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

His eyes were fixed firmly on the brightly colored toy that I held in my hand.

And that's what brought him right into my hands.

My wife and I, along with our 19-month old boy, Jacob, were all in the living room of our home.

And I was trying to get Jacob to come over to me so I could give him a hug.  And Jacob was toying with me.

He likes to do that.  :o)

He will pretend to come towards me, and then start squealing for joy as he quickly turns away and leaves me empty handed.

Well, today I was too smart for him.   I had a brightly colored toy of his in my hand and it was sure tempting him.  He eyed it for a while and started to walk hesitantly towards me.

And I wooed him on his way.  "Come a little closer," I called out to him.  "Come a little closer."

He stepped a few feet closer to me, his eyes still firmly fixed on the toy.

"Come closer," I called again.  "A little closer, and you can have this toy."

He came up to me and pulled the toy from my hand, and then I quickly grabbed him up into my arms and said with a laugh, "Now, I've got you!"

You know, I "tricked" Jacob because I wanted to give him a hug.  We were just playing around.  It was nothing serious at all.

But, the evil one uses that same device himself...

...and it is solely to trip you and I up!

He works the same way.  He gets our attention with a brightly colored temptation.  We start eye-balling it a bit too long and he starts going to work on us...

..."Come a little closer."

It looks so inviting there, just dancing before our eyes. So we hesitantly inch further towards it.  "Come a little closer" he calls again.

He woos us on with more and more enticements.  He makes that "toy" look so inviting.  And he calls out, "Come closer."  "Just a little closer and it can be yours."

And we reach for it.  We grab that temptation...

...and then it grabs us!  Satan screams out with a snarl, "Now I've got you!!!!"

Christian, it isn't a hug that he wants from you, it's your life.  He wants to ruin your testimony.  He wants to break your fellowship with God.  He wants to keep you tattered and torn, beat down and defeated. 

He wants to destroy your life any way he can.

Don't ever forget it.

Christian, today there will most likely be a brightly colored toy waved in front of your face -- a temptation to sin against God.  It may be a flirting co-worker or an obnoxious neighbor or an opportunity to cheat or a situation that cries out for a "little white lie" or any of countless other temptations.

Look past the "toy" and see the outstretched arms of satan waiting to clutch at you and grab you and rip you to shreds.   Don't listen to the "come a little closer" that calls out from every temptation you'll ever face.

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

Have a "Wonderful DAY in Christ,"
Jimmy D. Brown
\o/ Praise Jesus!