“Stand firm …
without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you.
This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed,
but that you will be saved—and that by God.
—Philippians 1:28
Have you ever read a book where the villain was SO hateful and awful that you wanted to string him or her up? And, no, I’m not talking about Charity O’Connor here, the vixen from my first book, A Passion Most Pure. Although I will admit that I have received a number of e-mails in the past asking me to “slap Charity for them” or that they wanted to see her “maimed or killed.”
Let’s face it, when we read a book or watch a movie where the bad guy (or girl) does something awful, you either want to throw the book across the room or spit at the TV screen, or at the very least, rail out loud. Or … at least I do. But even if you are one of those who does not keep a bottle of Windex by your TV, or your walls have nary a dent or scratch from a book, you still get mad, right?
And when someone makes us mad, NOTHING feels better than making them mad right back. For instance, I still remember how my sweet, little boy would respond when I disciplined him in those early years (which I rarely had to do because he was just that good of a kid). You see, I had this little paddle, and if the infraction warranted it, I would give him one pop on the bottom and send him to his room. Well, there was many a time when instead of crying, he’d looked me straight in the eye and smile as if he hadn’t felt a thing, which, of course, I promptly rememedied. But that look in his eye, like you are not going to get to me, Mom, so typifies our human nature, doesn’t it? It’s kind of our way to spit in the eye of those who make us mad.
Once, in a Joyce Meyer devotional called Hearing From God Each Morning, Joyce referenced our Scripture above in a devotion entitled “Frustrate the Enemy.” She talks about satan (sorry, I never capitalize his name if I can help it and neither does Joyce Meyer, apparently …) and what our response should be when he comes slinking around. She says, “This verse encourages us not to be frightened or intimidated when the devil comes against us,” but to “show (him) that he cannot handle us.” Not only does this demonstrate to the Lord that “we have faith in Him,” but it also “releases (God’s) power into our situations and deliver us.”
Sweet spit, I couldn’t agree more!! In last week’s Journal Jot, I talked about praising God after I stubbed my toe till I laughed myself silly. Some of you will also remember a prior Journal Jot where I talked about the time I was at a Fuddruckers with a friend and was craving lemonade in the worst way. But my friend insisted on buying me lunch, and since I wanted to keep her bill down, I just got water instead of a paid drink. She wasn’t a believer, and I remember talking to her about Christ, about what He had done for me in my life and how much joy I now had.
At one point in the conversation, I got up to refill our drinks, and when I went to refill my water, wouldn’t you know, the water tap was a little white tab on the lemonade spigot. But when I pressed my cup underneath, the craziest thing happened. Just like that, my mouth started watering for lemonade as my finger hovered over the white tab, and with no warning at all, a thought entered my brain that said, “You know, Julie, nobody will know if you take lemonade instead of water.”
Would you believe that this FIERCE passion for God rose up in me SO strong, that I literally rammed my finger against the white tab till I thought it would break (both my finger and the tab!). As water flooded into my glass, a rush of what I can only describe as a surge of “adrenalin joy” flooded my body, racing my pulse and tingling my skin. This is just a glimmer of the joy your obedience brings to me, a still, small voice said, and I swear I was near trembling before my glass was full. WOW … that was the day I learned that obedience can be a rush!!
I will never forget that rush of GREAT pleasure I had in “spitting in satan’s eye” that day via my obedience to God, and ever since, I try to spit in the devil’s eye whenever possible. How? Well, it’s actually pretty darn easy. 1.) By praising God in ALL things, 2.) By speaking Scripture into the situation (i.e. Thank you, God, that You cause “all things to work together for good for those who love You and are called according to Your purpose,” 3.) By standing firm with a smile on my face, letting satan know that he is nothing but rancid snake meat crushed beneath the heel of our God.
So … I challenge you today to find out just how satisfying it is to spit in the devil’s eye with your obedience, praise, and thanksgiving to God by just standing firm in the face of adversity. Because it’s not only good for your soul, but it feels really, really good to your mind and body too!
Happy weekend and may it be full of lots of wonderful spit and shine!
Hugs,
Julie
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It’s here … Grace Like Rain, a novella about Blake “The Rake McClare” from the Heart of San Francisco series in the WITH THIS KISS HISTORICAL COLLECTION, which includes novellas by Mary Connealy, Pam Hillman, Cara Lynn James, and Ruth Logan Herne for only $2.99, so do check it out!
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