lights, camera, deception!

wow, i have been spamed! check out the comment on my last blog, its just a stupid advertisement for somthing, i don't even know what! thats crazy. i wonder if that works, advertising through blog comments. i'd just imagine that it gets people ticked off. "hmm....they are using my blog for thier own free advertising... ooooo lama insurance, sounds important, i think i'll buy some" i thought it was kinda funny, and i reallized that i have no idea how to erase comments so now everyone who wants can write a bunch of stupid stuff and i can't do anything about it! i don't care if its advertising, I like comments no matter what, I am a sick comment hungery crazed animal! Last week my youth group and I shot a bunch of cool video footage and played it in reverse so that it would look crazy awesome. we did all sorts of stuff that is impossible unless you are in the matrix. one thing we did for example was running backwards off of the roof of a shed and continuing backwards, then playing it in reverse so it looks like we are running and jumping up onto the shed. It looked pretty awesome, but one of the guys jumped off, ran backwards right into the fire pit and landed on his back. it was funny/not funny at all, because his back is in lots of pain. we did all sorts of crazy awesome stuff. my favorite was driving slowly in reverse as someone jumped onto the roof, rolled down to the hood, pushed off and ran backwards so that when we played it in reverse it looks like i'm crusing straight into a guy, clipping him at the knees, and driving off as he rolls up my whindshield. The video was great. it almost looked real. it was very decieving. I love illusions that appear real. David Blaine, David Copperfield, you know,...all those davids who are illusionists, i love that stuff! I could watch it for hours. When I was younger, i'd go to the library and get magic books and learn the tricks. then i'd do them for my family. Its very important to realize that not all things are as they seem. Not all decieving illusions are fun either. The greatest illusionist, the greatest deciever is not David Blaine, the Mind Freak, or David Copperfield. The Greatest Deciever is Satan, and hes been practicing for Thousands of years. But like all illusionists, if you study how he plays out his deception, you can catch on and not fall for his tricks the next time. In my NLT Study bible there is a little deal that talks about Satan's Plan. He uses Doubt first. If he can get you to doubt Gods word, he will get you traped. Next he uses Discouragement, you start looking at yourself and your own problems rather than at God. Then Comes Diversion, The wrong things just look so right, so appealing. next, he flips on you and uses defeat. Right after telling you, "Come on, its no big deal", he flips and says "What a horrible Christian! Man did you screw up big this time, God could never forgive you or look at you the same ever again. After that is Defeat, you feal like a failure so whats the use in even trying anymore. You are destined to be a failure so you keep on failing, there is no hope. And last there is delay. instead of running to God, to his word, and to other Christians to get back on your feet, you continue to live in the sin that Satan wanted you in, because you're just a sinner anyway...theres no way you could live the life God wants you to live. Lets look at an example. A young guy stumbles onto some Pornographic web site. He knows Gods word says that even looking at a woman with lustful thougts causes a man to commit adultry in his heart, but really what harm is looking at a few pixels on a computer really going to do. afterall, its just him and a computer, who is he hurting? Doubt. He thinks, I'm just a young guy, I'm not getting married anytime soon, my body is designed to want this stuff. I can't help it, its human nature. Discouragment. Besides, its fun, its exciting. My palms are sweating, my head is spinning. this is great! Diversion. Then it strikes. I can't believe i looked at this trash. what would my parents think! My pastor, my friends...My future wife. This picture is a woman, a person, not just an image...She was created by God, she doesn't deserve this. How could I fail God like this...I am horrible, i really blew it. Defeat. But then he does it again and again. He finally accepts that it must just be a normal thing, he really can't help it. maybe he really is just a failure bound to fail. Maybe he doesn't even mind. Delay. Satan. He loves to see us fall. He used the same tatics on Adam and Eve. I encourage you to read the story and see if you can find them being played out. (Genesis 3) Notice though that Satans first strategy is to get us to question God and Gods word. This is why its so important to place Gods word in our lives. Ephesians 6:10-17 talks about the Armor of God. the whole passage is about armor except for one weapon. that weapon is Gods word. ...take the Sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Eph 6:17 Without Gods word in our hearts and minds, when we battle Satan, we are just throughing punches, a four year old throughing punches at a football linebackers leg. we need a sword that pierces, cuts through the marrow, and wins battles. Satan doesn't decieve with cameras and mirrors, but God still gives us the strength to call his bluff.