Good Versus Evil

Each day of our mortal lives we face this duality. It’s the way of the universe. By the way, the universe was created by God. Since that’s not a fact that everyone agrees with, I will tell you a story that should bring some clarity to the matter. There are both rewards and consequences to using both. Even though there are consequences to nearly everything and choice you make, they are not always very apparent or visible to our naked eyes. For people who don’t believe in God, they probably don’t believe in the power of evil either. When someone is ignorant of things that implies they are simply unaware of things. However, your unawareness of truths will not stop you from the consequences that come upon you at one point during your eternal journey. As a believer, I would rather face them now while I can seek God’s grace and forgiveness rather than allow the consequences to come upon me without due recourse.

The Bible cautions us in the book of Ephesians, the sixth chapter, which states: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in heavenly places.” That simply means there are powers in our space that we neither see, hear, nor sense with our carnal senses, but they are very prevalent in and around our lives. In the same sense that God is Spirit and Truth but invisible to us otherwise, there are other opposing powers in existence that we war against, many times without our conscious awareness. How we deal with such things has a lot to do with our awareness of such powers.

For those of us that believe in God, there are certain things that are within our conscience knowing. We understand the Yin and Yang of existence which includes the polar opposites of nearly everything in the known universe. Think about it: good and evil, light and dark, right and left, up and down, full and empty, and so on. That means God has an opposing force and power as well. However, God is superior to all powers and forces because He is the Creator of all things. This means all are subject to His authority. Many may disagree with this, but it’s not my mission to prove or disprove what I am writing to you. You can either accept it as a morsel of knowledge or not. Use your Yin or Yang power.

For believers, this is not something that is objectionable. We are always open to being taught by God Himself. When things come to us, there is something in us that registers one way or the other. Since our God tells us to seek His assistance, that is what we do when we are uncertain. If we seek God’s face He will find a way to show us the way. However, many times we don’t seek His face, so we don’t receive His answers or solutions. Many times we assume we can handle things without God’s help. At such times we invertedly go our own way only to find out later there was perhaps a better way to handle the matter. Since God is always watching over His children He allows us to make our choices. When we fall short at many times He will use it to teach us valuable lessons.

Just as I am sitting here writing this message so many things have happened on this day prior to 10 in the morning that would be mind-blowing. My day starts at about 3 a.m, so in about six hours, there are enough things happening to write a short story. I want to share a couple here.

As I began my morning walk shortly before 4:00 A.M. with a group of friends, there is a hill that I walk up without the group. This allows me about 10 minutes or so to pray alone under the open sky. I usually pray out loud and listen attentively to God’s answer. At times I will just praise or thank Him for what HE is doing and has done. God the Father does so much that we barely notice until well after the fact. We could spend hours just thanking Him rather than asking for new grace and mercies. But that is a different essay.

On my iPhone, I recorded an episode that happened to me personally. I will use my story here because it fits neatly into this message. It is about good versus evil and how I reacted to a particular situation that happened.

I’m in my mid-seventies so I qualify for a program for seniors called Silver Sneakers. My healthcare pays for my membership to certain exercise facilities. For me, in my local area, there is a 24-hour Fitness gym that I have been a member of many years. I went to the fitness trainer manager and ask for a few personal training sessions. I wanted to learn more about the equipment and training practices to better utilize their services and facility. I had in mind about 2 or 3 sessions to learn all I needed to learn. The manager told me it would be a better deal if I would purchase a package because it would seriously reduce the price per session. He suggested a package of 10 lessons for $560. That was far over what I wanted or needed but he was a fairly decent salesperson, plus he was a black man. I reluctantly agreed to the single package and considered it an investment in my health. At the end of our conversation, he presented me with the signature line that had a place for an electronic signature that would be typed into the contract. There was no explanation given nor did I request one because I assumed it would only restate what we had just agreed to man-to-man.

I started my sessions and was pleased with the personal trainer. After a while, I received a notice from the gym asking me to review their services. I gave high marks of approval. Then I notice they had charged my account a second time. I immediately complained to my trainer. She said she would take this to the manager. My trainer told me they would return my funds and since I had gone over the original set I could continue to train, and my funds would also be returned. I thought, what a great gesture so I asked my trainer to let me know when the extra sessions were completed because I did not want any additional packages.

I later found out that they had charged my debit card for 6 months at $560 per month. In my most active month, I did not use 8 sessions per month even if I accepted their math. When I complained and asked for my money back they told me that I had used the service and they would not return my funds after the personal trainer told me I would be reimbursed for the second set and that was the end. I wrote to the corporate office complaining. They stood by the same scheme. Naturally, I was furious. All sorts of evil thoughts came into my mind about how I could get them back. As a man of God, I told myself it would be better to let the matter go or it would fully consume me with anger and evil. When I prayed about the matter, the Holy Spirit told me not to let this matter go because they were doing the same thing to others, especially seniors who can’t afford to be ripped off. From that point, it should have been in God’s hands. To this day it still is in His hands. I will accept His final decision.

So let’s use this as an example of what to do and what not to do. Can you see what powers were at play? I went to the establishment to do something good. It was to improve upon myself so I could become a better servant. I trusted in the people who deceived me. I was harmed. I got angry. I allowed the power of evil to consume me. Therefore, I sinned… at least in my mind and thoughts. That is how evil comes into us. We allow it to come and do not resist it. We feel justified because in our minds we feel we did nothing wrong. Evil did not make me use its power. I allowed it to come into me by not resisting. Sin is sin regardless of why or how we try to substantiate it. Had I actually acted upon the power of evil I would be no better than the power of evil that consumed me. The people that did this to me probably have no conscious feeling one way or the other because they got what they wanted to get, which was my money.

Since I prayed and turned the situation over to God it was He who instructed me forward. He told me to stand firm on the power of righteousness… not just for myself but for others who would experience the same horror. It was funds that God had provided for me to do His work, so they actually stole from God. What do you suppose He will do to them? It is no longer my issue. I will do as I am instructed and follow the lead the Father takes me.

How we deal with such matters means all the world to God, and to our immortal souls. When evil presents its ugly head to us we need to stop first. “Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10. When we operate with our carnal mind we will do what the flesh desires but when we make our minds to stand still and wait on God, we will do what the Spirit requires. When people do you wrong, instead of using your carnal mind, stop for as long as it takes to empower the Spirit of God in you. He will show up… but you need to first use your free willpower to arm the Spirit of God instead of allowing the power of evil to run its course. If you belong to God He will guard you through. However, why not learn to catch yourself before evil can cause you to sin even more than it did to me?

It was not, nor is not my intent to slander anyone personally but to call out evil where it emanates. I seek God’s forgiveness either way if I did wrong against my Lord. I know He is quick to forgive me once I leave the situation at His altar. Although I wonder about the people that did me wrong, they are no longer my issue. Since they offended God then I trust He will take the proper recourses that allow me to continue to do the work He has placed on my plate. To almighty God be the glory. Selah!