Pastor Mike Nodland

Growing up on a farm in northern Iowa as a small kid, I got bored and looked for fun. My favorite was annoying the hogs.

On hot summer days after lunch, my siblings and I would quietly climb our treehouse located just above the hog’s mud hole. Carrying clumps of hardened mud, we would sit silently and wait for the hogs to wallow to sleep in the mud hole. Then, like little devils, we’d toss a hard chunk of mud down on one of the hogs and watch their reaction.

When things quieted down again, we’d toss another chunk of hardened mud on another hog and the chaos in the mudhole would start all over again. Eventually, we’d have the entire hog clan mad at each other, eyeing each other with hog-styled suspicion, and poise for a fight!

Excusing the analogy of humans with hogs for a moment, we’re not a lot different, ourselves! The instigator, though, is what the Bible calls, our “Adversary,” the devil. He enjoys tossing mud and slop our way, just to get us stirred up at each other, like reminding us of our past failures and sin. Next time he reminds you of your pastsettle the score: remind him of his future!