The devil is not stupid.

Most followers of Jesus that I know would never fall for the devil’s temptation to do something really bad. At least not at first. The devil’s usual strategy is to DISTRACT us by getting us so busy doing GOOD things that we have little time or energy left for the BEST things. Then when we have neglected the BEST things long enough, we begin to tire of doing the GOOD things and before we know it, we have slipped and done a BAD thing.

In his letter to the Philippian church, Paul began with the prayer that he had been praying for them. He prayed that they would grow in their discernment so that they would be able to determine what was not merely good, but EXCELLENT. (Philippians 1:9-10)

In a recent video blog, I shared a story from a book by John Avant about a General during Operation Desert Storm who had to choose to do something excellent over something good. You can view the vlog here.

Let me encourage you to regularly take the time to evaluate both your priorities and your pursuits. Do you let the urgent crowd out the important? Do you spend an inordinate amount of time greasing squeaky wheels?

My prayer for you is the same as Paul’s prayer for the Philippian Christians, and it is the same prayer I regularly pray for myself. I pray that God will cause our knowledge and power of discernment to grow so that we can be more intentional about doing the EXCELLENT things in life.

I get tired of chasing jelly jars, putting out fires, greasing squeaky wheels…whatever euphemism you wish to employ. May God grant us an ever-increasing ability to intentionally and passionately pursue what is EXCELLENT.

REFLECT:

With what activities and priorities does the devil distract you so that you miss out on the most EXCELLENT pursuits?

Specifically, what is one thing you will do TODAY to be more INTENTIONAL about growing in your knowledge and discernment?