In recent weeks, I’ve heard many believers dub 2000 as a "bad
year." Conflict, pain, hardship and failure riddled their families.
One young man described his ordeal this way: "It was like a
dark cloud hanging over me. Everything went wrong. Spiritually I
felt like I was under constant attack. To my knowledge, I didn’t
do anything to deserve this kind of trouble. It just came my way."
Followers of Jesus Christ shouldn’t be surprised when confronted
by the enemy’s schemes. (See 1 Peter 4:12.) There won’t
be a cease-fire until Jesus returns and Satan is bound. Yet some
Christians pretend they can avoid the battle if they simply stay
out of Satan’s way. They assume he only targets the devout,
so they’re content to wallow in lukewarm faith. If they could
only realize that their safety rests on their intimacy with Christ
— not their distance from Him. Jesus is their protector, their
bodyguard.
Satan seeks to steal and destroy. (See John 10:10.) He wants to
devastate your home, corrupt your children and wreak havoc in your
church. But 1 John 5:4,5 promises victory: "For everyone born
of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome
the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only
he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God" (NIV).
It’s uncertain what this year holds for you and your family.
But you can know who holds you in the palm of His nail-scarred hand.
And with that assurance you can go through 2001 with great courage
and anticipation.
— Hal Donaldson
