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| January 9, 2002 |
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| "Those by the way side are they that hear, then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. But that on good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience." Luke 8:11-15 Our experiences are a lot like the seat belts they use to put on cars some years ago. If we did not fasten them, that infernal buzzer dept annoying us. We knew that the seat belts were not made to hurt us or unneccessarily restrict us. They were there to protect us and keep us safe. And the buzzer was our friend. But instead of doing what we knew was probably best for us, we would stick the belts behind us, fasten them and thus shut off the buzzer that was reminding us to do the safe thing. God's believer's know deep down inside what is right! We should also know that the right thing is the best for us! God coaches us from the inside with His "buzzer," the Holy Spirit, to help us resist temptation. But we often choose to ignore His buzzer and look for ways to shut it off. We totally ignore God's signal and foolishly follow our own. Yet deep within our hearts we know that things usually get messed up when we choose not to listen to Him. We need to understand a little more about how Satan uses temptation and how we can win the battle. An understanding of the kinds of stragedies Satan uses to defeat us can help us overcome temptation. "Wayside" people refuse to believe God's message to them. "Rock" people believe God's message, but never get around to doing anything about it. "Thorn" patch people leave no room for God in their lives, as they worry about materialism. "Good Ground" (soil) people, in contrast to all the above groups, follow Jesus no matter what the cost. Which group of people do you fall in? Think about it. May we always listen for God's "buzzer" throughout our days. He not only warns us, but leads and guides us on good ground! May your day be wonderfully blessed in the Lord. Love in Christ Jesus, Sandy |