DISCOURAGE
Today's reading: Ezekiel 13-15

"You have discouraged the righteous with your lies, when I didn't want them to suffer grief. And you have encouraged the wicked by promising them life, even through they continue in their sins." Ezekiel 13:22 NLT

Discourage-to deprive of courage or confidence; to hinder; to dissuade or attempt to dissuade from doing something.

May I just share one of my favorite CS Lewis writings...

So there was table after table filled with all the tools of Satan.  There was envy over here.  Pride was over here.  Jealousy was over here and sexual temptation over here.  Greed was over here. 

Over on one side table, there was just a very small box, and inside the box was a very, very worn tool.  No sizzle, nothing compared to the other tools.  As the demons begin to roam around the garage sale and figure out which tool they wanted to use to move up the ladder in Hell’s kitchen, and be superstars for Satan, they noticed that pride and envy and sexual temptation, the price tags were actually pretty reasonably priced.

But then they went over to this one little box, they opened it, and it was so worn.  The price was just off the charts.  The demons got together, and being a good group that lies to one another often and loves to negotiate, they said to Satan, “This doesn’t make any sense.  These things that we see really bring people down aren’t very expensive.  This tool over here, it’s exceedingly worn and way too expensive.  What is that tool?” 

Satan says, “That’s discouragement.  The reason it’s so well worn is because it’s the one I use more than all the others combined.  When I use all those other tools, some of those Christians are fairly sharp.  They figure out I’m behind it.  But when I use discouragement, often they have no idea that it’s me behind it.  I get them to give up on their marriages.  I get them to give up on God.  I get them to give up on ministry.  I get them to give up on commitments they’ve made.  I get them discouraged and they end up right where we want them, but they never know that I was the one behind it all.”

Watch for satan's tools being used on you! Especially the one that comes in a small, well-worn box.