Checking the Parameters of Your Fence

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary, the devil, walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” I Peter 5:8

Have you ever watched a lion up close, like at the zoo? This lion was one we saw at the zoo, and he was pacing back and forth in front of the glass as if he were looking for a way to get to the gazing onlookers. Every few steps he would growl or roar in an attempt to be intimidating, which I must say, was working for me.

I couldn’t help but think of the verse in I Peter that says our adversary, the devil, is like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Just as this lion kept pacing in front of the window just looking for the slightest chance to get through to what he saw as a great meal, so Satan is stealthily moving back and forth along the parameters of our life just waiting for the slightest opening that would enable him to attack. Oh, it wouldn’t take a big opening. The large lion at the zoo that was eyeing us as he licked his chops wouldn’t have needed a large crack in the glass to get through. It would have only taken a small break in the window and he could have used his gigantic paws to pounce through to his appetizing audience on the other side. As it relates to our Adversary, it is the same way in our lives. The slightest vulnerability would do, because it is there that he would focus all his energy until the weak spot became an all out opening for his attack.

Cracks in the fences of our lives can come in all kinds of areas. They can be that one television show that we know isn’t honoring to God, but we say “it isn’t that bad or at least it’s not…” Perhaps it is a relationship that we are sensing God’s “red flags” in, yet we aren’t heeding his warnings. For some of us, it may be a root of bitterness that we are refusing to address as we keep telling ourselves it will just go away with time. Whatever it may be, if it goes unattended, it will become a stronghold for the adversary, and once he is inside your fence, he wreaks havoc on every area of your life.

What about you? Have you checked the parameters of your life’s fence lately? Are you making daily inspections to find the weak spots, because your Adversary certainly is. Don’t let him find a break in your fence. You must take the time to do the necessary daily inspection. Go over your heart and mind, using the Word of God as your “fence mender”, and attend to any areas that need to be restored. I believe this is what it means when it says for us to “be sober, be vigilant”. We have a responsibility to keep the fences strong in our life in order to stay protected from the one seeking to devour us and all that God has entrusted to us.

Lord, show me today any areas in my life that are unguarded. Reveal to me the places that need my attention and give me the ability to do whatever necessary to fix the “gap”. Thank you, Lord, that I am not protecting my life alone, but if I will just take the time each day to meet with you, it is during that time that you will reveal where I am weak and how I can be strong. Thank you that you are stronger and have already defeated the Adversary on my behalf.



You can read from Tammy by visiting her at Steps in Our Journey