Tuesday, November 20, 2007

The two sides



There's at least two sides to everything, as they say.
I've known it, but I was reminded of it tonight.
Sometimes, as I try to decide on something, it's as if Satan was whispering, "It's too early." At the same time, I know God says, "Today is the day of salvation."
So I listen to Satan, because I want to wait.
Then, when I change my mind minutes, days, or months down the line, Satan screams, "It's too late." At the same time God looks at me and says, "Today is the day of salvation."

I used to think that a good friend is someone who smiles and nods while you talk. Then I found out that lots of people do that, and only some of them are listening; only some of them are your friends. Sometimes the best friend you can have is the one who cuts you off when your monologue gets boring. If they didn't do it, the next polite person you repeated your "great story" to would have to be bored, too!

So if a true friend tells you how things are, and doesn't simply second your whims and wants, which is a true friend: Satan, or God? Satan, I've found, acts as if he's on my side when he wants to convince me of something. If I want to get out of work by citing a starving belly (which has never yet starved), he seconds it. God through the Holy Spirit might remind me to keep at what I should be doing, and enjoy the fruits of my work later!

When my flesh cries out, Satan cries out with it, trying to sway my resolve. God, on the other hand, often tells me to ignore my flesh and focus on Him and His Way.

When I listen to my flesh and to Satan's secondings, I always look back at the decision with shame. But when God, my true friend, helps me find the better way, I look up at Him with even more reverence than before.

As Jesus said, "I call you friend!"

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