It was 9:30 Saturday night as I drove toward our temporary house. The rental house is slightly out of town with a couple of dark roads before reaching the subdivision. As I drove in the dark, I suddenly spotted some recent roadkill—a skunk. That scene always makes me sad. Trying to avoid the carcass, I steered to the left. Suddenly the pungent skunk smell enveloped me. It dissipated as I continued homeward. I pulled into the garage and the odorous smell accosted my nose.
Anthony heard my “Oh no!” and came into the garage. He has an incredibly strong sense of smell and was nearly knocked out by the noxious fumes. Through shirt-covered face, he asked me to back the FJ out of the garage, worried it would permeate the entire house.
After I’d backed onto the driveway, Anthony determined to discover the source of the smell so we could eradicate it.
Nothing visible.
I noticed small patches of liquid on my tires. Those seemingly insignificant spots carried the skunk’s effective spray. With the issue identified, we headed inside for safety.
Serving the Prince of the Power of the Air
Later that night I watched a reel clipped from a movie with a man decrying what Americans, and Christians in particular, call entertainment—specifically abusing the Lord’s name and sex scenes in movies. He named the movie industry the most powerful church in America.
In the last days, men will become lovers of flesh more than lovers of God. Is this not the case in America now? Ask yourself would you go to the movie theater to hear your name cursed? Then why go to the movie theater to hear His name cursed? Would you go to the theater to see your daughter naked on the screen? So why go see someone else’s daughter naked on the screen? This is great sinfulness in the eyes of God. … The media has the power in this country—the airways, the movies, the music. It is how the enemy is working. Look around you and observe what really moves the people and influences their lives. Is it not entertainment and the media? They control the people. They have the power of the air.
Of course that harkened to Ephesian’s reference to Satan as “the prince of the power of the air.”
And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
The reel gave me pause. I’m pretty strict in my movie standards. Anthony and I both prefer action movies, and finding a movie we’re both willing to watch is getting harder and harder. I’ve always capped my viewing at PG-13. I can’t even remember the last movie I watched with a love scene, but I do see violence and scroll for a minute or do something else during the violent scenes. I do hear the Lord’s name used as a curse word. I flinch but keep watching. If any kind of cursing gets too prevalent, especially of the Lord’s name, I’m out. Words, especially, impact me.
I sent the reel to a couple of friends. One friend said that’s why they use VidAngel. That’s a great option. I laughed because Anthony and I watched Deadpool on VidAngel and with all of my editing selections, the movie was 35 minutes long and cut in and out of scenes so dramatically that we couldn’t follow the plot and had no idea what was happening. We kept watching the movie because the editing made the scenes hilarious and we had nothing else to watch that night.
It’s Great Except For…
By the next morning, the skunk smell dissipated. I climbed back into the FJ to head to church. I steered totally clear of the poor skunk’s remnants as I left the neighborhood. I mused about how a little bit of that defensive spray on my tires impacted us so completely.
Suddenly an impactful MormonAd from days gone by flashed to mind.
I saw that in this case, I’d become a lover of pleasure more than a lover of God. God—who I’ve covenanted to stand as a witness for and bear the name of and be true in all things—my Lord and King—was I letting be cursed and bearing it. In an instant, I saw and felt everything differently.
Seeing the Difference
During our church service, we sang a rousing rendition of “The Spirit of God.” As we sang of God’s glory, angels, and visions/knowledge/power being extended to God’s people, I saw in my mind’s eye the stark comparison between the prince of the air’s kingdom and the God of the Universe’s Kingdom. Would I sell my birthright for a mess of pottage in that great and spacious building? No! I “inherit the visions and blessings and glories of God!”
1. The Spirit of God like a fire is burning!
The latter-day glory begins to come forth;
The visions and blessings of old are returning,
And angels are coming to visit the earth.
2. The Lord is extending the Saints’ understanding,
Restoring their judges and all as at first.
The knowledge and power of God are expanding;
The veil o’er the earth is beginning to burst.
3. We’ll call in our solemn assemblies in spirit,
To spread forth the kingdom of heaven abroad,
That we through our faith may begin to inherit
The visions and blessings and glories of God.
4. How blessed the day when the lamb and the lion
Shall lie down together without any ire,
And Ephraim be crowned with his blessing in Zion,
As Jesus descends with his chariot of fire!
We’ll sing and we’ll shout with the armies of heaven,
Hosanna, hosanna to God and the Lamb!
Let glory to them in the highest be given,
Henceforth and forever, Amen and amen!
My prayers include seeking ways to strengthen my covenant relationship with Jesus Christ and remove all obstacles to His promised blessings. I am so grateful for these little lessons that show by literal and physical means ways I could actually be serving the prince of the air rather than God. The tiniest skunk spray on a tire or roach in ice cream reminds that little bits of bad actually can have a big impact.
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