our emotions and disappointments to the Father, the windows of our heart become fortified with bars.  We will see Satan running feverishly around the house, trying windows and banging on doors…sorry, no invitation…no entry.   The next time Satan thinks of attacking our home he will have to work for it – no more waltzing through the front door with no effort.