"Are you being used?" Devotional for June - Week Four

Have you ever been frustrated? Annoyed? Angry? If you have a beating pulse and a warm body, of course you have! Any way you word it, we have all been through times of discouragement.

See, the devil can use people the same way that God can use people. There are key differences, obviously:

The devil will use people to disturb other people. He clearly wants to shake the faith of the followers of the Lord.

Meanwhile, God will use people to lift up other people. He clearly wants to create, restore, and inspire followers.

The question remains however, "Are you being used?" And a follow-up should read: "By whom?"

It's not just those that belong in the so-called "Church of Satan" cult are the only people the devil will use for his deeds. Whether we know it or not, the devil can get under our skin and use us to get under someone elses' skin. We are not under his control as Christians (for we belong to the Lord), but the devil, knowing full well about our imperfect nature, most certainly can point us in the wrong direction, letting us make the mistake.

We've all done it before... waited in lines! You're might be at a grocery store, and the new teenage cashier trainee miscounts the money she was given and the line gets backed up. That frustration builds up inside of you and you repress it and try and make a good situation out of the whole thing by encouraging them. Or, you let it out and fuss, essentially bringing the cashier to tears.

My "thorn in the flesh" might be bad traffic. I frequently catch myself griping about those idiot drivers around me. If you cut me off, then don't be surprised to see me in your rearview mirror shouting and carrying on about what just happened.

The fact remains is that none of us are perfect, but all of us can act better. In today's fast-paced world of high-speed internet, drive-thru windows, cell phones, and the like... we have become more impatient and intolerant. Satan uses this way of life to his advantage. How can we fight back?

By staying faithful to the Lord wherever we go. Whatever happens, let us not give in to our emotions (often stroked by the devil), but instead let us worship God by reacting to others in love, kindness, and charity!

We can look at the Book of Job for an example. Job was a man of deep faith. God allowed Satan to take everything he held dear away from him: his family, personal health, property, etc., all gone! Now Job could have easily thrown in the towel and cursed God, just as Satan was hoping he would do, but it didn't happen! Instead we read an inspiring story of faith triumphing over anguish... or in simpler terms, good winning against evil.

But let's look at what I believe is one of the key verses in the book:

Job 2: 3 Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil. And he still maintains his integrity, though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason."

Now substitute your name for Job's. I would love for God to speak of me the same way, wouldn't you? God thought so much of Job and knew that his faith was built up to endure anything thrown at him. For this, God used Jacob in a mighty way! We should aspire to be in God's favor like that!

You would be surprised by how many situations that turn bad quickly, could have gone the other way had we just been mindful of how God wants to use us!

Amen!

Wonderful devotional Brother Chris! We should always seek God's ways and ask Him to renew a right spirit in us!