I wanted to point out to you ladies that in the introduction to this chapter, Lisa explains that the machete is a formidable weapon for self-defense, capable of fending off assailants and wild animals and killing venomous snakes (pg 140).
This reminded me of something a friend told me last night. I was explaining how sometimes I feel like I am in a tug of war with Satan. I feel him wanting to wrap his slithering body around my arm and try with all of his might to pull me on his side, but God is not pulling my other arm, He is holding me securely in His mighty arms.
Her response was this: Satan is first mentioned as a snake in the Scriptures. Did you know that when a snake gets its head cut off, it can still live. They do not know that they are slithering around without a head. Satan is walking around with his head cut off, he just doesn’t know it yet. Genesis 3:15 says Satan will strike HIS (referring to Jesus) heels BUT HE (Jesus) WILL CRUSH HIS HEAD. Satan is still trying to have you because he doesn’t know that he is dead, but he is.
YES! He sure is dead. There is something more powerful than the machete; the stained cross where our Precious Lamb was slain for you and me. That same cross sliced the head of Satan the day He rose from the dead. Jesus has overcome Satan’s many attempts to strike His heel, with His stained cross and empty tomb. Jesus has freely given us this same victory over Satan’s many attempts to pull us on his path!
Satan is slithering around headless, he is dead, and he just doesn’t know it yet. When he tries to wrap around your arm, that is when we, princess-warriors-in-training, MUST slay his grasp with the machete of God’s word.
When we are on God’s path for us, we will encounter the snake in many forms. The snake wants us on his path. He will pull out all of his tricks to discourage us on our path for God. Lisa tells us on page 150 that even if the snake is not positioned to strike, it must be removed. Snakes are a threat, but not to God. When we are living our life for Christ, snakes lose their threat to us. Especially when you know the snake doesn’t have a head!
We have all power and all authority of God behind us, ready to take on that headless snake! Philippians 3:21 “The Lord Jesus Christ, who by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body.” The same God who raises our bodies to be with Him in Heaven one glorious day, is the same God who has beheaded Satan’s body. We have God’s mighty power behind us, the work has already been done, Satan is already dead. We must continue on God’s path and be prepared princess warriors with the machete of God’s word in our hands and on our tongues at all times!
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Let’s pray Lisa’s prayer together:
Dear Heavenly Father, direct my paths by the light of your Word, and instruct me in ways to leave a clearly marked trail behind for others. I want to use your Word to create environments that encourage others to flourish. I choose to guard my heart so as not to mistake co-laborers for competitors. Open my eyes to see the fields surrounding my life that are white and ready for harvest. In Jesus’s name, Amen.
AMEN!
