He
Comes to…Steal *
The thief comes only to steal…
John 10:10
Sitting in his tree stand for an
afternoon bowhunt, the hunter watched as the squirrel scurried from
one place to another, looking for acorns. Each time he found a nut
the squirrel would place it in his mouth while he dug a hole, then he
would bury it with the intention of digging it up when food became
scarce during the late-winter months.
For hours, the squirrel diligently
hunted and gathered so that he might have food stored against times
of need. As sunset approached the squirrel climbed his den tree and
settled into his nest for the night, no doubt satisfied with the work
he’d accomplished.
As the hunter continued to watch, he
noticed an animal slinking along in the gathering darkness. As it
drew closer he realized it was an opossum. He watched as the
scavenger went from one cache to another, digging up the squirrel’s
acorns and eating them. In less than half the time it had taken the
squirrel to find and bury the nuts the opossum had found and eaten
every one. And then off he plodded…his belly full of someone else’s
provisions.
†
The opossum is a natural-born thief.
He, like Satan, steals what rightfully belongs to others. The big
difference is Satan knows better, and does it anyway. As a matter of
fact, scripture says he looks for opportunities to steal everything
we have. He is especially keen on stealing the promises of God.
One example would be when he sends the
spirit of confusion to steal God’s word as we read our Bible,
attempting to keep us from gaining strength through understanding. In
this we must be deliberate, asking God to open the scriptures to us,
and then planting it deep in our heart by meditating on what He shows
us.
We must be tenacious in hanging on to
the things God gives us. Knowing the enemy is coming to steal gives
us power. With such knowledge we can take action.
Prayer
“Holy Spirit, Help me
remain vigilant. Please alert me when the enemy is attempting to
steal something from me so I can be ready to take authority over his
actions, in Jesus’ Name. Show me how to derail his attempts.
Amen!”
*Today’s devotion was
inspired by Dan & Nancy Dick, authors of Wisdom From The Bible,
©1986 Barbour and Company, Inc.
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