I came across this link last night, and I printed it up and have been looking over it ever since...it really was eye opening for me, and I wanted to share it with yall. What in the World...

It talks a little about the origin of satan and talks about some of the lies that even Christians believe...There were a few things that really stuck out at me.

The first thing that hit me between the eyes was this one:
</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, Arial">quote:</font><hr /><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, Arial">The story of the fall [of Adam and Eve] shows us that when people believe Satan's lie that God cannot be fully trusted, they fall into the fear of self-exposure. After Adam and Eve had eaten from the forbidden tree, they became conscious of their nakedness, made a feeble attempt to cover their shame with fig leaves, and tried to hide from God (Gen. 3:7-10).

Christian psychologist Larry Crabb says that the primary motivation for all of our social behavior is a fear that if others really knew us as we are, they would reject us in disgust. This fear of exposure is rooted in our sense of the ugliness of our fallen natures as they have been perverted and corrupted by sin. Satan delights in inflaming this fear until we, like the Pharisees, transform ourselves into "whitewashed tombs" (Matt 23:27) of self-deceit and self-righteousness. </font><hr /></blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, Arial">

That makes so much sense to me! I always used to think (I guess because it was the perception that I got when I was little and I just haven't thought it out since) that Adam and Even hid because they didn't want God to know what they did...but it wasn't that at all! They had fallen for one of the greatest lies of satan, and it had carried into their perception of God even after the initial sin. The lie that God cannot be trusted! So they hid because they did not want God to see "the real me" just as we do today not only with each other but with God as well. Don't look! I don't want you to see what's underneath my covering!

We still (despite knowing in our heads that God's grace covers everything) try to make ourselves righteous with works in order to achieve a higher standing in God's favor. (ex: If I stay pure for x amount of years God will give me a mate because He will know that I am ready...) Not only do we try to achieve favor with works, but we also have the damaging misconception that we will fall out of God's favor if we mess up. We forget that His grace is what saves us and not our feeble attempts to mimick His infallible righteousness. Then we fall prey to the guilt that we hold against ourselves and the accusations that satan throws at us, and we wonder if there is any use any more. After all, we did mess up after being able to be holy for so long...were all of those times that we did the right thing wasted?

We forget that it is not to attain any prize that we strive to live a holy life, but instead, it is a response to the grace that God has allready given us.

And in our quest to achieve righteousness through our own deeds, we fall into the trap of self-delusion and think that we really are strong on our own which leads us to the trap of feeling self-confident, thus giving satan a chance to lie to us again.

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, Arial">quote:</font><hr /><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, Arial">(Also from the above link) :
Peter learned this lesson the hard way. When self-confidence prompted him to declare his willingness to live and die for Christ, the Lord warned him:

Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren (Luke 22:31,32).
Knowing that Peter had opened the door for the devil by his self-confidence, Jesus told him what the devil would be doing and promised to intercede for him. The devil's accusations would sift Peter like wheat, confusing him, demoralizing him, and separating him from his faith as wheat is separated from chaff.

Peter did lose his courage, and he denied his Lord three times. But because of Christ's intercession, his faith did not fail. Here is a solemn warning against self-confidence! Our sins and failings make us vulnerable to Satan's accusations. We must stand before God therefore on the basis of Christ's righteousness (Phil. 3:1-9; Titus 3:5), not our own. We need the intercession of Him who had no shade of falseness or improper motive. He, and He alone, could say, "The ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me" (John 14:30). </font><hr /></blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, Arial">

AAAAAUUUUGGGGHHHH! It's all clear to me now...

Anyway, sorry I went off on that little tangent there...Enjoy the link. <img src="smile.gif" border="0" alt="" />