So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet. (The Message) James 4:7-10
I must admit, I’ve never read James 4:7-10 in the Message version until today. It is not the sugar coated version but hits you right between the eyes and probably the heart as well. Friends, God wants to work in us. He wants us to flee from any of our evil ways and draw near to Him. I love the fact that we only have to say a quiet “yes” to God and He’ll be right there, but we definitely have to yell a loud NO to the Devil. We have to get our inner life in order and get on our knees. It’s when we are on our knees that we are closest to Him. I love how James 4:10 puts it, Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet.
With His help, we can get o4n our feet again and be closer to Him. We can flee from our evil ways and be the person God desires us to be. I do believe it’s a daily process. Life is tough and situations arise that we don’t see coming. There are times the Devil may be knocking but he’s dressed as something very tempting or harmless looking. So we best start our day on our knees in prayer. The Lord will lift us up on our feet and keep us walking on the path He has planned for us.
Father God, help us to start our day on our knees with You. Lead us to be all that You want us to be. We love you and we thank you Lord. Amen.