October 29, 2025

“Be sober-minded, be alert. Your adversary the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour. Resist him, firm in the faith, knowing that the same kind of sufferings are being experienced by your fellow believers throughout the world.” – 1 Peter 5:8-9

Yesterday I was doing some fabrication on my 1972 Ford pickup in order to convert it over to power steering. I needed to reach down into the engine compartment, climb in the fender well, and then lay underneath the truck to measure, cut, and bolt things together…and then do it all again many times. I’m paying for all those automotive gymnastics this morning! After doing serious damage to both my shoulders in 2018 and breaking my back last year, my favorite hobby has become much more difficult. Working on cars in my shop for one day always means one or two days of pain and recovery afterwards. For a while I just quit doing what I love because the doctors have told me this pain will never go away. But now I have learned to look at these injuries as my adversary. I am not going to let them win! I will do what I love, understanding that pain is now part of it. Don’t get me wrong, I still take these injuries seriously. I must be careful. But I refuse to sit around and do nothing just because I know doing the work will be painful.

Our enemy, Satan, loves to keep us sedentary. If he can make God’s work difficult enough for us that we sit around and do nothing instead, then he has won. Don’t let him win! Take him seriously and watch out for his schemes, but don’t give up just because he means to cause you pain along the way. Trust me, the work is even more rewarding when you have not only accomplished the task, but in doing so, have also overcome the enemy. It becomes not just accomplishment, but victory!

Father, strengthen us in the battle against our enemy. Never let the pain and struggles of this life keep us from doing the work that will last for eternity.

In Christ’s Service,

Pastor Shane Cannon