“And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:” Luke 22:31.

In ancient times, wheat was sifted by tossing it in the air, allowing the wind to blow away the lighter chaff, leaving behind the heavier, usable wheat kernels. Jesus uses the process of sifting wheat to warn Peter of Satan’s intent to shake his faith- sift his trust, belief and potentially weaken his commentment to God. “And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:” Luke 22:31.

So, let me tell you-Peter wasn’t alone in this fight- every beloved child of God faces the onslaughts of the enemy- yes, things will come against us, as my parents would say- sometimes right out of the blue. . . but stay on guard, the word of the Lord tells us to “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life”. Proverbs 4:23.

Our hearts are the source of our thoughts, attitudes, beliefs, and actions, exactly where Satan subtly attacks to literally try to shake our faith apart. He desires to find any weakness or lack of commitment to expose and accuse us of being guilty and unfaithful to God; but hold on my brothers and sisters, we are spiritually equipped to stand our ground in this fight! Ephesians 6:11 reminds us to “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”

Keep in mind that “Genuine faith perseveres, but emotional decisions do not.”  In other words it is true faith, like strong wheat kernels, that will stand against the intense challenges and temptations that are thrown along our path by that old archenemy of our souls-the devil! “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked” Ephesians 6:16.

Yes, our faith is going to be tested, we can expect the trials and tribulations of life to pop up at any given time… but we can resist the devil by staying in the word and relying on the true source of our strength…which comes from the Lord! “The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.” Psalm 18:2.

Now let’s turn our attention back to the blessing for Peter from Jesus in Luke 22:33. “But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.”  Don’t miss the blessing y’all-Jesus gives words of assurance and comfort to Peter- He was praying for him! “Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.” Romans 8:34.

Note Jesus’ assurance to Peter in these words- and when thou are converted! Hallelujah-Jesus is God my friends, and he knew that the work that He began in Peter, would be performed and so it is with us- God wins, He is in control and the promise in Philippians 1:6 reigns true: “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:”  It has often  been said that a setback is a set up for a comeback!

 Every born-again believer is a precious jewel of the Lord… and even though the trials of life will come- we can rest in knowing that we have the victory-we are safe, safe in His everlasting arms! “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.” Romans 8:37.

God’s blessings of peace and grace be with us all!