Stand up to the Devil

"For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not, 

from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have."  --Mark 4:25

     A lot of things in life are affected by the snowball effect.  The rich seem to get richer; the famous get more fame.  And the talented get more opportunities to increase their talent.  This is not at all bad, but unfortunately it works the other way too.

If you let one person (or government) knock you down or discourage you, others will know you are vulnerable and knock you even further down.  The spirits of fear, laziness, worry, and doubt are just like alcohol: addictive.  Don't yield yourself to them.  Resist evil and be strong.  

Another lesson I learned from my chickens:  Hens who were picked on by the others developed a spirit of fear.  They'd start clucking fearfully and run away whenever another chicken walked by them.  It didn't matter whether they were bigger or stronger; they were scared!  If they had stood up for themselves they might have had a chance, but sadly fear ruined their lives.

Romans 6:16 says, "Know ye not that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?"  Don't let bad habits get a hold of you.  

Waking up at a decent hour is easy for someone who has done so day after day for the past year, but for someone who has said, "Yet a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep!" for the past week, it may be almost impossible.  Getting a job done is easy for someone who is diligent, but for someone who is lazy it may seem like climbing Mt. Everest.

Just like we must stay physically fit by exercising our muscles, we must exercise our will power every day and face the challenges before us.   We must face our bad habits, our fears, our enemies, and every evil that comes against us.  We must stand up to the devil!  If we cower, we may get nothing done in our lives.  We will be just like a poor scared chicken, buffaloed by everything.  But as the saying goes, "Where there's a will there's a way!"  It may be hard at first, but it will get easier as we establish good habits.  The Bible says resist the devil and he will flee!  With God all things are possible.