the satan convention.....

THE SATAN CONVENTION

Satan called a worldwide convention. In his opening address to his evil
angels, he said, "We can't keep the Christians from going to church. We
can't keep them from reading their Bibles and knowing the truth. We
can't even keep them from conservative values. But we can do something
else. We can keep them from forming an intimate, abiding relationship
experience in Christ. If they gain that connection with Jesus, our power
over them is broken. So let them go to church, let them have their
conservative lifestyles, but steal their time, so they can't gain that
experience in Jesus Christ. This is what I want you to do. Distract
them from gaining hold of their Savior and maintaining that vital
connection throughout their day!"

"How shall we do this?", shouted his angels.

"Keep them busy in the non-essentials of life and invent un-numbered
schemes to occupy their minds," he answered.

"Tempt them to spend, spend, spend, then, borrow, borrow, borrow.
Convince the wives to go to work for long hours and the husbands to work
6 or 7 days a week, 10-12 hours a day, so they can afford their
lifestyles. Keep them from spending time with their children. As their
family fragments, soon, their homes will offer no escape from the
pressures of work."

"Over stimulate their minds so that they cannot hear that still small
voice. Entice them to play the radio or cassette player whenever they
drive, to keep the TV, VCR, CDs and their PCs going constantly in their
homes. And see to it that every store and restaurant in the world plays
non-biblical music constantly. This will jam their minds and break that
union with Christ."

"Fill their coffee tables with magazines and newspapers. Pound their
minds with the news 24 hours a day. Invade their driving moments with
billboards. Flood their mailboxes with junk mail, sweepstakes,
mail-order catalogs, and every kind of newsletter and promotional
offering, free products, services, and false hopes."

"Even in their recreation, let them be excessive. Have them return from
their recreation exhausted, disquieted and unprepared for the coming
week. Don't let them go out in nature to reflect on God's wonders. Send
them to amusement parks, sporting events, concerts and movies instead.
And when they meet for spiritual fellowship, involve them in gossip and
small talk so that they leave with troubled consciences and unsettled
emotion."

"Let them be involved in soul-winning. But crowd their lives with so
many good causes they have no time to seek power from Christ. Soon they
will be working in their own strength, sacrificing their health and
family unity for the good of the cause."

It was quite a convention in the end. And the evil angels went eagerly
to their assignments causing Christians everywhere to get busy,
busy, busy and rush here and there.

Has the devil been successful at his scheme?

-- C.S. Lewis from The Srewtape Letters