31. Recognizing Satan | My Thoughts about Len’s Vision Impairment

In an effort to reach those who may not have time to read this long post, I have posted an audio version. Enjoy!

“And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” (Revelation 12:9)

Until Christ returns, Satan will continue deceiving people. The truth is, he enjoys doing this. In doing so, he uses all sorts of tricks and gadgets to frustrate God’s Kingdom here on earth. He especially enjoys using believers and will do whatsoever he can to entice us to doubt God’s love towards us. When Satan is successful at this task, many other negative things began to happen. His success is like poison. It spreads. And it destroys people, countries, nations. That is, if we allow him to do so.

Satan’s overall goal is to stop the spread of the Gospel. Therefore, one of the things he (Satan) hates to see is God’s people uniting and studying His word. To me, the greatest evidence of God’s power is seen in men fervently seeking then obeying the Lord. The evidence is carried forth when men function in their God-given role as the priests in their homes. After exercising this authority in their own home, then they can stand firm in God’s Word when they go out in the world. This is how Satan’s power is reduced. Let me put this real blunt, Satan hates Godly men because he knows he can’t wreak havoc in places where God’s Spirit dominates!

As I was reflecting on the above statement—about Satan hating Godly men—I could not help but to think how upset Satan must’ve been towards my husband when we started our family devotional studies in about 2006. This was a difficult process. The toughest part was getting our youngest teen-age son involved in the study. But we stuck with it and was successful. We even got to the point where this time of strengthening was enjoyable. Then-came-the-brain-tumor interrupting nearly everything we fought so hard to obtain. After surgery, we were determined to recapture what we once had, we earnestly fought to get things back to the pre-surgery state. Well, it never happened b-e-c-a-u-s-e, things got better! (Too much to share here, but trust me, it did!)

Here we are 10 years later and were having the time of our lives maturing in Christ and once again strengthening others. Then, we found out the remnant of the tumor that could not be totally removed in 2007 had now grown even larger than when it was first discovered. Naturally, surgery was needed again. This time, surgery has left Len with vision problems so severe that he can no longer read with ease. His doctor has stated that Len’s vision can take many months to be corrected and that seeing an ophthalmologist right now is pointless.

I wholeheartedly believe Satan has had a role in this brain tumor journey. More so, for the problems Len is experiencing with his vision. First, he tried to squash our family devotional time. Now, he is trying to keep my husband from studying God’s word, leading his family, and then teaching the younger men. Think about this, when a man can’t read the Bible, (or for those who refuses to read,) he can’t learn more about God. This is where Satan wants man—empty! Satan also doesn’t want a man to share his testimony of past mistakes because this strengthens the brethren. Remember Satan’s goal? He wants to steal, kill and destroy anything or anyone who is willing to stand for Christ. I would be careless if I do not mention the fact that Satan does not want me to be the helpmate God commands (Genesis 2:18). Satan prefers that I do not help my husband through this illness so that positional, he is fully functioning in his position of authority. Satan desires that I simply take charge and do what needs to be done!

Well, because we recognize Satan’s desires and his actions, we are not going there! And, we are not about to quit. I want to share with you how we are persevering. The end result is, even in this sickness, God is still glorified!

• Scripture hidden in our hearts is encouraging us!
• Testimonies, ours as well as others, are encouraging us!
• Many prayers are sustaining us!
• In 2007, we purchased an audio Bible. Although the vision problems were not as severe as they are now, we still have the CDs and are using them to listen to the Bible.
• Music encourages us, as you already know from the links I’ve shared!
• During our devotional time, I read to Len and then we discuss the lesson. Doing so helps him to be prepared for the men’s Bible study so that he is knowledgeable of the lesson, can continue fellowshipping, providing wisdom and sharing his testimony at the appropriate times.

We are finding different ways to be intentional in our studying. Yes, it’s more time consuming, but we refuse to let Satan get any satisfaction out of this illness. 

Want to help? Here’s how!

• Pray for Len’s vision. I know he misses reading God's Word. Oh yea, and driving. On a side note, I too miss him driving. Being the driver means I don’t get those extra minutes to do what had become my ‘routine’ tasks when he drove.
• If you know of creative ways to study, other than those mentioned above, please share your thoughts with me!

Finally, Satan remains a defeated foe—that’s what God said in Genesis 3:15. You may read all about his final stance in the book of Revelation!

Faithfully His,

Verna