Beat Up

July 2, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

Some snippets from a few conversations I have had the past week—

  • “What’s the point?”
  • “My life doesn’t make sense.”
  • “I probably deserve this.”
  • “I don’t know how I got here … I don’t know how to get out of here.”
  • “Why me?”
  • “I feel beat up.”

C.S. Lewis got it exactly right when he wrote, “If satan’s arsenal of weapons were restricted to a single one, it would be discouragement.”

Have you ever worked with someone whose attitude changed after giving his 2-week notice? His job performance slips … his attitude stinks … he does things against company policy … and he justifies it all by saying, “What are they going to do, fire me?” He’s got nothing to lose by acting like a complete jerk!

satan has already been “fired”—he knows he’s got a terrible end coming. And all he wants to do is make other people feel rotten … beat up … discouraged … defeated. He wants to take you down. He’s a jerk!

Did you know that the word devil means slanderer? By his very nature, he only tells lies. Everything he says is intended to harm you. He slings mud at your character, tries to get you thinking you’re no good, turns your attention to anything that’s dark, picks on your faults, jumps on your weaknesses. Like a jerk, he beats you up and beats you down until you start believing his lies.

He is a LIAR!

You are invaluable.

You are a masterpiece.

You are desperately loved by God.

You are integral to God’s plan.

I know you may want to ignore satan’s slandering, to tune out his lies, but can I suggest something else? Listen to them. Listen very carefully. If you are listening closely, you will be able to identify the lies and then demolish them. satan is hoping you will simply accept what he’s saying without analyzing it.

Here’s the next step. After you’ve identified the lies, you have to speak the truth OUT LOUD that contradicts those lies. The Bible says that we defeat satan’s slander by the power of Jesus AND the true words from our mouth. If you’re not sure what biblical truth counteracts the lies that are discouraging you, email me and I’d be happy to help you.

You are so very valuable! There’s a bully who wants to intimidate you, but your Big Brother Jesus is ready to take care of him!

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Are You A Trustworthy “Enemy”?

January 28, 2009 — Craig T. Owens

Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me, right? Wrong—words hurt!

At times you may think, “Well, I may have deserved that one.” Perhaps you did or said something inappropriate, and the other person responded out of their anger or frustration or embarrassment. But what about when you’ve done nothing wrong? Those sharp, wounding words seem to come out of the clear blue, from someone you never would have expected to be so hateful—angry, spiteful words deliberately hurled at you like stones.

David was forced to hide in Philistine territory to get away from Israelite King Saul. This was smart on David’s part because the Philistines had been ancient enemies of the Israelites, so Saul would never cross into Philistine territory to look for David. David asked King Achish for refuge in his territory, and Achish gave him the city of Ziklag in which to settle.

There’s a cliché that says, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” Achish was Saul’s enemy, so David could have assumed that Achish was his friend (the enemy of David’s enemy).

But here’s the important point—David didn’t consider Saul his enemy. Saul may have thought David was his enemy, but David didn’t reciprocate. David didn’t treat Saul as an enemy, but neither did David treat Achish as a friend.

Yet the Bible records an amazing statement: Achish trusted David (1 Samuel 27:12). Neither Saul nor Achish could ever claim that David slandered them, maligned their character, or did them any harm at all.

How could David do this? How could he keep from lashing out at the one who hurled insults at him (Saul) or the one who was his ancient foe (Achish)? David asked God to help him—

Fierce men conspire against me for no offence or sin of mine, O Lord.
I have done no wrong, yet they are ready to attack me.
Arise to help me; look on my plight! (Psalm 59:3-4)

I see three great life applications when you are wrongly attacked or slandered:

  1. Don’t treat those who criticize and slander you as an enemy.
  2. Don’t find the enemy of your enemy and call him a friend.
  3. Do acknowledge your hurts and take them to God.

You don’t have to befriend your foes, but neither do you need to lash out at those who are falsely attacking you. Let God arise to help you, and may even your enemies find you trustworthy!

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