Heightened Security
By Shauna Leis
“Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.”
Proverbs 4:23
My job at work requires me to fly quite often. So, I am a seasoned traveler and have grown very accustomed to all of the adventures of getting through airport security. I have my packing down to a science, including my liquids, so that I rarely have any difficulties going through the security preparations. There are no liquids over 4 oz. in my belongings, and I have all of the liquids contained within a Ziploc bag according to all of the FAA regulations. My shoes and coats are off before the agents even have a chance to remind me, and I get to go through the “Expert Traveler” lane in airport security. So, if you have been through an airport lately, you know that we, as a nation, are at a heightened sense of security.
But I do remember a time when we did not have to go through all of these proceedings. Years ago, before 9/11/2001, I can remember flying to New York, my bags containing all sorts of liquids and sprays. And, even before that in my previous job, we visited with vendors carrying all sorts of various chemicals for testing and other metal materials for experimentation. Not once were we ever questioned about what we were carrying on board the aircraft. Life was simpler back then and a whole lot less guarded.
Then, disaster struck on that fateful day when America let down its guard and allowed terrorists to enter our domain. Nineteen total hijackers took over four different planes and killed 2,974 innocent people. My heart to this day still aches for those people who lost loved ones in those attacks, along with the terrorists themselves who were falsely led into believing that this would be the ultimate sacrifice for their families and their countrymen through jihad. They believed this would bring about retaliation for past grievances against their country and their people. They believed this would achieve for them life in the after-life.
Now, eight years later, we still ache from the physical and emotional losses people experienced over lost loved ones. My sweet 7 year old recently drew a picture of the twin towers and the people jumping from the building, and he just cried as he described what he had seen on the news telling of the event from years past. Our nation still bears the scars of the loss of innocence in knowing that a once thought “invincible” nation was vulnerable to attack, even on its own soil. And so, travelers today undergo intense scrutiny to ensure that same attack will never happen again. Our guard is up, and we have a much more heightened sense of security.
Dear friends, we, too, have been attacked but in a spiritual sense rather than a physical one. Satan, our enemy, knows all of the weaknesses in our defenses and knows just the right places to attack to make the most impact. He knows that the best thing he can do is render us ineffective in our ministries and witnessing to others. He uses lies to convince us that God cannot possibly use us to further His kingdom. So, we must be on our guard in our spirit. 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
So, how do we maintain that heightened sense of security in our spiritual lives? We have to know the Truth. So, what is truth? Dear one, God Himself is Truth. In John 14:6, “Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” Webster defines truth as “the state of being the case, or fact; the body of real things, events, and facts, or actuality.” Jesus did not leave any room for interpretation there. He clearly told us the facts – He is The Way, He is The Truth, and He is The Life. No one comes to God the Father unless that person has come through Jesus the Son.
The only way that we can combat the lies of the evil one are to know the Author of all Truth and His Word. We have to know the real facts, not those distorted by one who seeks to render us useless. We have to allow God to guard all of us, especially our hearts, in this fallen world. Will you strive with me today to learn the real Truth? Will you set out on a journey to know God, the Author of the Truth?
Pray with me: Jehovah, God, You ARE Truth. Through Your Son, we have access to You and the Truth. We know that through You and only through You can we combat the lies of the evil one. God, fill us up with Your Truth and push out any other voices that surround us today. Teach us how to live our lives with an exterior that screams we know the Truth, and that Truth will be our protection. God, use our heightened sense of spiritual security to remind us that we must ever rely on You each and every day to protect us while in this world.
God, guard our hearts, for we know that You created this as our wellspring of life. Our hearts belong to You. Lord, we love You so very much, God, and pray all of this in the name above all names, Jesus Christ! Amen.