“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
In our anxiety, in our time of need, in our time of suffering--we need to think rightly. It is easy to slump into a daze and allow the flood of difficult circumstances to wash over you, overwhelming you with sorrow. This does not mean that we make ourselves so callus that we don’t feel it when things should hurt. It means that we are sober-minded. Satan wants us to give into our circumstances, rebelling against God, denying God (as he had hoped that Job would). This type of reaction is due to a failure to think correctly and guard against our adversary. If we are not watchful, if we do not guard against these types of attacks, we will be devoured.
We need to be steadfast in trials. We are not the only Christians who have suffered, nor are we the only ones suffering right now. And our suffering is only temporary. God, “the God of all grace,” will lift us up and make us into something better than we were than when we began. He will make us stronger and more faithful to Him. He has this right, and when He does this, He does it in love and for our good. Satan wants us to rise up against God and cast off our faith, making us bitter, unhappy people. God wants to strengthen us and give us greater joy in Him. He can do it, and He will do it. We need to watch for it soberly, even in times of sadness.
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