I remember watching an interview with Arnold Schwarzenegger (yes, the “I’ll be back” man turned Governor), and at some point in the interview, he was asked about steroids. He quickly condemned them and talked about how they should be banned.

I remember thinking how that was probably the right answer, and yet it didn’t feel right, mostly because the man who said it had more than likely used them to get where he was.

In other words, the very material that he had used to build the platform wouldn’t be available for others to build their platforms.

At this point, let’s quickly move away from Arnold, muscles, and steroids because they really should be banned. The takeaway isn’t about the presence of steroids, but the absence of humility in our successes.

It’s easy to appear humble when we’re just starting out, and flying under the radar. It’s a whole other thing to stay humble on the rise, and even beyond the rise. Humility might have answered the question with an honest admission like, “I recognize that my stance against steroids now may appear hypocritical, but I’ve learned more than I knew then, and I admire those who are working in bodybuilding now without them.”

Too often, we use things to get to a place where we no longer need those things, and then throw shade at the very things we used. To simplify the point, humility never forgets where it came from, but humble beginnings aren’t enough. We need humble middles and humble endings, too.

So start humble, for sure, but stay humble, too. Never give God a reason to tear down the platform on which you’re standing.

That’s a strong title, but I’ll back it up.

There are so many points that will be made on social media and news outlets over the coming days and weeks. I’m certain that almost all of them will be made by people who are much smarter than I am in the arena of geopolitical realities.

But none of the things that you and I will hear from mainstream media (or “side-stream media” for that matter) will be the most important lesson that we must learn from the invasion launched by Vladimir Putin last night on the Ukrainian people. What is it, you ask?

Our enemy never went away.

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8)

The discussions people will have about Russia will reveal rather quickly what the generations think about the country. Many who only know Russia in her current state will struggle to understand why the older generations only think of Ivan Drago and the former Soviet Union when they hear about Russia.

Only one of those groups is surprised today about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Many followers of Jesus view Satan the same way our current culture has viewed Russia: he’s around us, but probably isn’t as bad as others have tried to make him look. The devil is seen as this kind of misunderstood figure who likely had something bad happen to him that made him the way he is today. This is what happens when a generation consumes origin stories like candy. But the origin story for Satan is a quick one: he wanted to be God, he tried to take over from God, and now he’s fighting against God.

He may be defeated, but it doesn’t mean he isn’t dangerous. He is seeking to devour, and when we think of him in any other way than that, we let down our guards and become his target.

Russia has prowled around the border of Ukraine for decades, and the world has been lulled to sleep. Satan has used the same tactic, and the church has stopped believing he’ll ever do anything more than just prowl around.

But prowling isn’t Satan’s endgame, any more than just being near Ukraine was Russia’s. He wants a complete take-over, and the easiest way for our enemy to invade us is to convince us that he never will.

But he is patient, and he will wait as long as it takes.

The truth that our enemy never went away isn’t supposed to fill us with fear. Instead, it must fill us with vigilance. The verse doesn’t say to “be afraid” because he prowls around, but rather to “be alert” because of it.

It’s time to wake up, Church. It’s time to admit that we have played with fire and been burned. We’ve gone swimming with sharks and called “foul” because they attacked, without realizing the inevitable outcome of swimming with creatures that attack.

We’ve allowed the enemy to roam around our borders too long, and we’ve forgotten that he only prowls until he finds something to devour. Both personally and corporately, it’s time for followers of Jesus to inspect the conditions of their walls (see Nehemiah 2:15), and begin rebuilding the low places that our very real enemy wants to access.

Watch the news. Listen to the talking heads. But in all of it, please learn the ONE thing that matters most: our enemy is still looking for a way to devour, and we are the standard that God wants to raise up against him.

Last year, I took on the challenge of writing and posting every day. That meant 365 posts containing over 100,000 words.

This year, I have a different goal: to post at least once every week. This allows me space to pursue some other creative outlets, like writing my next book and launching a podcast.

But because I’m writing less, I’ve also noticed something over the first few weeks of the year that I don’t like. My “once a week” post is happening more and more on Saturdays. What was a point of focus last year has begun to get squeezed to the last day of the week this year.

It isn’t that the other things aren’t noteworthy; they are. It’s simply a lack of intentionality on my part. Being intentional is the necessary ingredient to fighting “The Squeeze.” If we aren’t intentional about what we will (and will not) do, things tend to get squeezed out, or, in my case, squeezed into the last possible slot.

If you’re finding important things like relationships, fitness, and personal, spiritual, mental, and emotional growth getting “the squeeze” in your week, then it’s probably time to re-evaluate your focus.

For me, it means setting the reminder for my writing goal to pop up mid-week instead of the end of the week because something as small and intentional as that can make all the difference!