"Be sober, be vigilant;
because your adversary the devil,
as a roaring lion, walketh about,
seeking whom he may devour."
- Peter 5:8

I'll never forget my grandmother.

My grandmother was a treasure.  She  went on to be with her Jesus a few years ago, but I often think of her with great fondness.  She loved to tell stories about when I was a little boy...about all of the silly things I would do!  Funny, I don't recall them. ;-)

One of the phrases that my grandmother used when I was growing up was, "Cat got your tongue?"  She would often say this after I became tight-lipped and wouldn't answer her questions, which were usually inquiring about some bad deed that I had been caught in...and didn't want to confess.

"Jimmy Jr." (that's what she called me).  "Jimmy Jr., do you know anything about my perfume ending up in the freezer?"

Silence.  I was caught, but I didn't let on.

"I'm talking to you.  Are you the one that put my perfume in the freezer?"

Still no response from her innocent grandson. ;-)

"What's the matter?  Cat got your tongue?"

That was her way of saying, "There's no reason you can't speak up...so out with it."

As I thought about that phrase my grandmother used when I was growing up, I couldn't help but think about someone the Bible 
describes as a cat.  Well, at least a cat of sorts.  

The Bible says in I Peter 5:8, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a ROARING LION, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour."  You see, the devil is a cat...he's a "roaring lion."

And you know what?  He wants you and I to be silent when it comes to sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  That's right.  He wants us to become tight-lipped and not let on that we know anything about the Lord.

He has several plans for convincing us to do just that...

A really good one that he likes to use is to distract us.  Sometimes he uses entertainment and recreation, other times careers and jobs, and still other times family and friends, hardships and struggles.  You see, if we become too focused on any of those things, then we sometimes don't take the time to be the witness that Christ has called us to be.  

Another plan of his is to try to convince us that we shouldn't share the Gospel for one of the following reasons:  the person will get angry with you, you will feel uncomfortable, they've already heard it before and turned Christ down, you'll lose a good friend or business contact, you can share the Gospel later, you've already told them once...your responsibility is over, it's inappropriate in this setting, you can just pray for them instead, you will be ridiculed and mocked...

...do you see the kinds of ideas the cat tries to use to keep Christians silent?

Dear friend, the "roaring lion" wants you to keep your mouth shut when it comes to telling others about the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.  He doesn't want you to say one word about forgiveness of sin.  He never wants to hear terms like "salvation," "born again," "Calvary," and "The Cross."  Oh no, above all, he will try at all costs to keep the word "Jesus" from ever being mentioned.

And yet, today, there will be those in YOUR pathway, that God has placed there, who need to hear those very words.  They need to hear about Jesus, His sacrifice, His love.  Their souls cry out for someone to tell them how to be born again and receive forgiveness.  Who will give them the "good news" if you do not?

What about it, my Christian friend?  Are you going to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with some lost soul today?  Or has the...