Go roar somewhere else devil, get out of my way, I am busy. Many of you know what it is like to attempt to get to church and the struggles that come with that. Everything seems to go wrong and you have to move mountains to get to church. Some of the funniest sermons I have heard are about the battles we can face trying to get to any group that is worshiping God. I have been in church long enough that I am well prepared for those struggles, or so I think. This morning was a prayer group that I have been trying to get to. Again, I was reminded that I am not equipped in my own power to handle all that the devil is up to but I dang well have a mighty God who can make him eat my floorboard eggs.
Knowing well the battles that come with gathering with other believers, I diligently planned ahead for this morning’s prayer group. I am on watch for what the devil thinks he can do with me but I will not let him devour me. Made sure I had gasoline in the vehicle the day before, had the alarm set with an extra half-hour for any delays, had my clothes set out and my breakfast planned. What else could go wrong?
I live in a rural city and have 15 minutes of safe driving that I can eat my breakfast on the road to save time. NO, I do not suggest this for obvious safety reasons. But I cannot tell of God’s victory without fessing up to my bad habit. With bible in hand, a jug of water and my scrambled eggs I was out the door with plenty of time to spare. I made it to my vehicle, stretched across and placed my belongings on the passenger seat thinking all is well and off I go. Once I safely backed out of my driveway and got through the the town’s stop signs I was finally safe and sound on a highway that usually does not have another vehicle for the next 12 miles. Plenty of time to eat my scrambled eggs.
That is when I realized they are missing. I start looking around in bewilderment and found them on the passenger floorboard. The paper plate landed to the side of them so that the freshly made warm eggs were touching the grimy vehicle floor mat. At home I at least mop my floors often enough that I might have picked it up and just eaten it, maybe. The more kids you raise the more the 5-second rule becomes acceptable. But a vehicle floor mat that rarely gets a sanitary cleaning, there is no way I am going to eat that.
A healthy person would have looked at this situation entirely different than a person walking through chronic illness and pain. They would have thought about a fast food drive-thru for breakfast or they would have run back inside to make the eggs again or they would have simply known that they could survive the hunger pangs and could eat later. All very reasonable solutions. Me, nope, none of those are even options for me. If I do not eat a healthy breakfast my cortisol goes up, blood sugar gets messed up and I get overly stressed which makes my inflammation levels immediately sore making my pain worse. For this particular time in my life I have learned that I have to take VERY good care of my needs to keep me calm so that I can finish my healing from Lyme Disease. I have more tricks up my sleeve than a magician on steroids. Scrambled eggs is one of my tricks to eat when I am short on time but know that it is necessary to have food in me. They are also easy to eat on that 12 mile stretch.
I pull over to evaluate the situation. For now, my body does not bend like a healthy body so I could not reach the eggs. I sat there and looked at them for a moment and realized that if I went back home to make more I would be so late that it would discourage me from going at all, that won’t work. I do not consider fast food nourishment because that does not work for my body in this state, that won’t work. So, what will work. I am not willing to let satan have this fight. There has to be a solution. I look down at my eggs on the floorboard again and realize that they landed folded, like an omelet. When I made them they were in a circle and now they were a half circle. That meant that half of the eggs were touching the floorboard but the other half was not. That leaves room for possibilities.
Yes, I do take God for granted. I assume he will help me when it is right for him to help me. I just simply expect that he will deliver in ways that I do not expect. So far in my life, he has come through just like he promises. I tried the impossible bend again and with one quick swoop was able to grab the eggs and the plate at the same time, keeping track of which side had touched the floorboard. Not my favorite way to eat a meal but grateful for half of my eggs that would get me through until I could get home for lunch.
- Nutritional needs were satisfactorily met
- Emotional needs were covered in what turned into a game instead of defeat
- Spiritual needs were once again granted in abundance
As I put the remaining eggs in my trash bag I told satan he could have my floorboard eggs, the leftovers, the trash but he could not have me, I belong to Jesus Christ. I was headed to church to join a beautiful bunch of women prayer warriors who pray for our God to take that kind of nonsense away. Victory again for God!
- Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8 ESV
- Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7 ESV
- But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. 2 Corinthians 11:3 ESV
- The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. John 10:10 ESV
- The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Romans 16:20 ESV
- And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. Revelation 12:9 ESV
- And give no opportunity to the devil. Ephesians 4:27 ESV
- Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. Ephesians 6:11 ESV
Donations accepted to serve others in their chronic illness journey. Maribeth Baxter, HHC provides voluntary certified health coaching services to the financially limited during their time of crisis.