Take, for instance, my latest Sun Chips experience. Sun Chips--the original, as opposed to their other varieties--is one of my favorite snacks and was getting harder and harder to find. When I finally found some, I bought two bags and couldn't wait to get home and dig in.
Well, that turned out to be a disappointing letdown. They didn't taste the way they usually do. My taste buds detected a slight sweetness that I'd never noticed before.
Sure enough, when I checked the ingredients I discovered they had added sugar to turn it into a "savory sweet crunch." Yuck!
Chips are not something I need to be eating anyway, so this will just make it easier to cut them out and look for healthier alternatives to snack on, which made me think of how very blessed we are in my neck of the woods to have such an abundance and variety of foods available to choose from.
Another frustration was an emergency "boil water" alert issued by our Town because there was a break in one of the pipelines and the water had become contaminated with bacteria. An annoyance and inconvenience that only lasted a couple of day, and then we had safe, clean drinking water again, but it made me think of all the people in other parts of the world who don't have that luxury. Not only is their water contaminated, but in many cases they don't even have running water and have to walk a great distance to the river or other body of water and then fill and carry heavy jugs of it back home.
These were some of the thoughts that were going through my mind as I drove to church this morning for my shift in the prayer room. As I prayed over the service, other things came to mind that I take for granted and shouldn't. Such as being able to come to church and openly worship the Lord without fear of persecution. Like many other churches these days, we do have a security team that patrols inside and out, but things still happen.
We have a real enemy (Satan) who prowls around waiting to catch us off guard. No one is immune. A wake up call to that truth happened just recently when a very dear friend, and one of the strongest women of faith I know, inadvertently allowed Satan to worm his way in through a chink in her armor and derail her. Who would have thought.
The Word tells us to be alert and vigilant, and on our guard, because in these end times, even the elect will be deceived. These are truths that are very real.
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Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8, NLT)
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10, NIV)
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (James 4:7, ESV)
Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. (1 Corinthians 16:13, NIV)
So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded. (1 Thessalonians 5:6, NLT)
Keep alert at all times. And pray that you might be strong enough to escape these coming horrors and stand before the Son of Man." (Luke 21:36, NLT).
For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God's chosen ones. (Matthew 24:24, NLT)
Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:11-12, NIV)
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. (Proverbs 3:5-6, NLT)
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