Hope for the One in the Midst of Satan’s Attacks
I'm so excited to welcome Natalie from Milk & Honey Faith for Week 3 of the Sunshine & Scripture Tour!
Natalie's writing has inspired and encouraged me to stand strong in my faith, to cultivate integrity and to love boldly as God has called us to. She writes with such vulnerability and wisdom and today's post is a powerful example.
Today's post is packed with truth that will encourage you to stand up in your faith! Recognizing who is behind the attacks on your life and how you can stand up against the Enemy is just the first step that Natalie shares so beautifully here.
Do you ever feel like you are in the middle of a battle that you can’t seem to win? Do the hits just keep coming? I’ve been there too.
It’s a spiritual attack and it’s unrelenting, yet God says not to be surprised at the fiery trials we are going through, but to be glad. That is a hard pill to swallow when you are in the midst of hardship. Let’s explore what our good Lord means by this and how we can get geared up for battle. Join me as we examine this topic in my series on Spiritual Warfare. We will be discussing different aspects of this subject in three separate posts.
- When you are under spiritual attack
- Your battle plan
- The Victory is His
When You are Under Attack
If you asked me to take a look back at my life and tell you which year had been the most difficult up to this point, I’d say it was this past year, 2016. Last year made all others pale in comparison and I don’t think that it is a coincidence that it happened to be the same year I started blogging. I believe I have fallen victim to a long series of spiritual attacks which were in direct correlation to me stepping out in obedience. It was a year of surrender and trust when so many things were looking hopeless. It’s when God’s word began living and breathing inside me. His truth blasted all the whispers of the enemy aside and I learned to live in freedom. This didn’t come easy.
The attacks have come from so many directions that it has been a whirlwind.
They have been too countless to keep track of and yet not enough to take me out. I’m still standing because my Lord has been my refuge. Time and time again He has bailed me out. He provided peace when there was nothing but chaos. He lavished me with calmness when everything in me was screaming “go ahead and lose it”.
His strength got me through when I was too weak and He remained strong when I wasn’t. He will do the same for you.
Job’s Battle
I want to visit a story in the bible about a man named Job. The word says Job was a blameless man who was of complete integrity. He was one who feared God and stayed away from evil. This is important to remember and I’ll be explaining why soon enough.
Job fought a battle that I would never want to call my own. The devil himself was given permission by God to strip Job of his family, health, and possessions. That would have been too much for anyone to bear and yet the word says that Job did not sin by blaming God. What really struck me is that when Job was given the horrific news about his family he fell down, worshiped God, and praised His name.
The Devil’s entire purpose was to utterly destroy Job through this testing but Job prevailed because his faith did not waiver. Job’s own wife suggested that he curse God and die and yet his integrity and faith remained intact.
Satan’s attack came blow after blow. Each deafening slap was enough to take anyone out but Job still stood for God and God never left Job’s side. Just as God was at his side, He is also at ours.
Satan is A Roaring Lion
The devil doesn’t want us to prevail and nothing would make him more happy than to drag us to the fiery pit with himself. With that being said, his attacks will hurt and he will strike when you are tired and weary. His goal is to get you to curse God, renounce your faith, and walk in darkness. It is said that misery loves company, so I believe that the culprit himself wants us to share in his misery.
More often than not, when the spiritual attacks have been at their worst in my life, they have come in succession and at a point when I was weakest. This makes sense since an enemy attacks his foe when he is easiest to defeat.
Have you ever watched a documentary about animals in the wild? My Father is quite the National Geographic enthusiast so I’m afraid that I’ve seen more than my fair share of these types of videos. When there was a lion getting ready to attack his prey, you did’t see him aiming for the strongest and quickest. You saw him waiting for the injured and weak.
“Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” -1 Peter 5:8 NLT
Satan’s Strategies
The Devil is no doubt sneaky and conniving, but he definitely has some tactics that we need to be aware of. He will hit you where it hurts and aim right for your weak spots. Let’s discuss some of the strategies he has been using since the days of old.
- He Uses Mindgames – When Satan entered the scene as a slimy serpent in the book of Genesis, one of the first strategies he used against Eve was to have her question God’s commands. He twisted words around so that she would second guess what she had actually heard God say. So much so, that she doubted and was then convinced by a lie (Genesis 3). He is the author of confusion.
- He is the Accuser – Satan loves to play the blame game and point his fingers. His whispers are lies to us about how we are unworthy, unforgiven, ugly, rotten, and failures. He will also cause us to believe wrong things about others making us the accuser or the victims of accusation. This causes division and strife among family, friends, and co-workers in your job and ministry.
- He brings Disaster – Satan is the creator of chaos. Whether natural or with element, he seeks to destroy all that is good. His powers bring calamity, fear, and devastation.
- He attacks your Health – He can strike with sudden pain and infirmity that cause fatigue and weariness. Attacking your health is a way for him to get you to question God’s goodness.
- He is the Tempter – He will entice you with things from the world so that you may walk in darkness and compromise.
Satan Has An Army
The enemy does not work alone. In fact, throughout the bible we can read that demons possessed many. They are still very much a part of this world as they were before and needless to say, they don’t stop to rest. Their game plan is the same as their leader’s…to take you out.
“For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.”
Ephesians 6:12 NLT
No Need To Fear
Although the enemy uses very real tactics to try and divert us from the path, our God is mighty and fierce.
In my next post in the series we will be going over some sure fire ways to expel the attacks and protect our hearts in the process. The battle isn’t over yet, it’s only beginning. It’s time for us to be geared up and ready for the spiritual war.
Be sure to read Part Two of the series “The Battle Plan”
and finish up with Part Three of the series “The Victory is His”.
[bctt tweet="Although the enemy uses very real tactics to try and divert us from the path, our God is mighty and fierce. " username="NicoleAKauffman"]
Meet Natalie:
Please make sure you visit all 5 bloggers in the Tour...
Sue | Mama of Three Boys Dani | Living Free Indeed
Nicole | Courage. Hope. Love. Julie | Unmasking The Mess
Natalie | Milk and Honey Faith
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This was an amazing overview, Natalie. Satan is so sneaky and we don’t talk about this enough.
I have been under attack and all i can do is pray and stay hopeful! these times will pass soon enough. great article!
Thank you, Natalie! So timely and relevant is this post! Hugs!
Powerful post! So much truth here and I can testify to this because I have faced those battles recently. Even though my faith was rocked God proved faithful! Thanks for a great encouraging share Natalie!
Great post! Satan does enjoying attacking you when you least expect it! So glad God has my back.
Such a good post, Natalie. Glad to see you on Nicole’s blog. Sharing widely!
I love that this is a series. Satan is a sly attacker, so knowing how he attacks is helpful! Clicking over to read the rest…
Great post from Natalie as always! Satan is a master at mind games for sure…that is typically how he hits me when he attacks. Praise God we already have the victory! Thank you for sharing this!!
I’ve definitely felt under attack lately, especially in my marriage. This was a great and helpful post! Looking forward to reading your next one!