Not long after daylight on July 4th our daughter, Rachél, was attacked by an alligator in the shallow water of the Hillsborough River at her Temple Terrace home.
Rachél instinctively screamed but the gator wouldn’t let go of her right leg. After hitting it with a rock, she punched it in the nose with her fist. But the gator held on. Tight.
Fearing she was about to be dragged into deeper water, Rachél described to Bay News Nine reporter Matt Lackritz who interviewed her on Friday, how in desperation she reached her hands to either side of the gator’s jaws and pried them open. After crawling back to her yard, Rachél wrapped her leg in a towel, and called a neighbor to take her to the hospital.
In describing the rush of adrenaline she felt, Rachél told Matt, “I was not ready to leave my family yet.”
By God’s grace, Rachél is home from the hospital recovering after a successful surgery for a fractured Fibula, as well as tissue damage. Thankfully, no major nerves were severed. The prognoses is 6-8 weeks before the bone is healed.
Rachél’s spunk, determination, and strong will allowed her to escape the gator’s clutches. In a similar way, we need the same resolve to escape the Devil’s attacks on our soul.
While not described as an alligator, the Bible does depict the Devil as an old serpent, a roaring lion, and a great, fiery dragon (Rev. 20:2; 12:3; 1 Pet. 5:8) who seeks our harm. The metaphors are designed to warn us about the danger he poses. The seriousness of his attacks. And the need to be wary of him.
The Bible speaks of our struggle against Satan’s schemes and how we wrestle with his temptations. Resisting is not always easy. We must fight against his wiles (Eph. 6:10-17).
Satan seeks to ensnare us today with the age old tactics of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 Jn. 2:15-17). It requires our determination and resolve to resist. To fight against feelings we know that are injurious to our spiritual health and well being.
Today the devil has so many people in his clutches. It may be an addiction. A harmful habit. A destructive relationship. A crippling emotional dependancy. Or even spiritual indifference.
Unlike the alligator whose grip is obvious, hurtful, and life threatening, Satan employs means that are more subtle. Through delusion, deception, deceit and disinformation, we may find ourselves in his grip. But it doesn’t seem so bad. It might even feel fine. That’s why the Bible warns us to be alert. Be vigilant. Be watchful. And to pay attention to the devil’s attacks. To be ready to fend off his advances.
When you find yourself in the devil’s grasp, you need the resolve and courage Rachél possessed in fighting the gator. Are you ready to scream? To punch him the mouth? To pry away his grip from your heart, mind, and soul? To do whatever it requires to find release and be rescued from certain spiritual death?
Like the gator, the Bible says Satan will devour us if we don’t resist and fight against his aggression. The apostle exhorted, “fight the good fight of faith.” That includes fighting against spiritual temptation. Sinful desires. And Satan’s schemes.
We are so relieved and grateful that Rachél was spared from this awful ordeal. In the same spirit, we pray that you can fend off the Devil’s dangerous attacks on your soul. That you can be successful in your spiritual struggles. And that you can strengthen your resolve to live for the Lord.
“Be strong and of good courage” (Josh. 1:6).
–Ken Weliever, The Preacherman
Several major news outlets picked up this story, including The Washington Post. A reporter called Rachél, and did a more in depth interview. To access this story click this link.
ThePreachersWord 
Great story. We are so thankful that God performed a miracle with Rachel. He has great plans for her life and her children.
Thank you for your reminder to keep watch.
Rachel’s Pastor Ted
Temple Terrace Community Church
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Thank you so much. And thank you for all that you do to encourage and to support Rachél . Especially now in her time of need.
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Watch out the Alligator teaches Sunday School! Yes many of the teachers in our Sunday Schools put Zacchaeus down to put Jesus the Teacher up. They do the same with the Woman Caught in Adultery. They do this with Simon the Pharisee and lump all the Simons together. And then they release Jesus Barabbas as the notorious robber who steals Simon’s thunder and robs Zacchaeus of “her” virtue and resurrects the Son of the Father and claims he is the only one who kept all 10 commandments!
Preserving the 10 commandments is noble! However, as the Apostle to the Apostles states…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
Grace is forgiveness that comes when we have faith in the blood that pulses through the veins of Christ Jesus.
When young Christians see Christ hanging on the Cross, the alligator lets them think Christ’s death is something so horrible they would never ever want to imitate that death and let themselves be crucified! The alligator also convinces them that everyone who participates in crucifying Christ is a murderer.
Yes…dear children, don’t let the Alligator devour your faith. Do as a person of Faith does as Rachel did when she was actually attacked.
Grab both sides of the gator’s jaws and pry them open. Take the gator’s own words and pry open the words of Scripture and see the miracle of how Jesus the Christ comes to life eternally as a perfecting Trinity.
Hint…let the math concept of a triangle based pyramid help you understand how the transfiguration of James, John and Simon-Peter standing on home base at the foot of the mount of transfiguration in Martha’s hometown conceptualize how three people of great faith trusting in divine hospitality and grace can come together as ONE divine body that can serve as a model for others to follow.
Now don’t let the name James fool you or the fact that James is a son of Thunder. Moses THE TEACHER of Israel heard God’s voice in Thunder (Exodus 19:19). Technically thunder and lightning always come together. Lightning is quicker than the sound of lightning…yet who really comes first?
The Alligator also uses the word “son” and lets you think the word “son” is male as in the name Zacchaeus and in the name James aka Jacob who loves Rachel! Jacob remember wrestles with the angel of the lord all night and becomes a new man, bearing the name Israel and Jacob is a man with more than one wife.
Stay on your guard. Remember when a man leaves his parents he dies to his old bachelor self…and unites with his wife and the two become one new man, one Flesh (Matthew 19:5; Genesis 2:24; Ephesians 5:31).
In the olden days, when a woman married she would have taken her husband’s first and last name. If they divorced the woman would likely have reassumed her maiden name, but it was not and is not mandatory.
Today things are changing and the legal approval of same sex marriages are complicating things even more…so it is more important than ever to be aware of the Alligators in our churches, lest children lose the ability to see Christ, the Bride who belongs to the Bridegroom, as Jesus the forerunner testifies (John 3: 28-29).
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