Satan seeks only to steal, kill and destroy but Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:19; NKJV). The apostle Paul wrote “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross” (Col 2:15; NIV). Simply put, this means that Jesus through His death and resurrection completely defeated satan and all his minions. In the book of Hebrews, we read “that He might bring to naught and make of no affect him who had the power of death - that is, the devil” (Heb 2:14b; AMP). Jesus stripped satan of all power and authority to harm us. “But thanks be to God who gives us the VICTORY through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor 15:57; NKJV; bolding and upper case added). Jesus actually gave us authority over all the powers of satan to hurt us (Luke 10:19). Why then can satan still cause problems for Christians? The apostle Peter told us that satan still roams around pretending to be a lion, roaring at people and trying to “steal, kill and destroy” (John 10:10a; NKJV). However, as Peter taught, as Christians, we can resist satan and send him running (James 4:7). How do we do that? God has given us His armor (Eph 6:3-18) and especially “the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God” (V 17b; NKJV). Speak God’s word in faith to the issues you face and satan has to flee! VICTORY!

We first read about meditating in the Bible in Genesis 24:63 where we are told that Isaac went out to the field to meditate. When Joshua took over from Moses, God gave him some instructions and He told him the importance of meditating on the word and that this would cause him to prosper and be successful (Josh 1:8). To meditate means to think about something over and over, to ponder it and even study it. Psalm 1 talks further about meditating, saying that the person who habitually meditates on the word will be like “a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does he prospers “(Psalm 1:3; ESV). Wow! That sounds like true prosperity to me! Psalm 119 is a long psalm which is almost entirely dealing with the word of God. There are several verses in this psalm which talk about meditating on the word such as verse 97, “Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day.”

In the New Testament Phil 4:8 in the Message Bible reads, “Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious – the best, not the worst, the beautiful, not the ugly, things to praise, not things to curse.” Learning to meditate like this takes practice but the more we meditate on God and His word and good things the less we will meditate on anxious, fearful and negative thoughts. Give yourself time today to not just read the word but to meditate on those verses that stand out to you and let God give you revelation.

In all our pressing into God, seeking greater revelation of His word and the excitement of growing in our relationship with Him it is important to be reminded sometimes of some of the foundations of our faith. Recently I was reminded that as Christians we are God’s “dear children” (Eph 5:1; NKJV). The apostle Paul quoted God as saying, “I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters (2 Cor 6:18; NKJV). In Galatians 3:26 we read that we “are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus” (NKJV). We have been adopted as God’s sons (Eph 1:5). Jesus is our brother (Heb 2:11), “the eldest in a vast family of brothers” (Rom 8:29; Wey). As God’s sons and daughters, He has “sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts crying, “Abba Father”” (Gal 4:6; NKJV). “Abba Father” is an intimate name for our Father God, like us calling Him daddy. In Eph 2:10, Paul tells us that God sees us as His “workmanship”. The Greek word translated “workmanship” can also mean work of art or poem. That’s how our Father sees each one of us. God’s sons and daughters are those who are led by the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:14), they are peacemakers (Luke 6:35), they walk in love and selflessly do good (Luke 6:35). The Bible promises us that those who walk a victorious Christian life will inherit all the blessings of eternal life as God’s “sons and daughters” (Rev 21:7; MSG). Sometimes we need to close our eyes and try to take in all it means to be sons and daughters of our heavenly Father, our heavenly daddy. Now that’s more than exciting!

The fifteenth chapter of John’s gospel has much to say about abiding. The Greek word for “abide” is meno and means to remain, not to depart, continue, stay, live. To me it means being in close fellowship with the Lord throughout the day, not being in one day and out the next. “So you must remain in life-union with me, for I remain in life-union with you” (John 15:4; TPT). We are further told that if we abide in the Lord, we will bear fruit (John 15:4,5), our prayers will be answered (John 15:7), we will not sin (1 John 3:6) and we will enjoy God’s protection, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty” (Ps 91:1; NKJV).

David, at the end of the 23rd psalm declares that “the house of the Lord (and His presence) shall be my dwelling place” (Ps 23:6; AMPC). Paul, praying for the Ephesians says, “May Christ through your faith (actually) dwell (settle down, abide, make His permanent home) in your hearts!” (Eph 3:17; AMPC.)

Obviously, it is important that we abide in Christ and He in us, there are many scriptures to back this up, but how do we do it? We can’t spend all day long on our knees. However, as we go through our day we can keep bringing our mind back to God; praising Him, thanking Him and sending short prayers as often as we remember. “For all who obey His commands find their lives joined in union with him, and He lives and flourishes in them” (1 John 3:24; TPT).

Sometimes when we talk to people about becoming a Christian, they feel unworthy or too sinful. Many Christians also look back at their former lives and will not allow themselves to receive all God has for them. We all need to be reminded that Jesus, through His sacrifice on the cross, won forgiveness for us for all of our sins (Col 2:13b). In the Greek “all” means “all”! That would encompass all sins past, present and future.

When we asked Christ into our lives as Lord and Saviour (Rom 10:9-10) the apostle Paul told us that we became a “new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Cor 5:17; NKJV). Our spirits were made new (John 3:5-7) and we entered into an abundant life with God (John 10:10b). Paul encouraged us to forget the past and press into the future God has for us (Phil 4:13-14). Jesus used an analogy saying that a plowman doesn’t look back (Luke 9:62). Jesus will enable us to change to be more like Him (Phil 1:6) and to put off the old pre-Christian person we were and embrace the new person He has for us (Eph 4:22-24). Our primary focus in life needs to be to, “set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth (Col 3:2; NKJV). We need to prayerfully study God’s word and allow the Holy Spirit (John 16:13-15) to reveal God’s plan and purpose for your life (Ps 139:16). God loves each one of us, we are His children (1 John 3:1-2) and His desire is to bless us here and now and in an eternity in heaven. Be encouraged, look ahead, put the past behind you.