Devils Lie # 8 Keep Quite

Satan's Lie # 9. "What You Say is unimportant”

There were thirteen of us children. Being the second born, way back in July 4, 1944, put one in an unfortunate family/social position. “Children should be seen and not heard” was the rule of thumb in my upbringing. The oldest naturally spoke more and displayed learning more advanced than his two year younger brother. Conditions were bad. More time had to be expended feeding the family than communicating with the children. There was no Television, radio or even telephone in our sector of this “great nation. Mail was delivered by horse mounted mail carriers. Isolation was the result.

”Satan had nudged us into a world war to end all wars...or so he said. What did children know about war, financial depression and poverty? What could they offer in way of advice? That was the adult thinking and possibly rightly so. Satan whispered to them that what children had to say was unimportant. As far as current events, it was true but in developing communication skills and attitudes it was very important. The devil had our children in his training school. What we didn’t realize was how much this devalued children's words and even thoughts. Fear of speaking up for what we believed, closed off. Communication skills diminished. “Hunkered up silence” became children’s guide line in a time when learning and communicating was of paramount importance.

Franklin D. Roosevelt was president and Harry S. Truman assisted him as vice-president. Financial facts: Average annual salary was $ 2,193, hourly minimum wage was $ .30, eggs were $ .55 per doz, 10 lb potatoes $ .47, gasoline $ .21 per gal, postage stamp $ .03, car $ 1,220, house $3,450. Improving changes would slowly come but when it came time for people to speak out for what was right in government, education, church and foreign relations, Satan had us muted. Our ability to stand up and be counted lay mute somewhere in the battlefield of Germany and Japan.

A well known concept is that our strongest weapon is in our voice. It is the enemy’s tactic to silence us. Satan is the master of silence. Christians suffer greatly because they have been conditioned to slide to the wall end of the pew and keep quite. They cross the street to avoid the possibility of witnessing to an approaching stranger. While our fathers were dying on the battlefield, we were taught to “shut up” Silence may be golden but it is also deadly. There is life and death in the power of what we speak. Power to build up and power to tear down. Power to bind and to loose. Power to bless and also curse. God spoke and the earth and all of heaven came into existence. When we declare the name of Jesus awaken the awesome power of God Almighty. To stay silent is to squelch our God given assignment. Satan encourages us to remain where we have always been, and to never fully discover who we are and whose we are. Satan is the God of this world. He has the influence over its running to shape our destiny absent the Holy Ghost's control over him. He wants our eternal soul and his ways are many. He is subtle.

Ecclesiastes 3:7-8 reads there is “A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; 8 A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.”

Know God, know peace. Amen 04-02-2019 BLL