[Satans A-game (conviction part 1)] -The Gospel

 When I think of satan tempting us, I think of him having all these sins and idols at his disposal. Day to day he throws one of the other at us, and we catch them, like dogs playing fetch. Well, in this section of the book, we get to look at this a whole new way. He does tempt us with idols and bad lifestyles, but he has something more subtle that he uses.
  Do you know who loves to push us to evaluate ourselves according to how well we've done? Our enemy, Satan. Satan, believe it or not, loves to convict us of our sins. That;s one of his names--"accuser of our brethren" (Rev. 12:10 nkjv). One of Sata's most effective weapons, I believe is making us forget the identity the Father has declared over us in Christ and basing our sense of approval on how well we've done.
  I didn't expect that coming. Immediately I did a self scan and thought of all the times that I had been convicted and tried to judge which ones were God grace and which one's were satans triumph. I think we all should do a self-scan, because we don't realize what we do. It's like being a major in evolution and you switch over to God's side of science because of something you found. Although you know that God's way is now right, whenever someone mentions something your brain immediately goes to evolution. That's just a small peak at what are brains are actually hard-wired to do. Most likely, we've never even thought of conviction any other way than being about God. But no, Satan can convict. And when he does, it's harsh.
   .....Satan's favorites sins: pride and despair. Pride leads to hardness of heart toward God and hatred of others. Despair leads us to depression, fear, and indulgence in the lusts of the flesh. This is a cycle he loves to have us in. Both start with unbelief of the gospel.
    I encourage you to pray today about what you have heard. Let's examine ourselves for pride and despair. I know I was the guilty party in both of those sins. It's just the way we are. But there is always hope in Christ. Pray today to the Maker of Heaven and Earth. Spend time walking with him. When we do, it will start to produce in us a longing for God, and a seed of belief in what he has done for us.

   In Christ there is nothing I can do that would make you love me more, and nothing I have done that makes you love me less. -JD Greear
 
   ~Hannah