A few years ago I was attending a trade show in Las Vegas and had the opportunity to attend a Q&A session with Dave Salmoni, a TV personality and conservationist who was promoting his latest project. For the project he had lived in the bush near a pride of lions and attempted to learn their social structure while gaining some semblance of acceptance from them. During the hour session he spoke of different issues he encountered, things he had learned, and techniques he had used while near the lions. At the end he brought out a lion cub for everyone to “oooh” and “ahhh” over. It was the hit of the session, and gave everyone an idea of the power of the animal, even though it was very young. Yes, it was very cute.
As he answered the various questions from the audience, the answer that I was most interested in was how he handled any lion attacks that may have occurred. Obviously he had survived intact, because he was 30 feet in front of me – but what did he do if the lion charged?
We learned that no lion had done a full charge at him, and that his time as a big cat trainer had taught him how to diffuse many of the issues that he may have faced. Then he mentioned something that surprised me. He told us that during his time there he had consulted with the local tribesmen, and they had taught him a technique that was passed down from generation to generation. Then he left us hanging, telling us to watch the show and in an early episode he explains it in detail. After that letdown, he was lucky to bring out the lion cub to quell any possible riot.
Months later the show was aired and I DVRed the episodes to watch. Sure enough, the episode came in which he explained the technique, and I was totally surprised by what it was. I had heard before that when confronting a large animal like a lion or a bear, it is imperative that you stand tall, wave your arms, use a strong voice, and do not turn your back. What the tribesmen had taught him was what to do when none of that worked and the lion still charged.
So here you are, standing tall, waving your arms, talking in a strong voice – and the lion isn’t impressed. He decides to charge you. You know to run is to seal your fate. What do you do?
Use Your Stick
They were taught to stand their ground. They were also taught to carry a long stick, or a staff (Or possibly a Ninja Broom Handle) when traveling in the bush. When the lion would charge it would rear up on its hind legs right before landing on its victim. In that moment the tribesmen were taught to have their staff ready and shove it into the lion’s mouth as far as they could. The goal was to get the staff down into the lion’s throat, which would set off the lion’s gag reflex. He may follow through and land on the tribesman, but he would quickly break off the attack and get away as quickly as possible.
After hearing this explained and watching them practice their staff technique on rocks swinging from a tree, I thought of 1 Peter 5:8-9 :
8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith.
The enemy, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Not everyone is available for him to devour – he is looking for, or seeking someone who he can charge, maul, and eat. The many times I had read that verse I understood that not everyone was his to devour, but I hadn’t heard a good real-world analogy of how to fend off this charging lion. Now I had one. When standing up to him, waving my arms at him and yelling at him wouldn’t stop his approach – ramming my staff down his throat would. As the tribesmen explained, to be accurate with the staff you had to practice to develop excellent aim and timing – but it could be done.
Putting It Into Practice In Life
You may be wondering how that applies to your life. It does.
First – You have to realize that you don’t have to be one of those that the devil devours – or has his way with. Don’t choose to stay on the menu.
Second – If you don’t concede to his attack – you resist. We are told in James 4:7 –
7 So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
We are given the assurance that if we resist the devil, he will flee from us. This resistance is an active stance. It doesn’t say, “Please stop doing this to me.” It says, “That’s enough. You’re going no further.” Resistance isn’t a request, it’s a strong statement of resolve. Resistance will leave a mark when applied forcefully. Yes, you want the enemy to flee thinking, “Ouch! That’s gonna leave a mark!”
Third – Without expanding this into a full teaching; look at God’s Word and the authority we have in Jesus’ name as your staff. Once you’ve came to a point of resisting, use it to actually resist. When the devil roars and charges, you take God’s word and your authority in Jesus’ name and ram it down his throat. Make him gag on it. Then smack him with them a few times on his way out. Leave a mark.
A Real Life Example
I’ll give you a recent example from my own life. A few weeks ago I had a routine CT scan for my oncologist. (If you haven’t heard my testimony about my healing from cancer, read the Light At the End of the Tunnel post.) I received a call the following week telling me that they wanted me to come in and have a follow up MRI done. The thoughts tried to creep in about “What did they see?”, “You’ve got cancer again”, etc. I refused to dwell on those thoughts, and instead chose to remind myself of God’s faithfulness to me when I had faced cancer and that He was still faithful to me now. I answered the thought with a thought.
I went in and had the MRI, and did so with peace about what they would see. Later I was driving out of town and the thought came to me – “What are you going to do when the MRI shows a tumor?” I had the chance to think on that scenario. Instead I chose to answer the thought and put that thought in its place. I replied, “What are you going to do when it comes back with no tumor and I’m still cancer free?” I never had that negative thought again.
I had my follow up with my oncologist and the MRI showed there was no tumor. No cancer.
I had made the decision to resist. I humbled myself before God by acknowledging Him as my healer and the authority in my life – including my thoughts and words. Then I followed it through with how I answered the thoughts that were contrary to what He had said about my situation. I gagged the charging lion – and I’m still cancer free.
Has the devil been roaring at you lately? Stand tall. Wave your arms. Yell in a strong voice – and get your staff ready. If you’ve not picked up your staff recently, get into God’s Word and see what it has to say about your situation. This is part of humbling yourself before God. It will take discipline and practice, but just like the tribesmen in Africa, you will learn to resist and win. If the lion charges, you have an answer he can choke on!
