NO FOOTHOLD

Prayer: Dear Lord, please keep us aware of our enemy’s schemes and tricks, and please give us wisdom to send him out of sight. Thank you. Amen

Scripture: …and do not give the devil a foothold. Eph. 4:27 NIV

While sitting in the school parking lot I watched two seagulls flying around the light poles. One would fly to a pole and the other would fly and chase it off. It would fly to another pole and try to blend in and again the other would come chase it off. The uninvited gull tried several tricks; he looked harmless enough, and after all, how much room could one gull take in that huge parking lot? They squawked back and forth at one another and he even put up a fight, but the first gull was not content until the trespassing gull flew away out of the parking lot and out of sight. Even after the perpetrator was gone, he watched attentively to make sure he did not try to sneak back in. I find it strange to see seagulls in Colorado. Are they lost? Do they not know they are called “sea” gulls and not “mountain” gulls? Anyway, these two gulls caught my attention. Clearly, the first gull was intent on protecting his turf. He would not rest. He never turned his back or gave in.

I thought, “We need to be like that gull when it comes to chasing away any ungodly trespassers to our school, home, and church turf.” Satan tries to lay claim in these sacred places and we, like that gull, must continue to chase him off. If we chase him out of our class by enforcing discipline policies, then Satan will search for other avenues. He will try to infiltrate our curriculum or blind the minds of administrators towards rights when it comes to holidays, performances, and lesson plans. He will fly into our lounge and stir up trouble or into our library and computer labs. Like that gull flying from pole to pole just trying to get a foothold on that turf, Satan wants a foothold in our lives—God’s turf.

Oh, he might look harmless enough and we may hear squawks from the world fighting us to let him have a little space. But Satan will never be satisfied. If we let him have one pole, he will be after the whole package before we know it. We must persevere.

Where do you see Satan prowling in your school, home, and church? Where do you see us giving him some space? What tricks has he played to try to entice you to give him a chance? How will you chase him off? My prayer for you is that you will serve as guardians of God’s turf and not give the devil a foothold in your life or in your school.

Copyright Kathy Branzell. Email info@christianeducators.org

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