1 Thessalonians 5:18 ESV
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Ephesians 5:20 ESV
Giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
Philippians 4:6 ESV
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
Colossians 4:2 ESV
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
Have we left Jesus wanting?
For some time now, I have observed what I believe to be a much used and deceptive fiery dart successfully used against Christians individually, against their families, and against their churches. And it boils down to this: Christians living their lives more for themselves than for God.
Can you see the inherent problem in this way of thinking?
We go along living our Christian lives characterized by attending church regularly or at the very least semi-regularly, and maintaining a public image that promotes the idea that we are good Christians. We will engage in all sorts of spiritual activities convincing ourselves of the depth of our faith, not realizing our intentions to live good Christian lives have been bushwhacked by fiery darts!
We bask in the blessings that God has giving us without giving much thought to a verse like Romans 2:4 where it’s pointed out that God’s goodness should be leading us to repentance.
Or despise you the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? Romans 2:4 King James 2000 Bible
We think of those blessings as more of a reward, I think. So who benefits the most from the life of a Christian who is living her Christian life according to what pleases herself more than in what pleases God? You probably are well aware of the answer!
Let’s consider the following characteristics of Christians living unto themselves:
When trials come our way, we automatically pray to be delivered from them, whether it be in sickness or in problems that have come upon us. We have a tendency to move away from things or people that are creating disturbances in our lives because we can’t stand to suffer.
In marriages we will put up with unhappiness for so long and if the situation does not improve,the fiery darts will justify our decision to leave. If we are dissatisfied with our church, we will put up with our dissatisfaction for so long. Eventually the fiery darts will convince us that we must leave and seek a church where we will be more satisfied.
We are easily deceived by such fiery dart thinking when we are focused mostly on ourselves and what concerns us. Sometimes, but not necessarily always, we have drifted from consistency in our prayer and bible study and our vulnerability to be deceived is increased.
Therefore, by keeping us out of God’s Word and by keeping us from prayer, Satan ensures that we will not mature in our relationship with Christ, which explains why we live in such defeat. FD p. 62
So what’s the remedy?
Focusing more on Jesus and what concerns Him
instead of focusing on ourselves and what concerns us. For Satan knows (even better than we do obviously) that Jesus will abundantly take care of what concerns us if we focus on Him first and foremost.
Think of the decisions we have made lately–we must ask ourselves this question.
Who benefitted the most from that decision?
If Jesus was left wanting, then perhaps; no, for sure, we must reconsider.
Faith, Hope, and Love, (God’s plan to defeat fear, hopelessness, and hate)
Fear, Hopelessness, and Hate
All across our land and beyond, seeds of fear, hopelessness, and hate (just to address only 3) are being sown. You do realize why I would label these as fiery darts, right? Because if the enemy can keep our focus on such negative thinking then he can manipulate us into creating our own destruction. The enemy will stop at nothing to create a climate designed to give rise to the fruits of such fiery darts. His diabolical efforts to maintain this climate are evidenced by the rise of persecution here and abroad. People everywhere are living lives and making choices that have been poisoned by fear, by hopelessness, by hate!
BUT GOD HAS A PLAN!
The enemy is counting on his victims being uninformed about who God is and the plan God has set in place to empower us to defeat evil. A personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ allows us access to all we need to counter the attack of fiery darts and defeat our enemy. The Bible tells us what to do in every situation:
The Truth expressed in Ephesians 6:16 (HCSB) “In every situation take the shield of faith and with it you will be able to extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one,” took on new meaning. FD, p. 33
Christians who are fervent in spending time with God in prayer and avail themselves to being taught by God as to how to identify fiery darts and how to replace them with Truth Thoughts, will overcome their enemy. And added to that, their witness will lead the way for others to follow in victory.
In the face of fear, hopelessness, and hate, God offers us the direct opposite–Faith, Hope, and Love. The following are the Truth Thoughts of Faith, Hope, and Love. Should we choose to use them, they will solidly defeat our enemy.
FAITH
…to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’Proverbs 24:20
HOPE
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11
LOVE
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world,that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16
Christmas and Fiery Darts?
What do fiery darts have to do with Christmas anyway?
Maybe I should ask another question.
Is there anything about the way we here in America celebrate Christmas that bothers you? Whoa! Hold on, I can’t type that fast!
Yes, it does seem that we have lost sight of the true meaning of Christmas. So much so, that we find ourselves in the midst of a cultural war attempting to prevent us from even saying Merry Christmas in public places.
You see, Satan’s hidden agenda (Um, maybe not so hidden anymore) is to get us to focus more (a lot more) on Santa or some magical substitutional Christmas spirit than we do Jesus. Eventually, pushing Jesus out of the picture altogether, I’m sure!
That is just a sampling of the problems with which we contend during Christmas. And if we aren’t careful fiery darts like frustration, depression, selfishness, loneliness, greed, stress, or anger and certainly the lack of personal and world peace will find us vulnerable targets!
The side affects of an over-commercialized Christmas are burdensome but added to that the persecution of Christians, especially in middle eastern countries, the heaviness of such a load is more than any of us could carry and the joy of Christmas seems beyond our grasp.
But do not despair!
Armed with the following Truth thoughts we can wage a successful war on such fiery darts and reclaim the blessedness of Christmas in spite of the darkness that tempts us to despair.
Jesus came to this earth as a baby, grew up and preached to all He could that God had sent Him to save the world. He accomplished this by dying on the cross and coming back to life–that’s what we refer to as the Resurrection. When we accept that personally then we have the promised hope of heaven and peace reigns in our hearts. (Fiery darts fizzle in the face of such Truth!)
And there’s absolutely nothing about Santa or a Christmas spirit that can compare to that; much less change that.
We have the ability by God’s grace to resist the fiery darts, like the ones I mentioned previously, that accompanies an over-commercialized Christmas, and, instead, partake of the splendors of a Christmas centered on the love, joy, and peace inspired by faith in the Christ-child.
And what about the cultural war on Christmas? Do you realize that all this upheaval only serves to broadcast the good news to anyone who has ears to listen. (I call that a fiery dart that backfired)
Does the persecution tempt you to despair? Listen my dear readers, as horrible as it is, remember this–when a Christian leaves this earth they have Jesus and heaven waiting on them. For those they leave behind, this is their comfort! And their loved ones who believe in Jesus too, have the confidence that at some point in the future they will be reunited.
And why is this?
Because a babe was born in a manger!
Parent’s Alert: Fiery Darts of “The Stirring”
When our children begin to experience this stirring, if we parents haven’t availed ourselves to the connection between it and God, then we become prime targets for Satan’s fiery darts. Therefore, for lack of knowledge, we will usher our children along a path that we never would have desired. We will assume, right along with society, that our children are reaching the ‘dating age’ (and alarmingly, in our culture this happens earlier and earlier) when the search for ‘true love’ naturally begins.
Just what Satan has planned!
But wait, here’s what he is attempting to keep us (especially Christian parents) from realizing:
The Stirring – According to God
Remember in Part One, I said that Satan has a plan for our lives and that is to kill, steal, and destroy whatever it is that God has planned for us. Let’s go back to that “stirring” I mentioned earlier. Could it be that the stirring in our heart that initiates a search for true love is the Holy Spirit calling us to a love relationship with our Creator? I think so! Why else would Satan enforce a plan to do everything he could to make sure that we misunderstand what this stirring encompasses? FD, p. 54-55
As parents, if we buy into this misconception of ‘the stirring’ then our focus regarding our children and dating will be completely out of balance. We will think how else are they going to find that one that God wants for them. For in the process, they will grow in their understanding of love and how to recognize the real thing, right?
Sounds logical, doesn’t it!
Indeed, we do need to help our children learn how to recognize genuine love. But the place to start is in committing their lives to God then sitting at Jesus’s feet as He teaches them about the love He displayed for them. They then go from there putting into practice what they have learned from Jesus about genuine love, but first within the context of their own families; romantic love following much later.
If in those early years we set our focus on cooperating with God as He teaches us the true meaning of love, then our future attitudes and actions will reflect an appropriate definition of love because our textbook was God’s Word; in particular, verses like 1 Corinthians 13:1-7. . . We could do nothing better to prepare us to live life and love others, especially a future spouse successfully, by studying and applying the truths about love from the Book written by the Author of love! FD, p. 55
There’s much more on this subject in my book. If you are interested then check out the sidebar about how to order, Fiery Darts: Satan’s Weapon of Choice. (By the way, it would make a great Christmas gift!)
Parent’s Alert: “The Stirring”
In my previous post, we determined that the key to happiness (the kind that we parents would desire to pass along to our children) was to have a relationship with Christ and being obedient to God’s word.
Okay, now that we have established this basic Truth of Parenting, what next?
First, we must examine our own lives. Do we have a solid relationship with Christ? Does obedience describe that relationship? Parents, if we don’t have that nailed down then we are putting our children’s future at risk. Here’s why:
During the time of adolescence there is a stirring that becomes keenly apparent to girls early on and typically to the guys a bit later. It has been assumed by our society that this stirring heralds the beginning of “the search” for a future spouse and as a result girls and guys begin counting the days when they will become old enough to date. And, as our society relaxes its standards, the age to begin this search becomes younger and younger. When you add to that the ease of communication between our young people, guy/girl relationships develop in their intensity long before the individuals have reached a level of maturity to be able to handle such intensity.
The senses of young people are quickened to anything that speaks of romance. Our culture is quick to expose our adolescents to all sorts of romantic encounters on television, in movies, books and depending on the ability of the adolescent to access it, it can be pretty graphic. During these encounters our children are taught all about love and romance from society’s perspective; a society that pretty much rejects anything God may have to say about this subject. Then they file this misinformation away into their memory banks and draw upon it as they become more and more consumed with the search. FD p. 51
Parents, our children depend upon us to help them make sense out of this ‘stirring’! And I am alarmed that the common assumption of many parents (even Christian parents) is that “this stirring heralds the beginning of the ‘search’ for a future spouse”. (FD p.51)
The fiery dart here is subtle, dangerously so! Because if we misinterpret what this stirring is all about, then our children, by our own erroneous definition, will set them on a course that can in no way promise the happiness that we would have hoped for them.
Next time, we will delve into the fiery darts of ‘the stirring’.
Parent’s Alert: Defining Happiness
Question–What do parents want most for their children?
Answer–HAPPINESS!
Most parents greatest desire for their children is that they be happy, and I agree with this for the most part. However, as parents (especially Christian parents) it is imperative that we have a firm understanding of how to define happiness. Why? Because if we don’t have this understanding then we will easily be sidetracked by fiery darts as to how this happiness should be achieved and what sources would provide it.
In Chapter Five of my book, Fiery Darts: Satan’s Weapon of Choice, I examine Matthew 4:1-4, concerning Christ’s temptations. You see, after Jesus had been baptized by John, He entered into the desert and fasted for 40 days. So you KNOW he was plenty hungry! Think about it, if you had just fasted for 40 days what would be the most important thing to you?
When Satan tempted Jesus to turn the stones into bread, I bet he thought he had Him. Knowing how hungry Jesus must have been, Satan might have been pretty confident that the most important thing to Jesus at that moment would be to eat.
Yet, here is how Jesus responded:
‘It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” (KJV) p. 35 FD
In the following from my book, I explain the significance of examining fiery darts in the light of God’s Word:
Getting bread is not the most important thing in life! Obedience to every word of God is! Since Jesus had received no instructions from the Father to turn stones into bread, He would not act on His own and thus obey Satan, no matter how intense His hunger. FD, p. 36
You see, Satan would attempt to confuse us as to what we need in order to live. In examining this fiery dart perhaps we should ask ourselves the question, “How do we define living?” Just staying alive is not necessarily living! Jesus knew that to really live, is to be obedient to every word from God…FD p. 36
How does the above apply to our desire as parents to help our children achieve a happy life?
Christ defined living as being obedient to every word from God. Christ’ response was based on His familiarity with God and His Word. Therefore, one of the ways we can become savvy to the execution of Satan’s plan of attack in using fiery darts as we parent is to be able to clearly define happiness. As parents we must depend on God’s Word to define for us what happiness truly is. And we must understand that having a relationship with Christ and being obedient to God’s Word is the KEY TO such HAPPINESS.
Parent’s Alert!
Parents, may I have your attention?
In my book, Fiery Darts: Satan’s Weapon of Choice, Chapter Seven deals with a phenomenon I refer to as ‘The Stirring’ which occurs during the time of adolescence,
During the time of adolescence there is a stirring that becomes keenly apparent to girls early on and typically to the guys a bit later. It has been assumed by our society that this stirring heralds the beginning of “the search” for a future spouse and as a result girls and guys begin counting the days when they will become old enough to date… p. 51 FD
…During this period, “the senses of our young people are quickened to anything that speaks of romance.” p. 51 FD
Considering the vulnerability of our young people during this challenging but exciting time, never has it been more critical for us as their parents to become savvy as to the execution of Satan’s plan of attack in using fiery darts. I am awfully afraid we parents will need to allow the Holy Spirit to do some surgery on our own thinking before we will be prepared to guide our children safely through this adolescent period. In my opinion, Chapter Seven is as much for the parents as it is for the adolescent, for by reading and meditating on the information therein much of our own misconceptions regarding this period of life will be exposed. Then we will be prepared to guide our children over this tumultuous sea safely to the other side.
…Our culture is quick to expose our adolescents to all sorts of romantic encounters on television, in movies, books and depending on the ability of the adolescent to access it, it can be pretty graphic. During these encounters our children are taught all about love and romance from society’s perspective; a society that pretty much rejects anything God may have to say about this subject. Then they file this misinformation away into their memory banks and draw upon it as they become more and more consumed with the search. p. 51 FD
Over the next few blog posts, I will attempt to expose Satan’s plan of attack in deceiving parents as to what it is he is attempting to steal from our children. For God has some pretty wonderful plans for them in the area of relationships!
Press Release for Fiery Darts
READ THIS AND FIND OUT WHAT FIERY DARTS IS ALL ABOUT
“Did God really say…?” With one, seemingly, simple question Satan has been effective at casting a seed of doubt in the minds of believers since Adam and Eve. Satan has used the distortion of truth to try to destroy humanity from the time of creation. In Fiery Darts: Satan’s Weapon of Choice ($10.99, paperback, 978-1-936989-22-5), Janet Warren Lane explains how truth that is enveloped within a subtle lie can thwart God’s plan for Christians and devastate them spiritually.
As Lane explains, the lie enters as a negative thought or— a fiery dart from the Enemy. Although, Satan’s tactics are not new, when the lie is well-blended with some truth within the recesses of the mind, it becomes increasingly difficult to distinguish between the truth and the lie. Believers accept the lie as truth and become accustomed to this pattern of negative thinking. This sets them on the path toward a destructive life course. “What we think determines how we feel and what we feel influences our actions,” says Lane.
The weapon of choice for Satan has always been getting the Christian to doubt God. He will disguise the fiery dart in such a way that believers will not even know they are teetering from its sharp sting. The result is a life plagued with unfulfilled dreams, shattered relationships, and maybe even— a turning away from God.
How do you discern between a lie and the truth before the lie defeats you? In order to recognize the counterfeit, that which is authentic must be known. Scripture is the weapon for every believer. “Knowing the words that proceed from the mouth of God, in other words, The Bible, we have those TRUTHS with which to contrast the fiery darts from Satan,” says Lane. She shares examples of verses that will help you neutralize the negative thoughts as they come in. The counter attack must be as swift as the fiery dart approaching.
Satan persistently attempts to frustrate the plans God has for each believer. It is time to become aware of the Enemy’s devices and reclaim what he has taken from you. Learn how to break free from the bondage of complacency and negative thinking in your life. You can now start enjoying the abundant life God has prepared for you. Fiery Darts: Satan’s Weapon of Choice will help you to clearly detect the imminent darts and ground you in your spiritual journey toward illumination.
For more information on Janet Warren Lane and Fiery Darts, please visit http://www.CertaPublishing.com/FieryDarts
AND PURCHASE A COPY FOR YOURSELF, OR A LOVED ONE, OR SOMEONE WHO YOU FEEL NEEDS TO KNOW ABOUT THIS LIBERATING MESSAGE!
Do I focus more on what concerns me rather than what concerns Jesus?
Wow, that’s a soul searching, thought provoking question!
As Christians, of course, we expect God to care about what concerns us. Scripture assures us of this over and over. But for quite some time now, it seems I am being challenged to consider an additional question:
Am I as focused on what concerns Jesus as I am about what concerns me?
When I am faced with a problem too often I will be more concerned over how this is going to affect me personally rather than how is it going to affect Jesus. And oh how the fiery darts will attempt to lock my thoughts into focusing more on myself rather than Jesus in these types of situations.
If focusing on what concerns Jesus, causes me to have to consider giving up something I thought I wanted (or maybe deserved) or humbling myself in a difficult situation then it becomes a struggle to focus on Jesus’s concern. My concerns might get ignored, right? (Fiery dart there you know)
Consider this verse:
Rom 8:17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
The idea of being heirs of God with Christ is indeed attractive but not so much to share in His sufferings. So perhaps I am willing to focus on Christ as long as it doesn’t require me to do something I don’t want to do, make me uncomfortable, or require me to make a sacrifice I am unwilling to make. When focusing on Jesus begins to cost me something, then I hesitate, because my will often takes priority over Jesus’s will.
Therefore, the following prayer has become necessary for me:
Dear LORD, Help me to be more focused on what concerns Jesus rather than being more focused on what concerns me.
Do you suppose that if we became more focused on what concerned Jesus then we would discover that our concerns were being covered by Christ and that He was doing a more successful job of it that we ever could?
Fiery Darts: Satan's Weapon of Choice 