Keep me safe, Lord, from the hands of the wicked; protect me from the violent, who devise ways to trip my feet. The arrogant have hidden a snare for me; they have spread out the cords of their net and have set traps for me along my path.

— Psalm 140:4-5 (NIV)

Satan and those through whom he works are masters of deception. We should pray regularly to have discernment between good and evil and for God to protect us from deception.

Sometimes I think the devil seems to know us better than we know ourselves. He knows our weak points, and I often say that he sets us up to get us upset. One thing in which the devil delights is for us to lose our peace. For example, if having to spend money on repairs for your home makes you upset, the devil will make sure things break down. I can easily become frustrated and sometimes angry if a repairperson has an appointment to fix something in our home and doesn’t show up or even bother to call to cancel. But getting upset does no good. It doesn’t change anything except that it steals my peace, and makes the devil happy.

You can see from our scriptures today that Satan sets traps for us, but we can avoid them if we are aware of his tactics. The Bible says we are to resist the devil at his onset (1 Peter 5:9 AMPC), meaning immediately when we realize he is working against us. He roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour (1 Peter 5:8 AMPC). But you and I don’t have to let him devour us. God will help us and teach us how to watch for the enemy’s deception, and we should resist him immediately, knowing that God is on our side.

Prayer of the Day: Father, help me recognize the traps that the enemy sets for me, and give me discernment so I can avoid his wicked ways.

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