Resist
Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Resist the devil - don't give in to his wily schemes and half truths and twisted lies and ridiculousness that is oh so wicked and cunning. Resist him and he will flee - he will leave. He will go back to hell where he belongs. Resist him. Call him out on his loser-status and remember your own victory-status. Resist him - fight back...resist the fear he wants you to be paralyzed by. Resist the chains he's trying to bind you up with. Kick, scream, flail, make a big deal....I don't think it's a passive resisting that's going to do the trick.
Submit yourself to God...that's what comes immediately before the resisting part. Submit yourself to God - put yourself completely and 1000% under God's Authority. It's under His authority (not our own) that we can resist the devil...and the devil will flee. It's not a magic trick. It's a promise.
This feels like a silly story to share - but if I ever find myself feeling a bit frightened (the last time it happened I was walking on our dark driveway), I just act like I'm not frightened. I start smiling and humming a song...I'm not for a second going to let the enemy of my soul know that I'm feeling a bit fearful. He can't read my mind...so he and his horrible demons don't know that I"m feeling scared unless I act scared. If I act brave, he thinks I am brave...and the amazing thing is that I end up feeling brave. I'm not really saying "fake it 'til you make it"....but kind of...in this case, it's my method of resisting. (and I doubt the enemy reads my blog...but if he does, now he knows my trick. I may have to come up with other methods of not feeling afraid of the dark - a flashlight sounds like a good idea.)
Other things I want to resist:
- comparisons
- thinking about what others think
- drinking too many cokes
- eating too many sweets
- getting frustrated
- losing my patience
- complacency/laziness
- feeling sorry for myself
- complaining
- selfishness
