Learning from Amadeus.....

I've been reading the book "Waking the Dead" by John Etheredge (Jonas gave this as a gift & I highly recommend it!). He talks about guarding your heart and the spiritual warfare that goes on every day for your heart. I don't know about you but usually when I read about "spiritual warfare" I poo poo the idea and skip that chapter. I don't want to get too deep in this and you may not be interested at the moment but stop and think about it. You can get up, clean up, go to work or school, come home, watch a little TV, feed the dog or cat and go to bed - without even wondering how the Enemy might be attacking. My question is, what is the attack? Who is attacking? Why is there anyone attacking my heart? (by the way, the heart is the "real" you - not the outside part that everyone else sees).
I love to watch movies and pick out little gems of Truth. Remember the movie Amadeus? In the movie, Mozart's wife goes to a rival composer with political power. His name is Salieri and he is the villain of the story. She is asking Salieri (a musician but not that good) to look at her husband's work in hopes of getting him a job (they need the money for food). He looks through the pages she gives him and is captivated by the work of his rival. He realizes that Mozart is extremely gifted and feels that his music is the "very voice of God". He is looking at a draft and notices no corrections of any kind. The music was "finished" in his head before he simply wrote it on paper. It was perfect (just like our heart). Salieri is upset by this and leaves the room and goes to his private chamber. There, he takes down a crucifix from the wall and throws it in the fire. Listen to what he says: "From now on we are enemies, You and I. Because You choose for your instrument a boastful, lustful, smutty, infantile boy...and give me only the ability to recognize the Incarnation. Because You are unjust...unfair..unkind. I will hinder and harm Your creature here on earth as far as I am able. (He shakes his fist in the air). I will ruin Your incarnation."
Uh....I get it....this is the just like the heart of OUR enemy! He is out to ruin us and to hinder us from living the abundant life. So it makes sense to me that there is a spiritual war going on for my heart.
Look, I know that even if you've read this far you are poo pooing the idea too. I know you aren't reading the book and probably didn't even want to think about this.. But hey, just think about it every once in a while when watching a movie. In every story there is a villain, right? Dorothy has her Wicked Witch. Obi-Wan has his Darth Maul. Frodo has his Black Riders. The children enter Narnia and have their White Witch. So it makes sense there is a villain in our story who is out to "steal and kill and destroy" (John 10:10). Remember to be on guard each day and protect your heart. It may be gossip you don't need to hear. It may be a "dirty" joke you shouldn't listen to. It may be a web site you shouldn't visit. It may be a TV program you shouldn't watch. The Enemy will use whatever He can to get to you.

Love you.
-Randy