Amos 3:11 "Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; An adversary there shall be even round about the land; and he shall bring down thy strength from thee, and thy palaces shall be spoiled."
When people get abducted it happens in places where the victim feels safe. Some are abducted from the place they shop. Some are abducted from where they work. Some are even abducted from the place they feel the safest...their home.
There is an adversary around us. I Peter 5:8 "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:" The problem with those that get abducted is they aren't paying attention to their surroundings.
Everything that glitters is not gold. Not everyone that looks good is good. We need to stay prayed up and alert to the enemy that is seeking to destroy us.
On of our predators is religion. Many have been devoured by this predator. They're the ones who every time trouble comes they pray and want to get saved again and again. Some get in church and get involved in activities. The devil is a liar and is good at producing counterfeits. They are in our churches as well as in the world.
We need to be careful of our friendships as well. It only takes one bad friend to ruin you. Remember Amnon had a friend. What your friends are is what you are.
There are also predators in our families. They are family members that will do things to hurt you. Not all family members are going to encourage you and support you as you seek to live for Christ. I'm a firm believer that the devil can and will place predators in our families to try to destroy us. I've seen this to be true. They lie on you...cheat on you...and if given opportunity will even steal from you.
There are also predators in rebellion. young people need to guard their heart against rebellion. Their stubbornness is as idolatry. I Samuel 15:23 "For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king." Rebellion is not worth the price that is paid as a result of it.
Have any of you experienced any of these predators in your life? Like I said....I have!! We must guard ourselves against these predators so we won't become victims to them and find ourselves abducted.
These are notes taken from a message preached by Bro. Doug Thompson at Faith Baptist Camp on 8-7-07.
15 comments:
Mrs Julie hope you are feeling better. I didn't mean anything by your short post yesterday. It seem like you thought I may have been sarcastic in that comment, anyways this is a good message. Bro Doug has preached two excellent messages the last two campmeetings, bound on the altar and then this one. Thanks for sharing I know I have seen those predators also.
Bro Tim
bro. tim....I didn't think anything of what you said in your comment about the length of my post yesterday. I know you have seen me go through this and you understand how it puts me down physically. I didn't mean to imply that I took offense to what you said....cause I sure didn't take it that way.
I didn't think you did just wanted to make sure. Have a good night.
Bro Tim
Sis Julie,
This is a fantastic post. I have delt with predators in my life and I am sure that I will continue to do so. One point that you made that people really need to pay attention to is that these predators are even in our churches. So many people sterotype people and think that all who go to the church are the same, but this is not true. Those people who give church goers a bad name, are only paying attention to those working for the devil and are not getting to know the true saints. Those who think that all church goers are good are the ones who are going to be or already have been decieved.
Hope that you are feeling better and glad to see a post from you today!
sis. cindy....I agree with you. So many think that all who are in our churches are sheep. Unfortunately there are wolves in the churches as well. And they are there to kill sheep. We need to stay alert and keep our eyes and ears open (spiritually) in order to be aware of who those wolves are.
I am feeling "some" better. By Saturday I should be much better. Thank you for your prayers!!
Sis. Julie, that was another great post. Every last bit of it is true. We need to be looking out on every hand. The devil wants to destroy all of our testimonies. We must be alert. Thank you for this warning. connie from Texas
"Everything that glitters is not gold." That's a pretty powerful statement, isn't it? If we could only pound that into the hearts of our children and into our own hearts!!
Great post.
~Kristi
That's why I love me some good biblical, authoritative, "thus saith the Lord" preaching! It makes dogs and goats uncomfortable and makes the church a safer place for sheep. We get more vulnerable to deception when preachers only preach the parts of the Bible that won't offend anyone.
Julie, I pray you feel better soon! Your blog is an encouragement to me!
sis. connie....this post served as a reminder to many as the message reminded me that we must always be on the lookout (even in our churches) for such predators.
sis. kristi...yes ma'am that statement is indeed powerful. I had not heard it in a long time but it sure did remind me that not everyone is as they appear!!
sarah joy...thank you so much. If I could just have the surgery I need then I would not have these problems anymore. But since I can't right now I have to deal with pain and being non-functionable for 3-4 days a month. Thank you for your encouraging words...you are so sweet to let me know how my blog has blessed you. You're a blessing to me as well!!
Hey Sis Julie,
Great post!! I especially love the thought "Everything that glitters is not gold" What a neat way to remember that our enemies don't always come in the form that we expect!!
Love you,
Jessica
Mrs Julie
Don't post this if you don't want to, but I have to wonder: did you not get my last two comments on this post, or have I done something wrong that you are no longer accepting my comments? This is my third try. I'm not sure you're getting my emails either. :-(
Katy-Anne
katy-anne...I've published all the comments I've gotten from you. You've done nothing to cause me not to respond to you. Sometimes they don't make it to my email for verification and I don't realize I have comments pending till I sign onto my dashboard. I'll check and see if that has happened. I'm sorry this has happened. I've also gotten your emails. I thought I responded to them all for you....maybe I missed something.
katy-anne...I just checked my dashboard and I did have a comment that was pending verification but it wasn't one of your comments. So I don't know what has happened.
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