1. Satan tempts us to resent other people, especially persons we dislike, and to be jealous of others’ successes.
2. When we’ve decided to do something morally good, the devil will suggest we delay acting on our good impulses; he hopes we’ll later change our minds or forget what we were going to do.
3. Whenever we’ve done a good deed, Satan wants us to feel superior and self-satisfied; this sort of pride greatly lessens the value of our good deeds and spiritual achievements.
4. The devil will do everything possible to keep us from being humble, for he knows that humility destroys his influence over us and allows God’s grace to work within us.
5. If we resist Satan’s attacks by remaining humble, he’ll continue attacking us—by making us proud of how humble we are!
6. When we’re deciding what to do in a moral situation, the devil will try to make us afraid of what might happen if we do the right thing.
7. Satan wants us to deny our sins and refuse to admit our need for mercy; in this way we won’t seek God’s forgiveness, and our adversary will have an easier time drawing us more deeply into sin.
8. When we’re bothered by temptations, the devil wants us to believe they’re too powerful to resist and that they won’t go away until we give in; in this way he keeps us from holding out and using the grace God offers.
9. If we hesitate to give in to a temptation, Satan will try to convince us that it’s no big deal, suggesting that “everyone’s doing it,” or “it’s just a little sin,” or “God doesn’t really care.”
10. When we’ve sinned, the devil wants us to feel terribly guilty and afraid to ask God for forgiveness; in this way he can keep us imprisoned in our sins, and gradually gain control over us.
God, however, wants us to turn to Him and seek His forgiveness, no matter how terrible our sins might be. He is eager to be reconciled with us, and as Jesus says, “There will be more joy in Heaven over one repentant sinner than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need to repent” Luke 15:7
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