Watch his match

I saw seated among the fans, Mark, the coach of Kokoti Football Club (KFC), our arch competitor. My team, Kwashieman Manchester United (KMU), was playing against Young Fabulous Club (YFC). Whenever I turned to look at Mark, I saw him following the match with undivided attention.

After the match, I whispered to Francis, my coach, "Look, Mark came to watch our match." In response, Francis shook his head and said, "He came to monitor our tactics and mark our good players. I would have modified our game plan if I saw him."

Meanwhile, we were set to play against KFC in three days. Oh, how I wished I had exposed Mark's presence to my coach at the onset. As a child, I couldn't stop blaming myself.

Soon, the time came for us to play against KFC. Lo and behold, Mark loaded his strong defenders to box up our star receiver and other good attackers. This manoeuvre made the match very tough for us. Even though Francis tried his best to adjust our strategy, we couldn't neutralise KFC's defence. Consequently, they dominated offence, eclipsed us and brought upon us a hefty defeat; we lost by 3 goals to nil.

I don't think I will ever forget Mark's intellectual bully. I detested him for that. However, I have grown to appreciate his wisdom. It is evident that he won the match against us because he pre-examined our moves, planned and stormed accordingly. Thus, he succeeded in outsmarting us.

Interestingly, Mark's coaching skills reminds me of the Apostle Paul, who was the coach of the Corinthian Christian Team (CCT). Paul struggled to manage CCT against Satan, their chief opponent.

Before CCT went into their next match with Satan, Paul adopted a tactic similar to Mark's. Herein, Paul visited and analyzed some of Satan's previous victory matches in the Bible. Among other people, he probed into that of Eve, Cain, Achan, Onan, Solomon, Judas and Diotrephes. In almost all of these matches, Paul noticed that Satan lured the aforenamed figures to doubt the supremacy, providence and goodwill of God.

Therefore, Paul took time to plan and fight against these devilish weapons. In the meantime, the Corinthian brethren were apprehensive about a wayward brother who had repented from his sins. In the light of Paul's knowledge of Satan's tactics, he admonished the CCT to quickly accept the brother and not overwhelm him with excessive sorrow. Yes, that undue burden on the brother could repel him back to the world.

"[Please embrace him] so that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs," Paul pleaded with them (2 Corinthians 2:11, ESV).

How did Paul know the designs of Satan? It was through a careful reading of the Scriptures. As an apostle and the shepherd of CCT, this approach gave Paul an advantage over Satan's game plan. It was now left for the CCT to follow their coach's direction for them to claim victory.

I penned down this piece so you could also find interest in studying Satan's matches in the Bible to know his tactics. You can't afford to be ignorant of his designs because he is very smart and cunning. He may have dominated offence in your life and kicked the ball many times into your goal post. Nevertheless, it is not too late to neutralise his attacks and change the scores. Watch his match now and respond prudently.

If you need an experienced master coach to guide you, you must believe in Christ (Mark 16:16), repent (change your mind) and consider him as Lord of your life (Acts 2:38), confess him as Lord (Romans 10:10), be baptized (Acts 22:16), be added to his church (Acts 2:47), and walk-in newness of life (Romans 6:3,4).

Enjoy the Grace of God!
Amen!