We've all had those moments--you know, when things are good pretty well. The wife is happy. The kids have good grades. The money is rolling in. You get the new promotion. You lose weight and can fit into a size of pants that you haven't been able to since high school. You have a comfortable home. You get to travel. You feel blessed. You feel loved.
The old metaphor of our life being a roller coaster is realistic. There are ups and there are downs. However, how come it is only the "downs" that cause us to sit back and evaluate? It is normally the difficult, challenging, and sometimes horrifying moments in our life that lead us to make changes and seek God's help.
When it comes to spiritual warfare, we may only think or feel like we are under attack when things are going badly. During the good times, it's easy to take over the wheel. We may not say such things out loud or even in our head, but truthfully we sometimes get comfortable and say, "Thanks God! I've got this now." I am convinced that this is a time in which we can be extremely vulnerable. Its like a sneak attack. In the Army, we are always told to be "alert" and "on guard". As Soldiers, we aren't ever supposed to "be too comfortable". The same should be said for Christ-followers.
"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." 1 Peter 5:8
"Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints." Ephesians 6:18
In my book, The Chaser, most of the main characters are troubled. They all are wrestling with things in their lives that have deeply impacted and hurt them. (SPOILERS AHEAD!!) Dexter watched his father commit suicide. Jennifer was sexually abused as a child. David was a Soldier that watched his buddies get blown up in an explosion. Julius, for a long time, had no idea what was so deeply troubling him. Turns out, Julius had watched the horrific death of his twin brother. The spiritual warfare wreaking havoc in their lives was many times clear and evident. However, there was a character that never spoke of any heartache or tragedy occurring in his life. This character was Randy Baker, Julius' best friend. Now, just because we never read much of Randy's backstory doesn't mean that he didn't have his share of bad days. But, for the most part, Randy's life trajectory constantly seems to be on the up and up in The Chaser.
When the story begins, Randy is single. Randy meets the girl of his dreams, Anna. Randy and Anna begin to date. Things start to get better when Randy lands a new job, one that he will be able to advance in after graduation. Everything is falling into place for Randy. By the end of the book he is considering marriage. All is grand! The end and happily ever after.
BUT!!!!!!!
Here is the rest of the story....well, not really. However, I want to pose a hypothetical. What if during all of this "good" time in Randy's life, that is when Satan started doing the most damage? Perhaps its like the king admiring his beautiful castle walls that are impenetrable. While he's basking in the glory, the enemy is secretly building a tunnel that leads right into his private chambers.
I want to pose to you that our enemy is battling us hard during the "good" times. In scripture, Adam and Eve lived amongst perfection! Remember what happened? The enemy tempted them and led them to destruction. All for what? A piece of fruit!?
This will be the first of "The Randy Effect" posts. Coming next, I will write a small story about what happens to Randy after the events of The Chaser. Now, the story I'm going to write is NOT A SEQUEL. In fact, let's just say that it's not real...even fictional real (if that makes sense). The story is just a hypothetical. I want to write it to examine how the enemy battles us during the "good" times in our lives. I will follow that up with a third post about what we can be doing to guard against the enemy at ALL TIMES!
Pick up or download a copy of The Chaser....
