A lie that is accepted as truth, will affect your life as if it is true, even though it’s a lie. —Bill Ewing
Sometimes, our strengths can be our biggest weakness. Often, our weaknesses can be our biggest… well, weakness (unless, through Christ, we allow Him to be strong through us). Both strengths and weaknesses make us vulnerable to the lies of Satan.
- Perfectionism: “My value is in my performance.”
- Arrogance: “I deserve better than this.”
- Leadership: “I am more important than the people behind me.”
- Anorexia: “I am fat.”
- Materialism: “If I have a little more, I will be satisfied, fulfilled, and happy.”
- Marital discontent: “I deserve a fling.”
- Giftedness: “I can do it myself.”
- Slyness: “No one will ever know.”
- Conscientiousness: “I must be guilty.”
What are your strengths? What are your weaknesses? How are they making you vulnerable to accepting a lie as truth? God has revealed His truth to us in Scripture, in the Bible. It’s the original, the authentic, the genuine article. Everything else is counterfeit. And the very best way to recognize the counterfeit stuff is by knowing the real stuff.
When my dad was young, he was a bank examiner in England, and one of his responsibilities was to find counterfeit money. He had a whole week of training to figure out what counterfeit money was like. They had him study every detail of every bit of normal, real bills all week long. By Thursday, he said, “This is ridiculous. When do I get to look at the counterfeit stuff?” And they said, “Oh, you’re not going to look at counterfeit stuff. That stuff changes all the time.”
When you know the truth, the lies are obvious. When you know the truth, and Satan whispers a lie through the power of sin toward your strengths or weaknesses, you will recognize it for what it is. Then, you can choose to allow the Spirit in you to respond in truth.
Holy Spirit, show me today where my strengths or weaknesses have made me vulnerable to a lie. Give me a lifelong hunger for Your Word, that You might implant its truth in my mind, then grant me the willingness to obey it. Amen.