Stink Bugs, Michael Jordan, and Satan – Knowing tendencies

Everyone has their own way of dealing with stink bugs.  Most probably use a piece of tissue paper and implement the grab and flush method.  Personally, I do not like wasting so many flushes and so much toilet tissue or kleenexes, so I have a bottle half full of a nicely scented cleaning solution and I knock them in to the bottle.  It is pretty simple once you know their tendencies.  Many times they are on a screen or on the wall.  I put the bottle about an inch under them on their rear side.  Then I come in with my finger from the front and they drop off whatever they are holding on to, and they always push themselves away from my hand that’s in front of them.  They always go in reverse.  I have about a 90% success rate.  They don’t suffer, a few seconds and they’re done.  They’re all the same.

I remember Michael Jordan once talking about tendencies after one of his retirements.  He said that he had to play each opponent differently.  Some he wanted to be tough on and demoralize right at the beginning of the game and he had them in his pocket the rest of the game.  That would not work for others.  Some people he played against would respond to Jordan’s early pressure and play better.  He knew who they were and he would give them some room so they did not get too fired up.  He knew every players tendencies.

I suppose some of you know where I am going now.  Did you know you have an enemy who knows your tendencies?  He knows your weaknesses and strengths.  He knows the advertisements to put along the right hand side of the web page you are visiting to tempt you.  He knows everything about you.  Just as I studied stink bugs and Michael Jordan studied opponents in order to defeat them, you have an enemy who studies you to defeat you.  And he is good at his job.  He is a trickster.  He convinces you that nobody will know.  He tricks you to make you think think that sin is not sin, and that bad is good.

How do you battle the devil?  You do not do it by ignoring him and being lukewarm toward your Christian walk.  Scripture does not say, “Ignore the devil and he will flee from you.”  It does say, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7)  How do you resist him?  You stay close to God.  Read the Bible.  Pray.  GO TO CHURCH. 

I have not yet found that he will flee forever, but as I stay close to Jesus, I know His Spirit will help me and will not let the devil defeat me.  And those are bold words that will probably get the devil riled up, so when I finish today’s blog post, I will read some more from my Bible.  In doing so, I do not give the devil much room to get between me and God.  Scripture would call that “not giving the devil a foothold.”

…do not give the devil a foothold. ~ Ephesians 4:27

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