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Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.

He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die.
Genesis 3:1-4 (ESV)

I’m struck by how quickly Eve got trapped by the serpent’s conversation. At first they were just talking. Before she knew it, she found herself twisting what God really told her about the forbidden fruit. How did she get on that conversation in the first place?

Then I thought about the anxious cycles of self-talk that only led me to further unrest. How do I get in those dialogues with myself? And are these conversations with myself or the enemy?

Eve’s first mistake was to underestimate to whom she was talking.

Have you ever tried to have a conversation with someone gifted at talking circles around you? You end up flustered and unable to keep track of the truths in your own heart!

I have a cousin who is great at flustering people. We got along just great until I became a believing Christian. He became adversarial, initiating conversations about God—not sincere questions, but lures. He’d use his gift of gab to muddle me into tripping over my own words about faith, sometimes leaving me in tears. Then he would laugh at me. It was when my cousin laughed at my crying that I recognized the enemy working through him. Isn’t that how satan works?

The enemy flusters a widow–twists her up in her thinking, until she buys into his lies.

In The Silent Seduction of Self Talk, author Shelly Beach describes the inner voices that widows are particularly susceptible to falling prey to. What are yours? How about these…

I can’t go to church alone.

I can’t fix a faucet.

I can’t remember to take the trash out—that was my spouse’s job.

My kids will always be at a disadvantage without a father.

There’s no one else good enough to marry.

Married couples only want to socialize with other couples—no one wants to hang out with a widow.

I can’t manage my finances alone.

It would be selfish to do things for myself—my kids need me.

Do you know what to do when you get in these conversations? I learned what to do when my cousin provoked me into another debate.

I recognized with whom I’m tangling and stop tangling.

To argue with my cousin will fluster me into stumbling over my words. I’ve learned to keep my conversations on Godly truths with him brief and straight from God’s Word. Jesus did this. Each time satan tempted him in the wilderness, Jesus answered, “It is written….” Now when my cousin attacks, I simply leave him something to ponder about rather than engage in a long conversation with him.

Why can’t we do this with satan himself?

We can! Just recognize the danger of letting the enemy worm confusing thoughts in our hearts. Stop him before he gets a chance. Arm ourselves with spiritual truths and reverse the lies. Yes, God will introduce me to new people at church. Yes, anyone can fix a faucet if they clear their minds and take it one step at a time. Yes, taking out the trash is my responsibility. God hasn’t given me more than I can handle.

Father God, please help our sisters to learn how to reverse satan’s lies and turn to You only. Encourage them to talk over their worries with You and let Your Truth reign in their hearts. Amen.