Encouragement Combats the Lies
What lies have you believed? What lies are you telling yourself?
Verse of the Day
“But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.”
Today’s Devotional
I’ve never thought about sin being a liar. I know that satan is a liar, but I’ve never thought about sin’s lies. But as I think about it, sin tempts us with lies, as it promises relief or pleasure or comfort that it cannot provide. As I researched that a little further, here is what one commentary says: “If sin came with full revelation, full exposure of all its consequences, it would be unattractive. Sin is deceitful in the way it comes to us. Sin is deceitful in what it promises us. Sin is deceitful in what it calls itself. Sin is deceitful in the excuses it makes, both before and after the sin.”
I’ve also never really realized that encouragement is the antidote to sin’s lies. I must be giving and receiving encouragement from others who are passionately following Jesus in order to keep my heart from believing the lies of sin. But there’s an underlying issue here. I must be in daily fellowship with other believers if I am going to be in a position to give and receive encouragement. I’ve never lived a single day that wasn’t called “Today”. Every single day I live is “Today” during those 24 hours. And every single day has some kind of struggle and temptation. But if I’m communicating with other believers who are encouraging me to follow Jesus, those struggles and temptations have much less chance of victory in my heart.
The other thing to note here is the hardening of the heart. After doing some reading about that, the fear is not that my heart will suddenly become calloused and hard, like Pharaoh’s heart did. My heart can gradually become hard by believing the lies that sin tells. “I’m not good enough.” “My opinion matters more than yours.” “I’m not worthy of God’s love and grace and mercy.” “This isn’t really that bad.” “No one will know.” “I can’t handle this.” “What if…….”. The more I listen to the lies, the more I believe them. Unless I am consistently being encouraged by truth.
What if, as we seek discernment in our lives, we turn to encouragement as the answer? As I am seeking, I can actively encourage the people in my life. As I seek, I can read Scripture over myself, to encourage my heart and mind and spirit that God is good. It’s possible that as I become an encourager, the answers I so desperately seek will come. At the very least, we can see one easy way to be obedient.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
Are you an encourager? Do you speak God’s truth to others easily?
Do you easily accept encouragement and correction? How can you give others permission to encourage you?
Do you confront and combat the lies that sin tells you? How can you encourage yourself with Scripture today?
Who (specifically) can you encourage today?