By now, I’m sure you know that our entire state (South Carolina) has seen some extreme weather. We have been inundated with water, and the effects of such are devastating in many parts. Thankfully, we were spared from any damage, and nearly from any inconvenience at all. However, there was no escaping flood coverage, breaking weather reports, crazy loud/terrifying weather warnings in the middle of the night, and county-wide curfews. You couldn’t miss what was happening. This was a huge event — a huge storm — and everyone knew it.

Yesterday morning, though, was different. For the first time in 5 days, there was sunshine. It wasn’t raining as I opened the door to let our sweetest Schnauzer out. And so, as I heard him barking at the neighbors, I quickly and without hesitation stepped out onto our deck to rebuke him. And that’s when it happened.

The deck was SO slippery that I immediately lost my footing and crashed to the ground. With just one step, my entire balance was compromised and my body contorted into a tangled, pajama-clad mess. Fortunately, I just bruised my knee (and ego). But still, it was rough. I was caught completely off guard by the lasting effects of the storm…the storm I was so sure was over.

Unfortunately, this is how some Christians are overtaken by sin. We weather the storm. We are braced and aware and conquering as it’s going on. We are seeing the devil’s schemes, pointing them out and avoiding the traps. We are proud of ourselves. We are confident. We pat ourselves on the back. And when it looks like it’s all over, we completely let our guard down. Then, we slip and fall. Hard.

Satan is looking to defeat Christians. He has known from the beginning that he could not conquer Christ (Gen. 3:15), but he doesn’t let that stop him from trying to take down as many people as he can. He wants to destroy us. And guess what? Those who are without Christ are already lost, so no need to go after them with the same fervor and zeal as those dedicated to the Lord. That is why Satan strikes so, so hard when Christians seemingly least expect it.

So how can we be on guard? How can we be “sober and vigilant” (1 Pet. 5:8)? I think the first step is not making the same mistake I did: don’t be overly confident.

I just knew that because it had stopped raining, I was fine to venture onto the deck. I hadn’t been out there in days because of the massive amount of rain (14+”), because I knew better at that point. But once it was over, no fear! And I definitely learned my lesson, right?

If we are overly confident in our “righteousness”, Satan will come in and cause us to fall. That’s the reason that Paul writes to those in Galatia to take heed unto themselves when correcting others, because in so doing, even though they are considered “spiritual,” they may be overcome by temptation (Gal. 6:1). We can’t get so cocky in our Christianity that we become Pharisaical or somehow “worthy” of our salvation. When we pat ourselves on the back for weathering a trying storm of life, we are allowing Satan to lurk at the door. Instead, we must recognize that our God got us through it, though we are frail and easily broken. And, might I add, so completely undeserving.

We can also be overly confident in traditions, when in reality, they are just that — traditions. We can get so caught up in being ‘holier than thou’ because we’ve worshipped in this place for this long…and we always wear this and do this…and somehow, that equals righteousness. Instead, we must recognize traditions for what they are (man-made), adhere to them when they are the most advantageous, but reject them when they become stumbling blocks to our own (or someone else’s) salvation. Peter would refer to such things in 2 Peter 3:16-17, where he writes about people twisting Scriptures. However, as soon as he writes those words (v. 16), he encourages his readers to beware “lest (they) fall from (their) own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked.”

Satan would love nothing more than to cause Christians to fall while they think they are standing strong for the Lord. He was doing it to the church in Sardis (Rev. 3:1). He was doing it to the church in Laodicea (Rev. 3:19). These congregations thought they were standing, but in reality, they had fallen far from what Christ called them to be. And how does that happen to entire congregations?? Because it happens to individual members.

Paul cautioned the Corinthian brethren who thought they were standing to “take heed lest (they) fall” (1 Cor. 10:12). This is something that we must continually do. We can’t take heed that temptation may overtake us only when the trials of life are upon us. We can’t only take heed when storms crop up. Instead, we must take heed at all times. We must be on continual watch, because there is never a moment when Satan isn’t prowling around, seeking to devour us.

This is why Christians are encouraged to study the scriptures daily, to remain steadfast in prayer, and to continually come together with other Christians to receive encouragement and rebuke. We don’t come together to pat each other on the back for how righteous we are or have always been. We come together to be checked out…to make sure Satan isn’t creeping up closely behind one of us, riding in our blind spot. If we’ll do this— stay in continual communion with Christ and with our brothers and sisters — we will overcome Satan’s advances. We won’t fall. We won’t leave an area undefended. We’ll be ready, at every moment, to stand against the wiles of the devil.