Shut the Door!

Stepping Out in RED shoes!

- Day 27 -

Shut it!   Lock it!

Never open it again!

Don't go there -- You know better!

Some of you may have thought yesterday's blog to be a bit harsh and legalistic.  I would like to take a few moments to put things in proper perspective.  Many of us have testimonies of God literally grabbing us by the scruff of our necks and pulling us out of what can only be described as the "muck and mire."
An old pentecostal preacher used to say it this way...

"Jesus reached down and pulled 

me out of the quagmire of sin!"

A Quagmire is a soft boggy area of land that gives way underfoot. -- A swamp.
Spiritually speaking, it's a dirty place.  It's a place where people get stuck.
A place where people struggle to get free.  Some never get free and drown.

For some of you,  it was drug addiction.  For others it was alcoholism.  Some found themselves bound in pornography and sex addictions  --  others in gambling and spending.  There are some who had eating disorders that nearly snatched away their lives -- bingeing and purging, over-eating, or not eating at all!   Most people however, found themselves simply unfulfilled with life.  They had no purpose.  They had no hope.  Even though many of you had everything imaginable that money could buy, there was no joy and no peace.  Even love had no real meaning.  You were ready to give up on life!

Jesus changed all that for you!

One day, He came along and set you free.  He lifted you up out of the pit of despondency and gave you new life!  Hallelujah!  Go ahead... take a moment and praise Him right now!  Thank Him for His love and mercy!

All that said, we all come to seasons in our life where we are tired.  We're not feeling the heavenly goosebumps.  Perhaps we've been busy.  A lot of things have been going on and we've gotten distracted.  Life has robbed us of our time with the Lord, and we're not functioning at our spiritual best.

Sometimes it's the complete opposite.  We're at a high point.  Everything is going well.  Abundant blessing has come our way.  Somehow, with all that, we've lost our consistency and diligence at staying connected with Christ. 

Where do you find yourself?  Maybe you're somewhere in the middle.  

Never forget that the enemy is always 

out to lure you away from God's path.  

He wants to disconnect you 

so that He can ultimately destroy you.  

He wants you back in that pit!

Proverbs 4:25-27 says...

"Let your eyes look straight ahead;

fix your gaze directly before you.

Give careful thought to the paths for your feet

and be steadfast in all your ways.

Do not turn to the right or the left;

keep your foot from evil."

Two days ago, my friend was looking for the reason why she shouldn't partake in a worldly activity of sorts.  God spoke to me and said, "I saved her from the pit!  To do that now would be the first step in the wrong direction."  

Every one of us will be tested exactly like that, from time to time.  My friend Bonnie always says... 

"The devil will always come back to test you, to see if you still have the victory in that area."  

No one wants to go back to the pit!  Therefore, we need to boldly proclaim our reason... 

"I'm not going to do THAT 

because it's the 1st Step in 

the Wrong Direction!  

Case closed!"

Then we need to shut that door and lock it!  We need to put a sign on it that reminds us never to open it!  

Do you know what happens when you do that?

You shut off access to the devil  

in that area.  It's a done deal!  

There's no reason for further discussion, because you're not going to budge on the matter!

Good-bye!

As long as you are willing to entertain the thought of it, you give the enemy a foothold.  Picture yourself trying to shut a door, and someone quickly lodging their foot there.  You can't close it!  There's a struggle.  There's arguing.  There's discussion.  It's anything but over. 

Now compare that to a door that's shut tightly and locked.  No access!  The devil might as well pack it up and go home.  You're not even on the other side of the door anymore.  You've walked away and gone about your Father's business.

This is important:  If you are experiencing continual spiritual harassment about something, it's because the door hasn't been closed tightly and locked.  When my friend stated she was going crazy with all the temptation, it's because there was room for discussion.

There's an old spiritual that goes like this:

Shut the door!  Keep out the devil.

Shut the door!  Keep the devil in the night.

Shut the door!  Keep out the devil.

Light the candle, everything's all right!

That's some wise preaching right there!

In RED shoes,

Gail