Let’s be real, sometimes it’s really challenging to not take on the cares of this world (like worrying about bills, promotions, and comparing ourselves to other people’s success). It can get difficult resisting the seductive sparkling pleasures the enemy offers, because his offers are typically custom-designed based on our weaknesses. Well, I’d like to remind us to continue fighting for our faith because it is what pleases God. During Paul’s missionary journeys one of his fellowlaborers, Demas, left Paul because he “loved this present world.” (2 Timothy 4:10, KJV) Although Demas is mentioned only three times in the Bible, the last one being his departure, it’s logical to infer that once Demas left the work, there was no need to continue recording his deeds for others.

God’s grace is sufficient to sustain us through our doubts, but we must fight for our faith because without it we cannot please God.

I believe that although we face the challenge of chasing the “things of this world” on a regular basis, there are times in our lives when it’s more difficult to resist than others. We have to remember Paul’s warning to not be ignorant of Satan’s devices, because he can have the advantage over us. (2 Corinthians 2:11) We have both the authority and the victory over anything the enemy puts in our way, so it’s critical that we stay focused on who we are and remember that God has empowered us with His power through His son, Jesus Christ.

 Here are three strategies I believe the enemy uses to seduce us into the “things of this world.”

The enemy wants us to think we’re not good enough. Without God we are not good enough, but with God, we have more than enough. We cannot let the enemy tell us who we are because he didn’t make us in the first place, and second, his goal is to destroy us. He wants us to always feel as if we’re falling short or to start comparing ourselves to others. We must remember that our measure of success is based on our own journey into who God has called us to be. God’s love for us has already been demonstrated through His son, Jesus Christ on the cross! If we were good enough for Christ to die for us, why let the enemy cause us to think otherwise during challenging times?

The enemy tries to make us be afraid. Fear has no place in the Kingdom of God. Because we belong to God and Christ has taken and conquered anything the enemy had in his possession, we don’t have to choose fear. We can choose courage because God didn’t give us the fear in the first place, but He has given us love, power, and a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7) Ambrose Redmoon said that “Courage is not the absence of fear but the judgment that something else is more important than fear.” For me that is FAITH in God. 

The enemy wants us to give up our faith. Since he cannot take it, the enemy presents us with tough situations, scenarios, and choices to make us think that faith is futile. As long as we are in these earthly bodies, we will need to walk by faith because they cannot hold, comprehend, or embrace the full measure of the spiritual realm. God’s requirement of us to have faith is for our own good because He is God, regardless! We need to know Him and His Word in order to push through the challenges that come our way for we are “more than conquerors through Him that loved us.” (Romans 8:37)  Lack of faith exists when we want (or need) to see what God is doing or how things will work out. Since we cannot see everything God is doing, then we end up making room for fear. But, if we choose faith, fear has nowhere to live in our lives. 

In summary, one of my former pastors often said “Sin will take you places you didn’t want to go, cost you more than you wanted to pay, and keep you longer than you wanted to stay.” I believe that when we think like Demas—to love this present world, we lose the capacity to embrace the faith that is required for Kingdom living. We cannot have them both. As Joshua said “choose ye this day whom ye will serve.” (Joshua 24:15) Let us choose Christ. Let us choose life!