John 8:44, “You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.”

The first understanding that is necessary for each and every believer is the knowledge that, the moment you become a child of God by being born again, you have signed up for war and you have actually entered a very real and fierce battle ground. And one of the greatest concerns is the fact that, the war is first spiritual and not even physical. This is why a very clear and conscious knowledge of the ART, practices or methodologies of war is very important and essential to you as a believer.

The art of war is rooted in KNOWING your enemy. And this includes knowing both the strengths, weaknesses and of course, the winning STRATEGIES of your enemy. This is the only way to stay ahead and properly motivated for possible and eventual victory. The Bible told us in the book of Luke 14:31-32 that, “or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace.”

Dear friend, leave all those human enemies who you know don’t like you and are conspiring, plotting and working against you alone for a minute first. Why? Your real and truly formidable enemy is the devil; Satan, that old serpent himself. This is why the Bible says, “for our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.” Ephesians 6:12 (HCSB) So, your first failure or defeat as a child of God is to be ignorant or deny what is clearly written in the word of God; you are on the battlefield and your real enemies are not humans but spirits – very WICKED spirits.

But today’s scripture exposes both the identity and strategy of your prime enemy – the devil. The Bible says his greatest weapon also doubles as his strategy and its LIES. In fact, the Bible said, “when he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.” Please, read that again. It says lies are the NATURE and natural RESOURCES of the devil. And not that alone, he’s in fact, the FATHER, progenitor, originator and grand master of lies. No wonder, like Eve, humans have helplessly continued to fall PREY to lies since the garden of Eden. Even till date, the greatest weapon to win a war is not really nuclear weapons, but the ability to successfully lie to and deceive or confuse your enemy.

Beloved, please, be on your guard and on full alert. Only few people will know their enemy, know he or she is coming, when and how he or she is coming and still be defeated. That should NEVER happen to anyone, at least, not to you. I believe this is why Jesus cautioned and warned His disciples in Matthew 26:40-41, “Then he returned to the disciples and found them asleep. He said to Peter, ” Couldn’t you stay awake and watch with me even one hour? Keep alert and pray. Otherwise temptation will overpower you. For though the spirit is willing enough, the body is weak! ” (NLT)

Dear child of God, this is where the idea and wisdom of praying at least one hour daily and especially at night came from. Jesus knew they had worked all day and were tired. But, He rebuked them for not putting in the EXTRA EFFORT to be able to stay awake and pray for JUST an hour. Beloved, nothing you know or do can EXEMPT or better prepare you to overcome the UNAVOIDABLE daily temptations that the devil will bring to you. And never forget, the devil’s only weapon is LIES or deception. But, you need to be very prayerful in order to pick up spiritual signals God had designed to warn, notify and alert you to his lies, deceit and confusion. So, that you can then JUDGE them with the word of God. Please, always DELIBERATELY and intentionally plan your life to daily ACCOMODATE at least, three hours of prayer. That is, morning, day and night. Selah!

Further Reading
~ 2 Corinthians 2:11, “in order to keep Satan from getting the upper hand over us; for we know what his plans are.” (GNT)

Prayer
~ Dear Lord, help me never to become careless and distracted so I will never fall victim to the devil’s many strategic lies, deceit and confusions
~ Dear Lord, I receive grace to always see beyond my physical human enemies and realize they’re merely tools in the hands of wicked spirits and the devil