11 in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes. ~ 2 Corinthians 2:11
In the animated Western comedy, Rango—a sheltered chameleon—accidentally ends up in the desert town of Dirt, where he invents a tough gunslinger persona. He quickly becomes the town’s sheriff after accidentally killing their arch-nemesis—a hawk. But things take a turn for the worse when he uncovers a dark and sinister plot against the citizens of Dirt… He discovers that the water shortage is no accident but part of a scheme by the corrupt mayor.
We too have what we can consider a corrupt mayor; his name is Satan—the devil. The Bible states that he stalks around seeking someone to devour. But Paul says that we are not unaware of his schemes. Meaning, we know what he is up to, because the Word of God tells us what he is up to: He comes to steal, kill, and destroy. If your things are being stolen- your time, your finances, your relationships, and what have you- it is most likely the devil. You are working really hard, but something that should take you an hour takes you two, and you can’t figure out why—there’s an enemy stalking around, seeking someone to devour.
In the movie Rango, it was their corrupt mayor. Behind his polite, grandfatherly smile, he was deliberately starving the entire town of precious water by secretly shutting off the emergency valve on the water pipeline and thereby creating an artificial drought that turned fertile land into worthless wasteland, and the citizens of Dirt had no clue.
It’s the same with us. The devil masquerades as an angel of light, but he brings darkness wherever he goes. He turns green, lush pastures into barren wastelands that soon become worthless. He comes only to steal, to kill, and to destroy. He presents himself as benign, but all the time he is scheming and plotting. Paul said we are not unaware, but to be unaware, we must first acknowledge that there is a devil and he is alive and active. Second, we must not be intimidated to attribute to him what is his—theft, death, and destruction. But we have a steady and faithful promise from our God: when the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit will raise up a standard for us, and will fight on our behalf when the enemy is too strong for us. So, let us believe, and let us seek the face of our God and turn to Him with all our hearts.
Father, we ask you to bring us relief. We are battered by life’s storms; we are harassed by spiritual forces, and we are unaware of the enemy’s schemes. Please open our spiritual eyes to see clearly, so that our prayers may be more specific. In Jesus’ Name, I pray, amen.