Remember the dinner invitation, that banquet table in the last article? Jesus prepares a table for me in the presence of my enemies. Did you take the time to enjoy that banquet table in the past weeks? It is a place of joy, delight, rest, and satisfaction despite difficult or unsettling circumstances.
However, there is another aspect to this banquet table that we do well to understand.
“He prepares a feast for me in the presence of my enemies.”
The enemies are there; oh yes, they know all about this table Jesus prepares for us. They prowl the perimeter, just waiting for a chance to sit down at that table with you. The Enemy comes uninvited, pulls out the chair across from you and takes a seat. If you let him.
This happens in the battle ground of the mind. Our thoughts.
Since the most important thing about us is how we think about God, thoughts are the catalyst to our beliefs, our self-perception, and how we view people and circumstances.
Don’t give the Enemy a seat at your table.
This phrase comes from Louie Giglio’s book, titled the same, which I am reading right now. A synopsis of said book: ‘It’s time to win the battle of your mind… You don’t have to let negative thoughts control your life. You don’t have to allow the Enemy to influence your thinking. You have power through Jesus Christ to take control of your thoughts and emotions. Jesus invites you to a table that He has prepared for you – a table where the Enemy is not invited.’
How we think about God is the most important thing in the whole wide world! Do we view him as friend or foe? Unjust or righteous? Uncaring, distant, uninterested, vindictive? How about good, kind, wise, and all-knowing? These thoughts turn into beliefs which affect every single decision we make; the unconscious and reactive decisions as well as the deliberate choices we make.
The thoughts we allow to grow in our minds (the Enemy pulls up a chair at our table) is truly telling as to whom we have sitting at this banquet table with us. Satan has a singular purpose: ‘to kill, steal, and destroy’.
A beautiful quote that has grabbed my attention in the past week states:
God is too good to be unkind.
Charles Spurgeon
He is too wise to make mistakes.
And when I cannot trace His hand,
I will trust His heart.
Win this battle of the mind! Take back what is rightfully yours through the power of Jesus Christ. This table has been set especially for you, with your tastes and preferences in mind. Do not allow the Enemy a seat at your table.