September 30, 2011

"Remember who the enemy is."

"Remember who the enemy is." 


This phrase haunted my mind for days after finishing the novel, "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins, but I couldn't figure out why. What is that even supposed to mean? For the main character, Katniss Everdeen, this means that she must be the spark that sets off a rebellion instead of participating a vile tradition the government had implemented. (For more info, go ahead and read the hunger games, by Suzanne Collins. Oh awhile you are at it you might as well read Catching Fire and Mocking Jay too. :P)

But what does this mean for me? Who is our enemy and who do we often mistake for the enemy?


You might be thinking the enemy is Satan, and you are right, in a way.

Satan is not the only enemy of God. Dictionary.com defines 'Enemy" as: "a person who feels hatred for, fosters harmful designs against, or engages in antagonistic activities against another; an adversary or opponent." So in effect, anyone or anything that opposes God is His enemy.

1 Peter 5:8-9 says "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world."

 This says that indeed the enemy is the devil, but we can become an "enemy" of God too. Check out what James says in James 4:4-5

"You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture speaks to no purpose: “He jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us”?"
 
How scary is that!! I have an awful feeling in my stomach just thinking about that. To be called an enemy of God is sobering. What we do here in life should not be taken lightly.


Paul really gets to the point in 1 Corinthians 15:25-28, then again, Paul is just awesome like that. :) 

"For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be abolished is death. For HE HAS PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET. But when He says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him. When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all."


I think all to often people consider anyone who hurts them to be their enemy. I am not saying an obsession, like an arch nemesis, but take for instance when a friend says something, not anything bad, but something that just sets you off. When you lash out at them, you are making them your enemy, and losing focus. Every time you yell at a sibling, or "lose your cool" with a friend, you have lost sight of our true goal.
No next time you want to tell someone off, or tattle on your siblings, or grumble at your mom for making you walk five extra feet, remember what you are doing....

Psalm 97:10 calls us to "Hate evil, you who love the LORD, Who preserves the souls of His godly ones; He delivers them from the hand of the wicked."

Evil is opposed to God, or God's enemy... God calls us to hate what He hates.

God's enemies are our enemies, not the guy who cuts you off on the highway. Maybe his mom just got diagnosed with cancer, and he isn't paying attention. Your siblings are not your enemies, they may annoy you, but that is no need to lash out at them. And our parents, most of all, are not our enemies. Every time we get irritated with our mom or dad, we are being distracted, making them our enemies. Satan loves this, inter family strife. It distracts us from the spiritual war that is going on, and causes us to sin.  When we get mad at someone, is it really because they did something bad? No, it is because we feel like they have injured us. It is selfishness. I promise selfishness is not a virtue.



"Remember who the enemy is."

With the love of Christ,

Danielle Fife

September 21, 2011

Apprehension and Debate Partners

Right now I am stressing out.

This Monday, Mr. Wolcott will be announcing debate partners.
To non-debaters, this will seem trivial, and even silly. Fear not, I have not lost my mind.

My debate partner-to-be and I will be spending a lot of time together. I mean a LOT of time together.
Late nights on g-chat, mid-day panicked phone calls, early mornings at tourneys, and did I mention all the time we will be spending at coffee shops? :P (I am going to be seriously broke at the end of this debate season!)

My point is that I know I am not the only debater to be thinking this, and probably my partner to be is as scared as I am. Though I seriously doubt it. None of us want to be a disappointment.

The good news, is none of us will be a disappointment if we continue to put God first, then others, and then ourselves. The only way we can be dissapointments is if we make it all about winning and ourselves.

Just my "little" note of encouragement. :) See you lovely debaters on Monday, and some even sooner. :)

With His love,

Danielle <3