I am no longer the things of my past...I am the daughter of the Great I AM.

Exodus 3:14
And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." And He said, "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"
2 Corithians 6:18
I will be a Father to you, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.

Saturday, August 6, 2011

I Don't Want to be a Gullible Woman

A few weeks ago, I was reading from 2 Timothy. Here are the first 5 verses of Chapter 3:

1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!

Now that is pretty powerful, and I believe that it definitely applies to the times we are living in. However, it is the next two verses that has really clung to me.

6 For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, 7 always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Wow! The first thing I thought was, "Thankfully I am not a gullible woman." I immediately felt God say, "Oh really? Are you sure?" Talk about humbling... there is nothing like being prideful and having God shut you down! Now my first instinct was to argue. I wanted to say that I do not let perilous men like described in the first 5 verses in my house. I am not led away by my lusts. However, I didn't argue. Instead, I asked God to show me how I am being a gullible woman. I wanted to know how I was letting these things creep into my house, how am I being led astray. So, I began watching for God to reveal to me areas in which I need to be more guarded.

This is an ongoing lesson, but here is what I have discerned so far...

The first area that I am letting "perilous men" creep into my house is the television. I like to have some sort of noise going at all times. This stems from growing up as the only child remaining at the home of a divorced mother working shift work. I was home a lot by myself, and therefore wanted noise. To this day, I want the TV or radio on. I may not be paying attention, but the background noise is comforting to me. I am very selective about what channels or stations I have on. However, God showed me that even if it is a "good" station, there could be bad things I am allowing in my house. Now, I am not saying that we will be getting rid our television. I am saying that I will limit (even more closely than before) what is being watched and when. Another side effect of the TV being on all the time, is that both me and my children have a tendency to stop when something on TV catches our eye. It is then that we become idle instead of productive or creative.

The second area that I am letting "perilous men" creep into my house is Facebook. Ouch, yea that one hurt! It is also a little ironic that I will be posting this blog on my facebook page. I don't sit hours in front of the computer creepin on facebook. I do however check it every couple of hours to see what is going on in the lives of others. I would justify this by saying things like, "I may miss a prayer request if I don't check my page regularly." How's that for putting a church spin on things??? I am a keeper of my home. That is what God designed me to be. I can't be a keeper of my home and everybody else's home at the same time. Facebook is good for staying in touch with friends and family. However, do I really need to know that Susie Housecoat took her dog to the vet? Do you really need to know that I went to Wal Mart? I have already started, and will continue to limit my time on facebook. I will not be dropping my facebook account. I will, however, not spend hours each day creepin on my friends. I will not check constantly throughout the day to be sure I haven't missed something. Facebook is another way in which I tend to become idle instead of productive.

Have you noticed that both the television and Facebook create idle time. It is during our idle time, that Satan can come in to decieve. It is then that we can be "led away by our various lusts." In Proverbs 31 God's word gives us a picture of a virtous wife. If you see, she is busy "doing". She is not idle. As a matter of fact in verse 27, it says that she "does not eat the bread of idleness."

When I bow down before Him, I do not want to hear, "Gullible Woman, you allowed perilous men to creep into your house, and you were led astray." Instead, I want to hear, "well done my good and faithful servant."

What about you? Are there areas you are allowing perilous men into your house? Are you being led astray? Ask God to show you where you need to be more guarded.