Redeeming the Irredeemable

Ephesians 4:27
    “nor give place to the devil.” NKJV
    “and do not give the devil a foothold.” NIV

    In the last verse we are told to not let the sun go down on our wrath. Why? Because it gives a foothold to the devil in our hearts.
    Anger, bitterness, and malice opens a door for Satan, and once he gets his foot in, it becomes a lot harder to close.
    This applies to more areas than simple anger. For me the devil finds other footholds. For as long as I can remember I’ve had the words “No redeeming value,” stuck in my head.
    Every time someone turns their back on me or says something that hurts me, even little insignificant things, those words echo in my head. Always those three little words.
    It basically means that I’m not worthwhile, and can never be made so. It justifies their actions toward me by proving my own insignificance.
    I don’t remember when I opened that door to him, but ever since then I’ve never been able to truly regain that ground which I lost. His foot is in the door and pushing on it however hard I might try won’t get it closed again.
    “… He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” 1 John 4:4b
    The Lord has not been gracious enough to take those thoughts from me, but since the events described in a previous blog post, every time I hear those words I look back and remember that momentous day in which God proved that statement wrong. Truly the Lord does work for my best, even when I do not understand why, because when I hear those words though they still hurt me on some level, I am again reminded of the spiritual war which we are in. And through acknowledging the devil’s devices, the Lord gains ground on the battlefield of my heart.
    It is good to know God can make bad mistakes into good reminders. However the devil should never have been able to take that ground to begin with.
    Brothers, guard your hearts from the evil that smells like happiness but tastes like death. Don’t buy into the lie. Don’t give him the pleasure.
    Pray to God for the strength to win the moment, for the future and past are out of our reach. But this moment God has delivered into our hands and all we have to do is live it in obedience.