The Lion Wakes Tonight




Greetings in the Lord!

I want to share with all of you a dream I had this morning that was pretty scary. I was walking at night with a group of people in an unfamiliar city and we were trying to find our way. Just then, over my shoulder I saw movement along a side street and turned my head to see what it was--a huge lion was prowling the streets! And as it is with many dreams, things are not totally life size, but this lion was as big as a rhinoceros!





"Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." 1 Peter 5:8





Right after the Holy Spirit said the above verse, the lion turned his head to look at me and roared fiercely--I wanted to run like there was no tomorrow, but instead I was frozen stiff. As my mind whirled of what to do next, my eyes gazed at the lion's body. It was solid muscle. Its paws were as big as my head and I imagined how with one swipe it would remove an entire face from an individual and tear out their heart. Faceless, heartless...faithless, it would leave its victim helpless.

When you study out that passage from 1 Peter 5, it talks about being submissive to those who are older and before God and "clothing ourselves with humility." The other verse that mentions submitting yourself to God, resisting the devil and he will flee is in James 4:7. Actually, I like that one a bit more as it includes a discussion about how our fleshly desires can ensnare us, both by tempting us to engage with the world and by corrupting our spirits as we covet what others have. But in both the root cause is the same: our pride. Whether we think we know more, deserve better, or are entitled to be the first, our pride is a corrupting force that causes us to become unsubmissive to God and vulnerable, even compliant with the schemes of the enemy, the devil. I believe my dream had these same implications.

In a nutshell, we must know that it is imperative to humble ourselves before God these days and to obey what He has told us to do in faith. I have heard this so often from Christians: "I wish I could hear what the Lord is saying--I'd do it." But I have not found that to be the case many times. With a little asking, I soon find out that they know full well what they should be doing and are resisting doing it. Maybe they discredit the messenger who told them, or dismiss the obvious signs the Lord has put in their path, but whatever the reason, they are just being unfaithful. Unbelieving "believers," end of story. They do not even see the lion that is prowling around, licking his chops at the thought of devouring yet another prideful "Christian."

"Come near to God and He will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up."
James 4:8-10

~Be blessed and be a blessing.

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