by Lori Crawford

Created on: November 09, 2007

God calls each of us to be watchful for the traps and snares Satan sets for us. In a world where there is so much going on all around and all the time, it's hard to distinguish when Satan is truly involved in the messes we find ourselves or if it's something of our own making. Just as a police detective solves a crime by figuring out a suspect's motive, we need to understand the enemy's motivation to do what he does.

What does Satan want?

While it may seem that what Satan wants is as convoluted and difficult to understand as rocket science or brain surgery, especially in light of the many ways he goes about achieving his goal, the answer is painfully simple. Satan wants to separate us from the love of God permanently. God is life. To be separated from God - in sin - is death.

That is his endgame. He wasn't able to usurp God's position and authority when he was His right hand angel, so he's going to try to get back at God any way he can now that he's been evicted from Heaven. What better way to deprive his nemesis than to destroy His most precious possession. Us.

How does Satan go about his task?

First and foremost, Satan is a liar. He is a master at manipulation. In fact, no one does deception better. His workshop is our minds. Just look at what he did to poor Adam and Eve in Genesis 3. He even sunk so low as to assume the form of a snake to do it.

But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. (Genesis 3:3-6) KJVR

All Satan had to do was to convince Eve that what God had told her was wrong. He got in her mind and she chose to eat the fruit from the forbidden tree. Many people assume that Adam was off on the other side of the Garden when this whole thing went down. If you'll notice verse 6, he was right there with her. He heard Satan's appeal and ate along with Eve bringing the sin into the world that we all have to deal with day in and day out.

In today's world with our technologies, Satan's medium may have expanded exponentially, but his methods have remained the same. We have to stay on our guard because the devil is very good at sneaking in places. Especially when those places haven't been filled with other Godly pursuits and interests. But remember, even in the midst of your sin, God's mercies are brand new every morning. And-

-we win.

For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39) KJVR

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