Do you feel like a victim, like you’re the target practice for the world? That’s not God’s plan for you.
1 Peter 5:8 – Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
(NIV)
This verse gives us some insight into the strategy of our spiritual enemy. He hunts like a “roaring lion”. Lions are interesting hunters. Normally they are absolutely silent. You don’t see them until they are literally on top of you. A roaring lion is one who has gotten too old for that kind of hunting. He has lost some of his teeth. Younger lions move out in front of the prey, while the old toothless lion roars, and scares the prey so that they run right into the trap set by the younger ones.
This older lion then lets the young ones rip the prey apart, then eats the carved up pieces. That word devour, literally means to gulp down in one bite. The roaring lion is not looking for a fight. He doesn’t want to go one on one with the prey. All he wants to do is scare it into a trap.
This should speak volumes to us. Are you an easy prey for the devil? Do you run at the first sign of his attack? He is looking for someone with a victim mentality. The last person the devil wants to deal with is a Christian fully armed and standing on God’s Word.
Don’t just roll over and play dead. You are not the world’s doormat. You are meant to be victorious in Christ. Be strong in the Lord. Let the power of the Holy Spirit work in you. Stay in prayer and in the Word so that you are spiritually self-controlled and alert. Then you will not become the devil’s punching bag. Instead you can go on the offensive and free the oppressed from their bondage to sin. Be that champion God has called you to be!
The Spirit and the Word 