Don't Let the Devil Play You!

Well, I am so grateful that Jesus is seated at the right-hand of God; that He ever lives to make intercession for me and my family. Jesus lives BIG on the inside of me. In this, I know that I am truly blessed of the Lord – blessed and cannot be cursed. Don’t let the devil play you is the title of this blog, and yesterday I let the devil do just that. Ya’ll know I always tell it on myself, but I do this so that the devil can’t hold anything over me. I am not perfect; in fact, nowhere near perfect, but I do strive for perfection in Jesus. All I can say is ♫Please, be patient with me, God is not through with me yet. When God get through with me, I shall come forth as pure gold♫. When I get played by the devil, I simply ask the Lord for forgiveness, and it is put under the Blood. He is faithful and just to forgive us of all of our sins. Now we as Christians do NOT habitually sin, but there are instances where we find ourselves in situations where we allow the devil to play us – just as I did yesterday. My husband was out of town because there was a death in the family, and he went to pay his respects. So I had to pleasure of walking our two grown Dobermans along with my six (6), four (4) and almost two (2) years kiddos. My landlord had stopped by to check on a lock issue and had helped me to bring the dogs in for their walk. It was probably around 10:20AM after their walk, and I let them out on the balcony to eat, as I had promised my neighbor I would do since she’s afraid of the dogs. Well, she failed to mention that she had family down for the July 4th holiday. Her mom stepped out on the balcony, and what do you think my Dobermans did? You are correct; they barked. Of course, she begins to yell, and became belligerent. I started out good, but no one likes being yelled and least of all me. I asked her why she just didn’t let me know she had family over because I would have feed the dogs around their schedules. She knows that I feed the everyday, for her benefit, after 10AM every day. She said she didn’t have to tell me anything. Ok, this is when everything began to go downhill, because I began to raise my voice. After this whole confrontation Proverbs 18:6 comes to mind: The lips of fools bring them strife, and their mouths invite a beating. Now, if this had been somebody other than me, she might have gotten a good beaten. I mean this lady, a grown woman - probably old enough to be my mom, was just yelling and going off. But we, Christians, who name the Name of the Lord, should strive to represent Christ for Christ Jesus is love. I should have just told her that I would bring the dogs in and left it at that, but I let my flesh get the best of me and got played by the devil. Sometimes you have to let argumentative people argue by themselves - I know this. We live too close, townhomes, to have unnecessary strife between us. All of this could have been avoided if she had just let me know she had family over. They had every right to come out onto her balcony, as I have every right to bring my dogs out. But someone has to be the mature one, and in this case neither of us was mature. I did regain composure, and apologized to her mom for the dogs scaring her, but this didn't have to happen; simple communication would have prevented this from happening. James 3:16 states: For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. I told my neighbor that the “deal” of feeding the dogs at 10AM was off, but I’m not going to let the devil play me any further than he already has. I will continue to do this for her. Like I said before, God is love, and He has instructed us in Matthew 5:44 to Love our enemies, bless them that curse us, do good to them that hate us, and pray for them which despitefully use us, and persecute us. This I also know, but I allow the enemy/devil using her to play me, and I am woman enough to admit when I’ve been played. But you know what, I still win in Jesus’ name. I belong to Christ Jesus, and when those trumpets blow, and Jesus says “Come up hither” I will be going up, leaving foolishness and this world behind me. If you can, don’t allow yourself to be drawn into unnecessary strife; be the “bigger person” and walk away. Time is definitely ticking; Jesus will be back before we know it, and the devil is pulling out all the stops to keep us from doing the Word/Will of God in our lives. Look at all the things going on in the world, and all at the same time. Things are getting into place for our Lord Jesus’ return. Don’t let yourself get distracted and don’t let yourself get played – like me : (. Remember there's a sinner's prayer on this site. If you have back-slid or haven't tasted and seen that the Lord is Good, say this prayer. You don't have to be in a church building to receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. There is a moment that will happen, and it will happen in a twinkling of an eye (as fast as you can blink), and those who have confessed Jesus as Lord and have walked according to the Word of God will be raptured up to be with Him forever and ever. Yes, it sounds too fantastical to be real, but don't take the chance that it's not and be left behind. So don't put this off. No one knows the hour or the day when this will take place, but it is for us to be ready when it's time to go. The first step is to receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. If you say this prayer, contact me; let me welcome you and personally encouraged you in your new life with Jesus! Did you put your armor on today??? Be Encouraged Today!!!