The Lord told me to share a three-part series:
Part 1–What is Deceit?
Part 2–Who is Satan?
Part3–Identifying Satan’s Pattern
Before beginning an explanation is in order. The Lord is responsible for all the information shared on TheREDWords. I am but His vessel, His obedient servant, and here’s what generally happens when He lays out a topic to share:
First comes the ‘shoulder tapping’, which always occurs when I’m doing something I deem important and don’t wish to be interrupted—like making dinner, or mowing, or streaking through the grocery store to keep the frozen food from melting, or sleeping—with no writing implements available. You know what I’m getting at…me, me, me trying to get stuff done.
Yeah…well, good luck with that, I say to myself, laughing—cuz I don’t believe in luck! And obviously, none of my “I can’t do this right now” excuses has ever stopped Him, so—fully recognizing I’m incapable of doing this on my own—the Lord plugs a few unforgettable key phrases into my brain and then gives me a vision of what He wants to talk about—so I don’t forget. I hold onto those two things, and ponder them until I can get to a quiet spot. And thus, the ritual begins. First I talk to Him about the subject—meandering around the edges, dipping my big toe in to test the idea—and then I pray about it, cuz usually His topics are a bit overwhelming, and I need His power to continue.
For the most part, I have no prior knowledge about the issues He chooses. This is intentional to keep me entirely reliant on His information. Further, my lack of knowledge gives me the mental freedom to just write down what He says without question. When I run into a “did I hear You correctly?” question, I stop, and pray, and always receive a direct yes or no answer, or further clarification. This methodology of disseminating information is fast, simple, and reliable.
I’ve learned over the years to finish whatever I was doing prior to the shoulder tap, retrieve my laptop, and then wait for Him to begin. I’ve also learned while I wait, to research those key phrases He plugged into my brain. This action drives me into His Word—which is part of our relationship ritual—and the way in which He prepares me to listen and learn.
You see, I need that preparation because I have an overly active brain, and His Word calms that difficulty into razor focus. That focus sharpens the subtleties of His requests, because He uses specific words and phrases—ones I wouldn’t choose—meanings only He knows. In my obedience and readiness, I can then type what He says. When things get a bit ‘out there’ (which is always), I test what I’m learning by digging further into scripture. He answers by sending me additional clarifying scriptures. Sometimes this whole process takes a few hours, at other times it can take a few days. It is a familiar routine, one I obey to the letter, but the act of writing is never stressful or chaotic—although the mind-blowing topics can be unsettling. When that occurs, I pray back to Him His promises of peace, strength, hope, and love. I dial the praise and worship music up, and type faster—knowing He is the King and He’s already conquered this world. Everything about this process is relationship building, leading to deeper trust in Him, and furthering my sanctification. The resulting blessings are truly amazing.
Interestingly, timing is also important. I have fully completed topics waiting for His release. Some are days old, some are months old, a few are dated from a year ago, or more. They sit around gathering dust. I pay no attention to them, knowing when He gives the go-ahead, I am to publish, and not beforehand.
Lastly, the whole action is an unveiling (a scroll unrolling) of information that is revealed in a way that often leaves me astounded.
IMO this three-part series is just that…the astonishing truth and pivotal answers from my amazing, beloved Son of the Lord God Almighty, the Lamb Who is my Savior, the Lion who is my King—about how to recognize and thwart deceit.
Here we go!
Q. What Is Deceit?
A. The action or practice of deceiving someone by concealing or misrepresenting the TRUTH.
Ok. So what is the definition of TRUTH?
1) the quality or state of being true
2) that which is true, or in accordance with fact or reality
But, look at this(!) dictionaries contain a recent and highly deceitful third definition.
3) a fact or belief that is accepted as true. We’ll return to this in a moment.
Continuing on then, what is the definition of TRUE?
1) in accordance with fact or reality (pay attention to repeats)
2) rightly or strictly so (genuine)
3) real or actual
4) accurate or exact
5) correctly positioned, balanced or aligned, upright or level
Therefore, what is the definition of FACT?
1) a thing that is known or proved to be true
2) information used as evidence
3) the truth about events, as opposed to interpretation
4) something that must be accepted as true and unchanging, even if it is unpleasant
5) Used to emphasize the truth of an assertion, especially one contrary to what might be expected or what has already been asserted
And what is the definition of REALITY?
1) the world, or the state of things as they actually exist, as opposed to an unrealistic or notional idea of them
2) a thing that is actually experienced or seen, especially when it is grim or problematic
3) a thing that exists in fact, having previously only existed in one’s mind
4) existence that is absolute and not subject to human decisions or conventions
5) an actual fact used to contrast a false idea
And what is the definition of ACCURATE?
1) correct in all details
2) faithfully representing the truth about someone or something
Lastly, what is the definition of EXACT?
1) precise
2) correct in all details (pay attention to repeats)
3) permitting precise or absolute measurement as a basis for rigorously testable theories
OK, so here goes. Deceit conceals or misrepresents the truth, to falsify or hide what is true fact or reality, to conceal the precise, accurate, and exact state of one’s existence.
In short, deceit is our world today: twisted, up-side-down, inside out, up is down, down is up, right is wrong, wrong is right, good is bad, bad is good, lies are truth, truth are lies, living in fear is healthy, men can have babies, after birth men can nurse newborns, women produce sperm, men in women’s sports is good and fair, a human is going to come along and save us all!
Ummmm….NO. The above is the result of that duplicitous, fraudulent, lying, cheating, double-dealing, sly, cunning, underhanded trickster Satan.
Re-read that third definition of truth. It is a deception that the dictionary publishers believe.
3) a fact or belief that is accepted as true
Are you deceived into accepting factual truth is something you can choose to believe or deny? That the truth’s accuracy and exactness can be ignored? Like men can birth babies?
Of course not!
But what about ‘little’ deceits? Even if most people don’t believe the “In short:” list above, 99.9% of people do believe #3 is the absolute definition of truth!
Why? Because they’ve been deceived.
How is that possible? Because in their pride, in their desires, they want to interpret life how they see fit. They refuse to abandon any of their prior ‘acceptance of truth’ beliefs that might be…
too uncomfortable
too rigorous
too grim
too problematic
too narrow
too unconventional…
In other words—too close to their pride trigger.
Satan is counting on it, and he’s got them locked into deceit—because there are only two choices—God’s Truth or Satan’s lies. Once under the lie (big or little) Satan destroys mindful, accurate, exact truth and replaces it with “because I want to”. He uses the same emotion he applied—pride—when he decided he was greater than his Creator.
So, exactly who is Satan? Stay tuned for Part 2.