The Seduction Of Satisfaction

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

        “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” 
                                                                                                                  Philippians 4:19 (NIV)

Have you ever been tempted to make seemingly small compromises in the short term that had the potential to take you away from God’s best in the long term?

I know this struggle all too well. But I also know that those small compromises build upon one another until they become a big pile of regret.

Temptation of any kind is Satan’s invitation to get our needs met outside the will of God.

One of the subtle ways he does this is to plant the hesitant thought in our mind that God will not meet our needs — that God is not enough. Satan wants us to feel alone and abandoned, so that we turn to his offerings instead. It’s the seduction of satisfaction.

Often the script that plays in our head is, “I need __________ so I can be satisfied.”

It’s what sends the wife on a budget off on a spending spree. She feels the thrill of the sale in the moment. But as she’s hiding the bags from her husband, shame creeps in.

It’s what pulls at the business woman to work harder and longer and refuse to build boundaries in her schedule. Always chasing that next accomplishment or that next compliment but it’s never enough.

It’s what sent me on many eating sprees. The kids were loud, the house was messy, the demands felt beyond my control. So with great justification I’d indulge only to have a bloated stomach and a deflated heart.

This subtle message sold to us by Satan can be exposed when we understand the difference between a need and a want.

All of the examples above were wants — not needs. But oh, how Satan wants to make them one and the same.

When the difference between these two words starts getting skewed, we start compromising. We start justifying. And it sets us up to start getting our needs met outside the will of God. The abyss of discontentment invites us in and threatens to darken and distort everything in our world.

Listen, Satan is a liar. The more we fill ourselves with his distorted desires, the more empty we’ll feel. That’s true with each of the desires mentioned above. The more we overspend, overwork or overeat — the more empty we feel. Remember, Satan wants to separate you from God’s best plans. He wants to separate you from God’s proper provision. He wants to separate you from God’s peace.

God’s provision sustains life. Satan’s temptation drains life.

God’s provision in the short term will reap blessings in the long term. Satan’s temptation in the short term will reap heartache in the long term.

God’s provision satisfies the soul. Satan’s temptation gratifies the flesh.

Oh sweet sister, we must consider these realities when making choices today. We’re all just a few poor choices away from doing things we never thought we would. Especially when our hearts are in a vulnerable place of longing for something that God hasn’t yet provided.

And the time to prevent destruction from temptation is before it ever starts.

We are either holding fast to God’s promise or being lured by a compromise. And isn’t it interesting that the word promise is right there in the midst of that word com(promise)?

God promises, “I will meet all your needs according to the riches of My Glory in Christ Jesus,” (paraphrase, Philippians 4:19). He is everything we need and so perfectly capable of filling in the gaps of our wants as well. We must let truth seep deep into the longings of our soul. Otherwise lies are prone to creep into this place of our desire.

Yes. We must trust God. Embrace truth. Live His promise.

Lysa TerKeurst; Proverbs 31 Ministries

If Only I Had.....

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31


           “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32 (NIV)

There’s a simple, yet incredibly dangerous little script many of us play in our minds. It might even be one of the biggest things that holds us back from feeling fulfilled in our relationship with God. It’s a script tangled in a lie that typically goes something like this: I could really be happy and fulfilled if only I had …

… a skinnier body.
… a husband.
… a husband who was more tender and romantic.
… more money.
… a better personality.
… a baby.

I don’t know what your “If only I had” statements are, but I do know this: None of them will bring fulfillment. They might bring temporary moments of happiness … but not true fulfillment. Apart from a thriving relationship with God, even if we got everything on our list, there would still be a hollow gap in our soul.

So instead of saying, “If only I had” and filling in the blank with some person, possession or position, we must make the choice to replace that statement with God’s truth. John 8:32 confirms just how powerful truth is: “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Here are some examples that have helped me battle the temptation to let people, possessions or positions take God’s place in my life.

People
I no longer say, “If only I had a daddy who loved me …” Instead, I say, “Psalm 68:5 promises God is a father to the fatherless.”

Maybe your gap isn’t left by an absent father but by a friend who hurt you. Or a husband who left you. Or the children you’ve longed to have, and you still don’t. Whatever that gap is, God is the perfect fit for your emptiness.

Pray this paraphrase of Luke 1:78-79: “Because of the tender mercy of my God by which the rising sun will come to me from heaven — to shine on my darkness and in what feels like the shadow of death to me — I will find peace.”

Possessions
I no longer say, “If only I had more possessions …” Instead, I recite Matthew 6:19-21, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth and nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (NASB)

Any possession I ever long for, no matter how good it may seem, will only be good for a limited time. In light of eternity, every possession is in the process of breaking down, becoming devalued, and will eventually be taken from us. If I set my heart solely on acquiring more things, I’ll feel more vulnerable with the possibility of loss.

Possessions are meant to be appreciated and used to bless others. They were never meant to be identity markers. It’s not wrong to enjoy the possessions we have as long as we don’t depend on them for our heart’s security.

Position
I no longer say, “If only I had a better position …” Instead, I say the words of Psalm 119:105,“Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path” (NASB). I don’t need a better position to get where I should go. I don’t have to figure out my path and jockey to get ahead. I need God’s Word to guide me. As I follow Him and honor Him step-by-step, I can be assured that I’m right where He wants me, to be doing what He wants me to do.

Whatever “If only I had” statement you’re struggling with, you can replace it with solid truths from Scripture that will never leave you empty.

When God’s Word gets inside of us, it becomes the new way we process life. It rearranges our thoughts, our motives, our needs and our desires. Our soul was tailor-made to be filled with God and His truth, therefore, it seeps into every part of us and fills us completely.

Proverbs 31 Ministries, by:  Lysa TerKeurst

Celebrate The Love of the One

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31


https://biblepaedia.wordpress.com/2013/05/03/celebrate-the-love-of-the-one/

BRING ME THE SACRIFICE....

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

BRING ME THE SACRIFICE of thanksgiving.  Take nothing for granted, not even the rising of the sun. Before satan tempted Eve in the Garden of Eden, thankfulness was as natural as breathing.  Satan's temptation involved pointing Eve to the one thing that was forbidden her.  The garden was filled with luscious, desirable fruits, but Eve focused on the one fruit she couldn't have rather than being thankful for the many good things freely available.  This negative focus darkened her mind, and she succumbed to temptation.

When you focus on what you don't have or on situations that displease you, your mind also becomes darkened.  You take for granted life, salvation, sunshine, flowers, and countless other gifts from Me.  You look for what is wrong and refuse to enjoy life until that is "fixed."

When you approach Me with thanksgiving, the Light of My Presence pours into you, transforming you through and through.  Walk in the Light with Me by practicing the discipline of thanksgiving.

"Jesus Calling - Enjoying Peace In His Presence"