Do you ever have thoughts that leave you feeling sorry for yourself or questioning God’s goodness? A client listed all the reasons she didn’t trust God. Recognizing one of Satan’s deception tactics, when she finished I said, “You just described the devil and called him God.”
Last week we introduced the thief who poses as an angel of light and plants lies in our minds. How do we identify the father of lies?
Each letter in the acronym DARTS identifies a different aspect of the types of thoughts the thief sows. After describing the negative, we use the same letter to show how Jesus protects us from the thief. The contrast shows which thoughts to trust and which to take captive and make obedient to Christ. Today we look at the D in DARTS.
Satan’s DARTS Are Destructive
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy” (John 10:10 NIV).
The thief’s purpose is to steal our peace, kill our joy, and destroy our trust in God and His ways. If we take the bait, he’ll sideline us from God’s purpose for our lives and harm our relationships with Him, ourselves, and others without laying a hand on us. He knows our vulnerable spots. C. S. Lewis brilliantly illustrates this in The Silver Chair from The Chronicles of Narnia.
Deception Tactics Exposed
Aslan, the great lion, commissions two children and a marsh wiggle to rescue the lost prince of Narnia. They travel by foot into unknown territory. Plummeting temperatures make camping and securing meals miserable.
Crossing a bridge, they encounter a beautiful lady on horseback who expresses concern for the children’s welfare. “You must head for the gentle giant’s castle and escape the coming snow. Tell them I sent you for their autumn feast,” she coos. “The giants will provide warm baths, hot meals, and soft beds. Hurry! They close their gates at dusk.”
Warm baths, hot meals, and soft beds! The promised relief erases all thoughts of the lost prince. Reaching the giant’s castle and comforts replaces all thoughts of their true purpose.
The giants welcome them and provide the promised comforts. Trusting the lady seems to have been a smart move…until Jill stumbles upon an open cookbook and learns children and marsh wiggle are on the Autumn Feast menu!
The lady, a witch in disguise, won their trust by identifying the children’s felt needs—food, comfort, and shelter. She didn’t have to use force to get them to forsake their mission and destroy themselves. I bet you’ve seen parallels in your life.
How do we recognize these deception tactics and resist the destructive darts in our own lives? With the help of our Deliverer.
How do we recognize the destructive darts in our own lives? We seek the help of our Deliverer. #Savior, #discernment Click To TweetJesus Is Our Deliverer
While the thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy, Jesus said, “My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life” (John 10:10 NLT). Satan offers instant relief, but Jesus offers lasting satisfaction.
Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). He reveals the truth behind our thoughts and impressions when we ask (Matthew 7:8). He delivers us from evil and deception (Matthew 6:13). While the enemy pressures us to act now or miss out, our Deliverer invites us to seek Him and His peace.
However, be warned. Sometimes even after heeding the Spirit’s caution we can have thoughts that question and challenge our decisions. We hear about the good time others had who participated in what we gave up. We see their success and wonder why those who don’t seem to care about the Spirit’s leading seem to have so much more success. Was our discernment from God or our flesh?
If Eve had submitted to God, she would never have known evil. When we submit to God, we may never know what God spared us from. Discernment grows through practice (Hebrews 5:12-14). Using the DARTS acronym will train our senses. As we practice taking our thoughts captive our discernment grows.
Next week we’ll unpack Accusing thoughts. If the thief can’t steal our victory, he often turns accuser. “You fool. You missed out.” He sows doubts in our ability to discern God’s voice hoping to steal our joy and get us to fall next time.
Has the enemy ever used a felt need to pull you off track from God’s perfect will?
Strength Builder:
Bring every questionable and unwholesome idea or impression to your Deliverer.
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” (John 10:27 NASB 1995)
“A lying tongue hates its victims, and flattering words cause ruin.” (Proverbs 26:28 NLT)
Find Part 3 here.
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Blessings,
Resources
- Free PDF on DARTS under handouts
- Give Yourself a Break Bible study
- Give Yourself a Break from Temptation and Spiritual Attacks E-book
- Little Strength, Big God (Chapter 8)
Sometimes I link with these great sites:
#InstaEncouragements, #TellHisStory, #Let’sHaveCoffee, #Grace&Truth
So important to know these truths!
Ann, we certainly need to stay alert!
We DO have an enemy!
We certainly do!
‘Jesus is our Deliverer.’
Yes and amen, Debbie. And this is where our hope comes from. We do not need to fear. But we do need to keep our eyes fixed on Him. And He will carry us through …
Yes, Linda. We certainly need Him to navigate us through the maze of enticements that try to lure us off the straight path.
Thank you Debbie for sharing these truths about the father of lies. He is crafty and we can get caught up in his web before we know it. These were very helpful.
Thank you, Yvonne. Web is a good description.
This is so powerful, Debbie, “Recognizing one of Satan’s deception tactics, when she finished, I said, ‘You just described the devil and called him God.’”
Thank you, Lisa. I really enjoyed your post today and shared it on FB.
C.S. Lewis was so astute at describing humanity!
The lady, a witch in disguise, won their trust by identifying the children’s felt needs—food, comfort, and shelter. She didn’t have to use force to get them to forsake their mission and destroy themselves. I bet you’ve seen parallels in your life.
Donna, I glean so much from his writing. His insights are amazing.
Thank you for that message. So true and I always need to hear it.
Thank you, Meade. Yes, we are in a battle, and we can experience attacks without realizing what’s going on.
I’m always amazed at how easily people fall for lies; I believe firmly that it’s because they don’t know the truth! I’m ashamed to see many self-proclaimed Christians who fall for a false religion that Satan has stolen and subverted. He is a master at turning God’s truths into lies and deceived people so easily accept it. Thank you for speaking truth here Ms. Debbie.
Thank you, J. D.!