[424 words]
In 1983 the residents of a Florida apartment building awoke to a terrifying sight outside their windows. The ground beneath the street in front of their apartment building had literally collapsed, creating a massive depression that Floridians call a sinkhole. Tumbling into the ever-deepening pit were automobiles, sidewalks, and lawn furniture. The apartment building was obviously the next thing to go. Geologists tell us that sinkholes occur when the under ground rock and sediment is drained away by the forces of erosion. When this happens, the crust of the earth no longer has a supporting structure. When the external forces exceed the limits of the underneath support, the ground collapses and a sinkhole is formed. Anything that happens to be on the surface when the ground collapses is swallowed up in sudden destruction, houses, cars, factories, highways, livestock, pets, and people.
In Rock Springs, Texas, there is a place called The Devil’s Sinkhole. It is named this because it is the proverbial “bottomless pit.” If you look in, all you will see is about 400 feet of straight down, deep and utter darkness. It has a long, narrow shaft at the surface that leads to a large lower chamber at the bottom. Each night, as the sun sets, millions of bats swarm out of the chamber and up through the narrow opening at the surface in an ominous black cloud of beating wings and shrill cries that twists and turns like a tornado as these nocturnal residents leave to hunt for food.
But there is a different kind of Devil’s Sinkhole that is far more ominous, for it constantly threatens to open underneath your feet. The Devil is at work, right now, in an attempt to erode the foundations of your heart, your mind, your character, your integrity, your resolve, your purpose, and your very soul. At the same time, he is working to apply pressure on the surface of your life by trying to overwhelm your time, your energy, your finances, your family, your friendships, your health, and your job. His goal is to cause as much pain, sorrow, and despair as possible. He wants to destroy your faith in God because he wants you to surrender.
So, while the Devil is trying to create sinkholes in your life, remember these words of encouragement from Ephesians 6:10-11, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.”
Joel Shelton
Commerce church of Christ
Commerce, TX