Writing to the Corinthians, Paul charged them to not be ignorant of the devil’s strategies. Ignorance of his plans will allow him to have a field day in our lives and the church. Imagine how the devil was going about the persecution of the church here. As we noted yesterday, James was killed. Then he lined up Peter to be killed as well. No one needs a prophet to know that had he succeeded with Peter, John would have been the next. We know what this trio represented. Paul called them pillars in Galatians 2:9. Imagine what happens when all the pillars of a house are removed!

Great care must be exercised to protect the core persons in your life…The more they are kept from the wiles of the devil, the safer it is for the people they lead.

Great care must be exercised to protect the core persons in your life. Samson’s riddle was unravelled by the enemies through his wife. By extension, the people that play active spiritual roles over us must be protected. It is as valid now as it was then that if the shepherd is smitten, the flock would scatter. While we may have limited strength and resources to physically protect primary people in our lives, we can at least do that spiritually. Every mention of them in our prayers will go a long way to thwarting the plans of the devil concerning them. The more they are kept from the wiles of the devil, the safer it is for the people they lead.