Did you ever watch “Alice in Wonderland,” of maybe read the book? There is an evil character in that story, the queen of hearts, that likes to scream “Off with their heads!” I think she got that idea from Satan. He wants to separate us from our Head. The bible is clear, we are the body of Christ and He is the Head, (I Corinthians 12.) God’s word is also clear about the fact that He will never leave us nor forsake us, and that nothing can separate us from His love. Our enemy cannot “be-head” us. He, Jesus, will not allow Himself to be separated from the body, so, Satan has to get us away from our Head. Does that make sense?

How does he do that? He has several tactics, none of them new. One is distraction. He will bring everything, including the kitchen sink, against us. We tend to get our minds fixed on our problems and not on God and His solution. We fight that by rebuking our enemy and his plans against us, and speaking God’s word over our situation. Another ploy is to get us in discord or dis-unity with those around us, our family, friends, and our church family. We get so caught up in the drama that we lose sight of God’s purpose, His vision, in our lives. It can destroy a marriage and a church. We combat that by not listening to gossip, not spreading lies, and by building strong, healthy, Godly relationships. When people know us, they won’t believe any lie that is spoken by others about us. If you hear something that is untrue don’t repeat it, and don’t allow it to continue. Call the person who is gossiping on it! If needed go to the elders of the church. Promote unity! Pray for God to bind us together with bonds of peace and with love. Satan is the liar, have no part in his ways.

This one is a favorite of our enemy; he tries to convince us that God is keeping something from us, or that we have to work to receive from our Father. That’s the original lie that Adam and Eve believed. We wear ourselves out trying to get, earn, rob, grab, acquire, obtain, something that God, in His love, just wants to give us! Sounds pretty crazy, but I’ve bought into that one more than once, thinking the doctor could heal, the bank could bail me out, that the grass was greener… Don’t buy into that lie. God is good, He wants to bless you abundantly, and His gifts are free. They were already paid for by the shed blood of Jesus.

We don’t live in a fairy tale, and out enemy isn’t a misguided, misplaced card out of some strange deck. Our enemy is real, and we are cautioned not to be ignorant of his devices.

II Corinthians 2:11 (God’s Word Translation), “I don’t want Satan to outwit us. After all, we are not ignorant about Satan’s scheming.”

I Peter 5:8 (NIV), “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”

Did you catch that part, Who he may devour? We don’t have to let him!