Are You More Secure Than Fort Knox?
Monday, January 22, 2024
"We are never out of the reach of temptation.” – C.H. Spurgeon
Think of the safest places on earth…
The White House Situation Room, an intelligence management center located on the ground floor of the West Wing, might be at the top of your list along with the Presidential Emergency Operations Center, a bunker-like structure beneath the East Wing. So might Fort Knox, also known as the United States Bullion Depository, where more than half of America’s gold reserves are kept under lock and key.
How about ADX Florence SHU (secure housing unit), a supermax federal prison that has housed such notorious criminals as Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols (the Oklahoma City bombers), Dzhokhar Anzorovich Tsarnaev (the Boston Marathon bomber), Robert Hanssen (a convicted Russian spy), and Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera (otherwise known as El Chapo, a former Mexican drug lord and cartel leader)?
No matter what secure location comes to your mind, guess what? Temptation can still find you there. As Charles Spurgeon stated clearly and categorically in today’s quote, there isn’t a single place on earth where you are immune from Satan’s subtle attacks.
So, what’s a Christian to do? Here are a few helpful suggestions…
Stay close to Jesus through prayer and meditation on His Word. Surround yourself with fellow believers (there is relative safety in numbers). And put on the full armor of God (see Ephesians 6:11-18).
Finally, stay busy doing God’s work (see Luke 2:49). As Spurgeon reminds us, “Idleness and luxury are the devil’s jackals and find him abundant prey. In stagnant waters noxious creatures swarm, and neglected soil soon yields a dense tangle of weeds and briars.”
“Hear my cry, O God; attend to my prayer. From the ends of the earth I call out to You whenever my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You have been my refuge, a tower of strength against the enemy. Let me dwell in Your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of Your wings.” Psalm 61:1-4 (BSB)
- Rev. Dale M. Glading, President
