Skip to main content

Spiritual Stalkers


Stalker – noun – a person who stealthily hunts or pursues an animal or another person. 

We joke a lot about stalkers around here.  Facebook stalkers.  Friends who join us/run into us almost everywhere we go.  Silly things mostly.  And most of us, if we were honest, would admit that in some way or another we also stalk someone else.  We “follow” people on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.  We know far more about their lives than they’ve ever told us in person, with very little effort at relationship on our part.  My family goes so far as to sing parts of the song “Turn Around, Look at Me,” when we’re creeping up behind each other. 

But how often do we consider what might be stalking us spiritually?  What may be following us in realms unseen?

The Bible actually has a lot to say about spiritual stalkers.

Of course, there are good stalkers, things like those mentioned in Psalm 23:6.  The Word on the Street Paraphrase says it this way, “I know that your good, your best, your love and passion will stalk me, steer me, stand alongside me, [and] outlast every fad and fashion, through all eternity.”  Other translations add the following to this list of good spiritual stalkers:

-          Goodness, mercy, and unfailing love (Amplified)
-          God’s beauty and love (Message)
-          God’s faithful protection and loving provision (Voice)
-          Friendliness (Byington)

Who is stalked by these things, you ask?  I mean, how do we know if we’re being stalked by God’s goodness and best for our lives?  The second part of Psalm 23:6 holds the key.  It says, “And I will live forever in your house, Lord” (CEV).  When we are dwelling in God’s temple, in His church, and in the courts of praise – that’s when we’re guaranteed that God’s blessings will stalk us.  We have to be solidly established in a relationship with Him, in a relationship with His house, in order to guarantee that our spiritual stalkers are blessed ones. 

Throughout the Bible, we are likewise assured that we will be surrounded by:

-          Songs of victory when we confess our sins and are forgiven (Psalm 32:6-7, Living Bible)
-          Abiding love when we trust in the Lord (Psalm 32:10, Living Bible)
-          Lovingkindness and tender mercies, because He has ransomed us from hell (Psalm 103:4, Living Bible)
-          Blessings like a shield, when our hearts are right with him (Psalm 5:12, Voice)

In addition to these positive stalkers, the Bible also warns us of more menacing stalkers that may attach themselves to us, if we open the door for the enemy to work in our lives.   These warnings begin in the very first chapters of Genesis.  Genesis 4:6-7, in the Message Bible says, “God spoke to Cain: ‘Why this tantrum?  Why the sulking?  If you do well, won’t you be accepted?  And if you don’t do well, sin is lying in wait for you, ready to pounce; it’s out to get you, you’ve got to master it.’”  When we disobey God, we open the door for sin to stalk us, to watch for an opening to destroy our lives. 

Romans 3:16 adds to the list of ominous stalkers that may attach themselves to us if we are not seeking God (see verse 11 for that clarification), saying that: “Havoc and ruin follow in their path” (Knox).  The same verse, in other translations, states that when we are not seeking God, our lives are vulnerable to the following additional stalkers:

-          Destruction [as it dashes them to pieces] and misery (Amplified)
-          Suffering (GW)
-          Wretchedness (HCSB)
-          Heartbreak (Message)
-          Failure and pain (NIRV)

The Bible also warns us about pestilence that stalks in darkness (Psalm 91:6, Amplified) and the lies of the wicked that stalk us (Psalm 12:8, Message). 

So you see, while joking about “stalkers” and “followers” on social media is all in light-hearted fun, we have a lot to consider in the spiritual realm.  We need to daily ask ourselves where we may be opening ourselves up for dangerous stalkers sent from the enemy.  And likewise, we must daily decide to align ourselves with God’s heart, so that we can daily reap the benefits and look forward to the fun of being “stalked” by God’s best for us.  Because, after all, the stalker almost always catches up with its prey. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Rising from the Ashes: Prayers for Restoration, Healing, and the Word of God to Penetrate War-Weary Kosovo

“The region, though largely peaceful, is still recovering from the war of 1999 which saw over 10,000 civilians killed, a million ethnic Albanians fled as refugees to surrounding countries, and extensive damage to property throughout the region …” [1] Devastation, destruction and loss, scars and atrocities that have not been forgotten … even if the people in this small country largely have been.   Kosovo, being such a relatively “new” politically recognized country, seems on the backburners of everyone’s minds.   When we speak of missions, most people think of Africa.   When we think of gross poverty, most people think of Africa.   When we think of ethnic cleansing and genocide, we think of Africa and the problems in Darfur.   But we have forgotten; we have overlooked. How could we?   http://www.paulmoran.org/assignments/kossovo/index.html Kosovo is a small nation, slightly larger than the state of Delaware; a new nation, only declaring its indepe...
Post a Comment
Read more

Our Refuge: Knowing God through the Psalms

“I have confidence in your strength; you are my refuge , O God … I will praise you, my defender.   My refuge is God, the God who loves me …” – Psalm 59:9, 17, Good News Bible The Psalms are filled with verses about God our refuge: -           Psalm 9:9 says that the Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a place of safety in times of trouble. -           In Psalm 31:3, the Psalmist reminds God that He is our refuge and defense and asks for guidance. -           Psalm 59:16 is filled with the songs of celebration of the strength and constant love of our Refuge God. -           Psalm 62:8 encourages us to tell all our problems to God, to trust Him at all times, for He is our refuge.   And there are so many more references along this line.   But have you ever stopped to wonder what that means? ...
4 comments
Read more

Developing the Vision of God: A Battle Against Tradition and Convenience

This week, at a Bible Study hosted in my home, we began discussing what the Word “radical” means in our society, especially in regards to our Christian faith.   We wrestled and rebelled against the idea that giving more than 10% is radical, the idea that more than half an hour of Bible reading per day is radical, that praying in tongues ( at all ) is radical.   We found ourselves looking to the Jesus of our Bibles and simply being dissatisfied with the “little” lives we lead for Christ in this country, wanting more.   Whatever happened to the Christian’s ability to see unlimited possibilities in Christ?   Whatever happened to our ability to see boldness, adventure, and other great things in our future in Him?   What has limited us? Thus sensitized to this subject, as I was studying in Mark this week, I began to find my answer.   In Mark 7:8-9, in the Message, Jesus explains what limits our vision of God’s ability in our lives.   He says, “‘They jus...
Post a Comment
Read more