Deception is the most powerful weapon that Satan uses to come against mankind.  He whispers lies, condemnations, and twisted truths into the minds of both Christians and non-Christians.  His desire is to mislead and trap each person within a maze of thoughts, in order to bring about stagnation, regression, or total abandonment. 

Each of the enemy’s deceptions and strongholds are rooted in some sort of unbelief.  When we begin to selfishly analyze and question the eternally firm truths of God, we open the door for Satan’s lies to settle within our minds and slowly collect.  We become comfortable with the tone of his voice and continue to listen to his faulty logic.  He leads us away from the truth by tricking us into focusing on a hollow promise of happiness, success, or some other form of fleeting fulfillment.  But, this mirage of hope disappears when we reach the end or grow tired of the journey, only to find a crumbling counterfeit of Satan’s promised reward. 

The entangling lifestyle fueled by deception is only unwound by the grace of God.  Due to the nature of deception, we are unable to see our own deception, unless the mercy of God opens our spirit eyes to the truth of God.  Only the presence of God can scatter the darkness to reveal the hidden secrets, motives, and deceptions embedded within our hearts; He is the only one who knows our hearts.  However, God not only knows the deceptive tendencies within our hearts, but He also knows the identity of Christ which He has placed in the hearts of His children.  He has tuned our hearts’ satisfaction to the voice of God and has set in us an eternal drawing for Christ’s perfect fulfillment. 

There are many deceptive voices intertwined with the tender calling of Christ, only one of which leads to a fulfilling and free life in Christ.  Instead of wasting our time trying to study the lies of Satan or decipher his voice, we need to study the truth of God’s word and seek to understand His voice so that all other voices fade.  Knowing the voice of Truth dispels all lies.  We are not called to fight Satan and figure out his plans; we are called to take all of our thoughts captive and bring them to God so that He can reveal His truth and His voice to us.  When we filter every thought through the mind of Christ, absolute truth will be revealed, the deception will be uncovered, and negativity and cynicism will not cloud our spirit eyes. 

For this to take place, we must first submit to the will of God.  This total abandonment of our will and worldly purposes allows God’s will and power to flow through us without fleshly resistance.  Because of this, we are able to resist Satan in the power and in the name of Jesus, and he will flee from us.  Through the victory of Christ, we have been given authority over Satan and his demons, who tremble in fear even at the sound of His name.  Once the hounding of our minds has been quieted, we are able to clearly hear the distinct voice of God and draw closer to Him, which allows Him to have room to draw closer to us. 

As we see that we first have the responsibility to lay the submissive groundwork for God, we are able to experience the personal grace, love, and power of God as He builds upon our obedient submission in order to reveal His power over all dominions.  His strength is magnified by our weaknesses, of which He can use to build a marvelous masterpiece.  Human weaknesses in our hands and under the deceptive power of Satan yield destruction, but in God’s hands, there is no power that can override the craftsmanship of His work. 

Daily prayer and submission to His will allows an eternal perspective to settle within our minds, allowing no room for deception to set in.  When we realize the power of God has been set within us, we shift from a trembling, self-centered focus of requesting God’s help to a confident, Christ-centered focus of being submissively available to both the glorification of God and His sovereign, overarching purpose.