I am amazed at how much junk is being thrown at our kids day after day. My son can't go the McDonalds and assume the toys they give him are okay. The current toy for boys are Bakugans. I didn't know what these were and since they looked kinda creepy, we google searched for it. Apparently these little guys are bad news. I don't know what you let your kids play with and that is definitely your choice, but for my kids, we are not playing anything that has anything to do with demons and powers and all that garbage. My kids have been exposed to so much before coming to live with us that I have no control over. But what I can do is pay attention to the stuff that is being thrown at them so innocently now that they are here and under my watch.
The first time D brought home one of these little toys, we had to have a talk about how the devil is trying to trick us to think that things that are bad for us are good. And even though it looks like just a toy, the story behind it had to do with using the devil's power and we didn't want anything to do with that. It is the devil's job to deceive us and we have to be smarter than that. The final result was that I told him we were throwing it away. He didn't take it too well, but ultimately it was what I felt I needed to do. Today as soon as D got his toy he knew it was one of those Bakugans which we refer to as the "devil's friends." He really wanted to keep it, but by the time we were done eating his Happy Meal, he decided he didn't want any of the devil's friends, even if it meant he didn't get a toy and his sisters did. I was so proud of him for his decision and I told him that in the future, if he gets a toy that will not make God happy from a kids meal, if he would throw it away we would replace it with a toy from the dollar store. He was happy with that exchange and I am happy that he is realizing we are trying to protect him and not hurt him. Daddy told him how proud he was for the choice that he made. And I am pretty sure God is proud of him too.
I don't know what you believe about spiritual warfare, but let me tell you there is some serious spiritual battle going on for my kids at my house. We talk about it a lot with them. They are learning that the devil wants them to not listen and to disobey us and even to not want to talk to God every night during our family prayer time and if their choices are not pleasing to God, they are making the devil happy. This isn't just about what we want, there is always a spiritual battle going on that we may not see or realize. I think they are getting it. More often than not, they will ask me to pray for them and tell the devil to leave them alone in Jesus name and pray that Jesus will give them strength to make the decision that pleases God. I guess I always knew this was going on, especially after reading "This Present Darkness" and "Piercing the Darkness" by Frank Peretti, but it seems so much more real since we are talking about it on a daily basis around here. Maybe it seems to be a common topic of discussion because we are raising kids who may or may not have a background in spiritual things or maybe it is just because we are raising kids period. They won't ever learn unless we tell them. Let me be clear to say that we do not scare them by talking about the devil, but he is our very real enemy and I feel I would be doing them a disservice by pretending like he isn't always trying to trick them. They know that Jesus is bigger and Jesus will win, but they also know that the devil is always fighting against them and they have to choose to not please him by their choices.
I am so glad we have power over the enemy of our souls by the blood of Jesus. There are a few songs that have been going over in my head for the past couple of weeks and they talk about the victory and freedom we have because of the blood. I am so thankful for the blood that purchased my victory and victory for my kids. Nothing but the blood can do that. Nothing
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