Daily Jewel

by Pastor Carnell, McAlester, OK
March 22, 2012

“Fending Off Attacks!” (Part One)
“Above all else, guard your heart….it is the wellspring of life.” – Proverbs 4:23

For the past three days I shared a modern day parable called “The Sea Lion who Lost the Sea.” If you missed any of the three segments please let me know and I will email the entire parable. It is an incredible description of what can happen if or when a person allows the wrong elements to enter into the deepest part of lives—stealing the passion to love and serve Christ. The idea behind the parable is to provide a vivid “word picture” of the fact that our heart and life are intended to belong to God. We were created to worship Him, serve Him and love Him.
A great “Biblical” example is provided by the Apostle Paul from his letter to the Church in Ephesus. Here is the scene: He is sitting in a prison cell in Rome, courtesy of the Roman Government—just across from him is a fully dressed Roman soldier assigned to him (which would have been customary for political prisoners). As he is writing his letter the thought comes to his mind that just as that soldier is equipped with armor to protect him against his enemy, God has provided Christians with “Spiritual” armor that we need to use to protect us from assaults that the enemy of our souls throws our way.
According to historians, even though they did not create body armor—the Romans certainly did their part to perfect it. Their soldiers were without question the best equipped of any army of their day. One of those pieces of armor he mentions is the “Breastplate of Righteousness.” The breastplate covered the entire chest area, which of course would include the heart! Maybe thinking out loud—Paul is saying that because the enemy is so strong…you need to do your best to guard one of the most precious places in your life…your heart, which include your passions.
There are a number of “weapons” that the devil has at his disposal—weapons intended to discourage us just enough to get us to “drop our guard” and allow him to pierce our heart and steal our passion to serve God and do what is right (ergo: the Breastplate of righteousness.) Now…most of those reading this message can say with a very strong degree of certainty—they are “safe” here because they are careful not to fall into the devil’s snare and “sin the big sins!” We don’t murder, steal, commit adultery, use the Lord’s name in vain…etc. Others are careful not allow bitterness to fester, they do not gossip, do not worship other gods, honor their parents...they are good, godly people.
But just as in war—there are a host of weapons that can be used to destruct and destroy…So do not be deceived—we can fall prey in a number of other ways and it is for that very reason that we must always be on our guard. There are a host of some very useful and destructive weapons we need to guard against. They are what I would call “The Passion-Thieves!” Very subtle elements that the devil is able to slip into our lives with the intent to not only lead us “away from the sea,” (away from God), but convince us that we are fine without Him. That, my friends is why we must always be on our guard!
Here are just a sample of these thieves, the enemies weapons he uses to kill our passion for both serving God and living life: Complacency, Mediocrity, Apathy, Busyness, Fatigue, and Blame.
Over the next several days I would like to discuss each of these in a bit more detail with the intent of helping everyone to know what to look for as you face your daily battles. Remember, the devil knows he cannot win the big fights so he will simply use guerilla warfare to fulfill his design to distract and destroy! So friends—be on your guard!
Pastor J. T. Carnell