Today, I was privileged to have the opportunity to share the word with a group of 11 friends. Short of time to prepare, I leaned on one of my most read posts this year, titled “On the verge of breakthrough, beware of satan’s overtime’, with ChatGPT helping to transform it into a powerful sermon 🤓.
The essence of this note is just to share a light-hearted experience that followed the sermon. We headed to the woods to see the highest waterfall in this part of town then proceeded on a 5km hike. 1km into the hike, one of the ladies was so exhausted that she wanted us to leave her behind and pick her up on the way back. We managed to convince her to continue, which she did. But after 4km, she was now too exhausted to continue and two members of the hiking party also decided to give up here to support her. At the point where they gave up, we weren’t quite sure where the finish line was but having been on the trail for some time, we felt it was close. And indeed, it was. The below picture is that of the still lake that we met at the finish line before commencing our shortcut journey back to the starting point.
As the sermon from the morning was still fresh on our minds, we couldn’t help but draw a quick parallel between the Israelites who gave up / sinned on the border of receiving their long-awaited promise, and our fellow friends who not only gave up just before the finish line but also hitched a ride back. Imagine! 😅 Also, there was only one person who was really tired; however, possibly faced with the attraction of giving up and having other people in their boat, a total of three people ultimately didn’t make it to the finish line. This brought home the power of influence and peer pressure.
Bringing it home, this is just a gentle reminder to remain vigilant in these last days and mindful of the company we keep. As ChatGPT nicely helped me re-phrase:
Satan knows when we are on the verge of a breakthrough, and he will do everything in his power to distract, deceive, and destroy us. The enemy’s strategies may not always be direct or obvious. They may come in the form of small compromises, distractions, or even moments of weakness when we’re tired or stressed. As we approach the promises and blessings God has for us, let us remain sober and vigilant. The enemy is relentless, but our God is greater! He has equipped us with everything we need to stand firm, even in the face of intense spiritual warfare. Let us heed the lessons from the Israelites and the many others who faced the enemy’s overtime attacks. Let us stay close to God, keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, and put on the full armor of God, that we may stand firm and enter into the fullness of His promises for our lives. On the verge of your breakthrough, beware of satan’s overtime. God bless you!
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Very instructive. I was encouraging my team at a meeting this afternoon that the last 10% of any project is the most difficult. Not because there’s more work and not for the complexity of the project but because people just give up! Why? The finish line appears to be nowhere in sight. So we must turn up every single day, ready to do our part until we get to the finish line. Just continue to put one foot ahead of the other in our Christian journey. Keep walking!
Very well said! Another analogy is when you’re moving houses. The first 90% of things to pack is often easiest to do. But that last 10% with all the small items to pack is what tends to be most frustrating and potentially where one would want to give up. So again, well said and thanks for your comment and insights! 👌🏾
Such great practical analysis.
Lovely and educative one as usual.
May God continue to bless your ministry!