Wellness is the Way, Part 2 - Mindset

Training Our Minds So That We Can Train Our Bodies [FF#7]

Sanctification, created with Midjourney

Key points up-front

• The devil is real, and a real killjoy

• We have to get out of our comfort zone

• Baby steps are still steps

---

“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.”

— Charles Baudelaire

Lest we delude ourselves, the devil does exist, and he is very good at his job. He is neither stupid nor lazy. He takes no days off, has no hobbies, and is not given to distractions. His attack is clever. He knows our weaknesses and exploits them relentlessly - and we are, regrettably, a bundle of carnal thoughts and desires just waiting to be exploited.

The Apostle Paul once lamented “I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out” (Roman 7:18 NIV). The devil doesn’t need to make us sinful, we already are.

When you boil it down, what the devil does is pretty simple: (a) provide plenty of enticements for us to indulge in our desires, and then (b) make us feel like crap afterward. It’s the perfect double-whammy. He tempts us to sin and then shames us when we do.