My granddaughter gets so excited when we go to the park in order to play on the playground. She loves to swing, to slide, to climb, and to explore. Normally, she is not afraid or shy when other children are there. She usually just blends in and runs and plays with everyone.
There is one exception to her willingness to play with other children. On rare occasions, there are children who show up to the playground who are much older and more aggressive. They come and take over without regard to the smaller children. It is during these times that my granddaughter will retreat from her normal, carefree activity and find me. She will stand behind me and grab on to my leg because she knows there is safety standing next to her Papa. She knows nothing bad is going to happen to her when her Papa is standing guard.
Often times in life, we as Christians have the ability to go about our normal activities in life and feel secure getting done what we need to get done without worry. There are times, however, when that older, aggressive child (also known as the devil) comes around and tries to take over our lives in an aggressive and intimidating manner. When these times arise, we should do what my granddaughter does. We should run to the One who can give us protection and thus a feeling of security. The One we should run to is God.
The apostle James speaks of this very action concerning the activities of the devil. He says in James (4:8): “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.” There is nothing more comforting in this world than to draw near to God and know He is there to protect us from the one who would seek to bully, berate, and belittle us.
How close are you to God? Are you willing to draw near to Him so that He can protect you from the evil one and in turn give you a profound sense of security?
