Do Not Let The Devil steal Your Joy!

The Bible is clear that the devil is a destroyer. He seeks to kill, steal, and destroy anything and anyone he can – John 10:10 makes this very clear.  But what does that mean for us?  How do we protect ourselves from the devil’s attacks? In this blog post, we’ll explore the devil’s tactics and how to fight back against him. Stay strong, friends and do not let the devil steal your joy ever again!

In John 10:10, the bible clearly pointed out the task of the devil which is to steal, kill, and destroy. That’s the modus operandi of the enemy and he’ll stop at nothing to achieve his aims. He can steal your peace, joy, faith, bit by bit. He can destroy your business, marriage, finances, relationships, faith, spiritual life, etc. He can also kill you

How Does The Devil Do It?

The devil wants to control people’s lives. He does this by planting seeds of doubt and fear in their minds. He wants them to focus on their problems and negative thoughts so they’ll be more likely to make bad decisions. The devil also uses people’s weaknesses against them. He knows what makes them tick and he uses that to his advantage.

1. Attack your life. The devil’s first strategy is to attack your life. This attack includes attacks on your finances/business, family, health, and plans. When you see these things happening, know that the devil is seeking to destroy you. The main reason he’s attacking you is that he wants to weaken your faith, so he can bring in his arsenal of strategies and destroy you completely.

2. Lying and Cheating. One of the first strategies of the devil is lying and cheating. This is found in the book of Genesis 3:2-8 when he lied about the true meaning of the word of God to Eve. By so doing, he was able to lead her into sin. The devil also used this tactic when he tempted Jesus in the wilderness.

He lied about the true nature of God, saying that he would give Jesus all the kingdoms of the world if he would just worship him. This tactic is easily identified when the devil begins to quote the word of God in a bid to pass his point and confuse/convince you to do evil. He also uses this tactic when he tries to make you doubt the goodness and love of God. The devil is a master of deception and his greatest weapon is lying – John 8:44 confirms this.

3. The devil tempts people with things they want/need. He uses people’s desires against them. For example, he might tempt someone with food if they’re hungry or with money if they’re needy. He also takes advantage of people when they’re vulnerable, such as when they’re tired, sad, or angry. Also, he might tell someone that it’s okay to lie or cheat if it benefits them.

He may also use our desire for money to make us greedy or our desire for power to make us prideful. Given the fact that the individual is desperate to meet a need, the devil’s deception can be quite convincing. 2 Corinthians 11:3 says, “But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”

4. By causing division. Another way that the devil kills, steals, and destroys is to use the age-long divide and conquer strategy.  This tactic is used to create division among people so that they are more easily controlled. The devil does this by sowing discord and confusion. He also causes people to doubt each other and mistrust each other.

One of the most effective ways the devil divides people is by getting them to focus on their differences instead of their similarities. When people are focused on their differences, they are more likely to be critical and judgmental of each other. They are also more likely to be resentful and angry toward each other.

The devil also uses the divide and conquer tactic to create division within the Church (See Acts 15:1-12). He does this by causing people to focus on minor doctrinal differences and start arguments about them. He also encourages people to form cliques and factions within the Church. This division among believers makes it easier for the devil to attack and destroy the Church from within.

5. He creates fear, frustration, confusion, and doubt. The devil does this is by creating fear. Fear is a powerful emotion that can control and paralyze people. The devil loves to use fear to keep people from living their best lives. He wants us to be afraid of what might happen instead of focusing on what God has promised us.

The devil also likes to steal our joy and destroy our peace. He does this by creating frustration and confusion. When we are frustrated, we are not able to focus on the good things in our lives. We become angry and resentful. This destroys our peace and prevents us from being able to enjoy life.

The devil also loves to create doubt. He wants us to doubt ourselves, our abilities, and our worth. Doubt can make us feel like we are not good enough or that we are not capable of doing anything. This can prevent us from trusting God wholly.

6. Uses people’s weaknesses against them. The devil is also very good at using people’s weaknesses against them. He knows what makes us tick and he uses that against us. For example, he may use our fear of failure to keep us from taking risks or trying new things. Or he may use our need for approval to make us proud and pompous.

Judas was a thief and his love for stealing opened the door for the devil to destroy him (See John 12:6). Even Samson’s weakness was used against him to bring him down.

7. Uses friends/people around you against you. Another way the devil can steal, kill, and destroy is by using the friends/people around you to influence you.  This is why it is important to mind the company you keep. If you don’t, then be rest assured that negative influences from your friends will seep into your life and cause you to leave the path of righteousness.

8. He tries to keep you busy so that you don’t have time for God. This is one way a lot of Christians fall into the trap of the devil.  They get so busy with work, family, and other things that they don’t have time for God. And when you don’t have time for God, you become more vulnerable to the devil’s attacks. The devil knows this and will try to keep you as busy as possible so that you won’t be able to focus on your relationship with God.

9. He tries to make you feel guilty and ashamed. He tries to make you feel guilty and ashamed. The devil is a master of deception, and he will try to convince you that you are not good enough, that you are unworthy of God’s love because of what you’ve done. He will tell you that you are doomed to fail, that you might as well give up now because there is no hope for you.

But you and I know God loves us but hates the things we do.  That’s why he sent Jesus to die for us so that we could be forgiven and have eternal life. The devil doesn’t want you to have that hope, so he will try to make you feel as if you are already condemned.

10. He tries to get you to compare yourself to others. The devil will try to get you to compare yourself to others. He will show you all the ways that you are not as good as someone else, and he will make you feel like you will never measure up. The devil will try to get you to focus on your problems. He will make them seem bigger than they are and convince you that you will never be able to overcome them. But we know that God is bigger than our problems, and he can help us to overcome them. We just need to trust him, have faith, be patient, and be obedient. 

11. He tries to make you think that God is not good. The devil will try to make you think that God is not good. He will show you all the bad things that happen in the world and try to convince you that a loving God would never allow such things to happen. But we know that  God is good, even when bad things happen. We know that he is in control and that he has a plan for our lives. And at the appointed time, his plans will be revealed to us.

12. He tries to make you think that sin is not really that bad, or that “it’s not really sin” The devil will try to make you think that sin is not really that bad. He will convince you that everyone does it, so it can’t be that big of a deal. But we know that sin is bad. It separates us from God and leads to death. So we need to avoid it at all costs. The bible warns us to abstain from all appearances of evil in 1 Thess. 5:22. As long as it’s sin, you must not do it, even if everyone else is doing it and getting away with it.

Fight and Win the Devil With These Tips

You can fight the devil each time he comes to attack you. Yes, I said each time because the devil only goes away for a season to re-strategize and attack again. The book of Luke 4:13 affirms this.

1. Put on the whole armor of God. Be strong in the Lord and equip yourself with his whole armor. You can stand firm and withstand the devil every time he comes. Ephesians 6:11-19 outlines the components of the armor of God.

2. Know the word of God. If there’s one thing the devil knows very well, it’s the word of God. His knowledge of the word of God makes it possible for him to twist its meaning to deceive Christians. Study to show thyself approved. The word of God is known as the Sword of the Spirit. You can wield a sword if you’ve been equipped with it. Equip yourself with the sword the devil also uses.

3. Pray and rebuke him. The bible makes it clear that the fervent prayer of the righteous does much. No wonder Jesus urges us to pray without ceasing. However, for you to pray and rebuke the devil to flee, you must first submit yourself to God, and then you can resist the devil and he’ll flee from you.

In summary, I want to say this one thing – be vigilant and prepare to fight the devil anytime he shows up in your neighborhood. Don’t allow him to come close to your house before you start fighting him. May God give you the strength and grace to win these battles in Jesus’ name, Amen!