Do you ever watch a movie and scream at the characters because you know exactly where this story is going? You’re yelling, “Girl, no! Don’t do that! Can’t you see what’s going to happen next?” But girl just keeps going, doesn’t she? She doesn’t listen to your screaming at the TV, and she finds herself right in the middle of a massive mess. You knew hiding in the shed where they hide the chainsaws was a bad idea. You told her don’t go there. She done did it any way! You knew where this story was going. You could see it a mile away.

Funny how when it’s our own story, we don’t see it. Chainsaws? Sure, I’ll hide there. Dark hidden spaces, sure I’ll lurk around and see what I find. Honey, it’s not what you’ll find there … it’s what will find you.

What has found you? Chaos? Drama? Guilt? Shame? Regret? Overwhelm?

What does it have you doing? Running? Hiding? Digging those holes you’re stuck in even deeper. Going further and further down a path you don’t even want to be on, but you just keep going. Where is this story going? Well sweet sister, it’s not going toward the life Jesus came to give you.

Jesus tells us about the exact life he came to give us. He says in John 10:10 “I came so that you might have life and have it to the full.” The Message translation describes the life Jesus came to give you as “more and better life than you ever dreamed of.”

Is that the life you are living? Really, are you living more life and a better life than you ever dreamed of? If you’re not, lets pause and see if maybe you’ve stepped into the wrong story. And before we get all the way to the end, just know, Jesus always offers a return to his story for his girl! He always offers a way out of any mess we’ve stepped into. Redemption is always in his plan. Future breakthroughs and victories are always in the offering.

So, if the reality is that you’re not living more and better life than you ever dreamed of, just know it’s not too late for you. Jesus hasn’t given up on you. He hasn’t cancelled the story he has for you. But you do have to recognize what’s happening so you can make an intentional choice to change some things. Is that what needs to happen here? You need to make some changes? You need to get on a different path because this path isn’t leading to a full and abundant life. This path isn’t making you better, it is making you shrink into a sad shell of who you were created to be. Oh honey, that is NOT the path for you! That’s not the story Jesus has for you.

You have to know there’s another story for your life. There’s a story the enemy offers. The enemy of your soul has a plan to keep you from ever living a life that is more and better than you ever dreamed of. His plan is for a life that is less than. Less than it could be with Jesus. Less than your heart desires. Less than your potential could grow to become. It’s a smaller version of your life that has you settle. That’s where it all starts.

You know why it starts there? Because you’ll fall for it.

Think about those movies you love to watch and yell at for the stupid choices they make. When they go to the house for the first time, it’s not a total creep fest. It’s just a little off. There’s a hint of something strange. It’s not terrible … in the beginning. But each time they go back, it gets worse. The problem is, THEY KEEP GOING BACK! They didn’t leave when they should have.

And this is what the enemy does to us. He doesn’t reveal the utter destruction he has planned, he just shows you an easier way. A way that feels good in the moment, but leaves you with a bad taste at the end of the day. A tinge of regret. A hint of not good. But when you keep going back, you get sucked in. What are you sucked into? The story the enemy has for you? What’s his story? It’s the opposite of the story Jesus has for you. Jesus offers you more and better life than you ever dreamed of, and the enemy offers sheer hopelessness, destruction, and ultimately a life you want to escape from. It’s a life you don’t want to wake up in. A life you would have never chosen, but you were tricked into.

Here’s how Jesus puts it in the other part of this same scripture, John 10:10, “The thief’s purpose is to steal, kill and destroy.”

No one would ever want that story. We would never knowingly choose it, but we will fall for it. Little by little, we will be tricked into a story leading to our God-given potential being stolen from us, hope being killed, and joy being utterly destroyed.

I’m not trying to be overly dramatic here, but Sis, you gotta know what story you’re in and where it’s leading. Is this the story Jesus has for you, or has the story gotten twisted because the enemy was let in through an open door? Yip, when we leave doors open in our life, the enemy comes slithering in like the snake he is with his eye on that full and abundant life Jesus came to give us. He wants to steal that life from you. He wants to kill that life and every good thing that would come from it. He wants to completely destroy the life Jesus gave his life for.

So, you know where we have to start? We have to start with closing doors. No, slamming them! Is there an open door for the enemy in your life? A temptation you’ve been falling for? A relationship your spirit has been trying to check you on for a long time now. A little bad habit that’s growing bigger. A gradual drift that seems harmless, but now when you look up, you realize you’ve drifted far off course and the trajectory of your life looks nothing like what you would choose. Wake up! You’re stepping into a story you don’t want to live. This is not the story Jesus has for you! See where this is all leading.

Yesterday, I read of a beautiful young doctor who took her own life. She was filled with such potential, such promise, and on the outside her life looked like something most of us would strive for. But on the inside, something had happened. The enemy hijacked her story. He filled her with dark hopelessness that left her not wanting to wake up to one more day of this life. A life Jesus died to give her, but a life the thief had stolen from her. A life he destroyed. And a life he ultimately killed.

No one likes to talk about these things, but the truth is, approximately 280 million people in this world struggle with depression. Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death in teens and young adults. There is 1 suicide every 11 minutes of every day. And understand, that 1 life every 11 minutes is a life Jesus came to fill with abundance and more life than they could ever imagine. He had good plans for that life. He had a future filled with hope for them. But it was stolen! It was killed. It was destroyed.

How did it happen? One little step at a time. One decision to settle. One accepted offer of darkness. One deception. One ignored prompting of the Spirit. One time, that became two times, that became a new normal creating a new trajectory for a life that got off track. And one little step at a time, the enemy celebrates another life derailed from the abundance Jesus offers.

Stealing, killing and destroying … it’s what he does. It’s what he does to us. It’s what he does to our families. It’s what he does to our children. It’s what he does to the rich and the poor. The beautiful and successful and the struggling and the lonely. None of us are immune. The enemy has his eye on YOUR LIFE, YOUR POTENTIAL, YOUR DREAMS, YOUR JOY, YOUR MARRIAGE, YOUR FAMILY, YOUR FUTURE. Everything Jesus came to offer you is what the enemy is set on taking.

It’s time to slam some doors. What is the Spirit prompting you with right now? God is nudging you. He’s revealing to you the fire you’ve been playing with. Hey, if you dance with the devil, don’t be all shocked when he drags your life to the pits of hell.

Don’t allow those thoughts to dance in your head. Evict them!

Don’t allow that habit to continue in your life. You can control it now, but soon you won’t be able to. Stop it now. Slam that door.

Sitting out on those opportunities makes you feel a little bad now, but if this continues, it’s going to drag your self worth and confidence through the dirt and leave you thinking you aren’t good enough for anything. Who’s story is that? I promise you it’s not Jesus’. That’s a story of the enemy of your soul. That’s a story that steals, kill and destroys. Reject it now!

Take a step back for a moment and see your own life. Is this leading anywhere good? Have there been clues and hints of problems you’ve been ignoring? Are you getting sucked into the darkness? Are you becoming less and less like the person you want to be? Are you drifting from good relationships and tying to relationships that leave the rest of us screaming at the story you’re living saying, “No! Don’t you see where this is leading?!!!” Are you heading straight toward the chainsaw shed in the dark night where the enemy has you trapped?

It’s not too late. Ask Jesus to help you step back into the fullness of the life he has for you. Surrender everything to him and ask him to guide your next steps. Ask for fresh eyes on the situations you’ve grown oblivious to. Lord, help us see the tricks of the enemy. Help us slam the doors he’s been slithering through. Turn all of this around for good and help us get back on track. Redeem our story.

We want everything you are offering us, and nothing the enemy has offered.

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