“Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.”

—2 CORINTHIANS 11:14

Summer is known for its blazing hot sunshine, greeting you with a stinging salutation the moment you step outside. But sometimes a smattering of white clouds may arrive, parading slowly across the sky. And if they’re big enough and close enough together, they provide what feels like a canopy of relief from the shriveling effects of direct sunlight. In these conditions, you might decide to stay out on the playground or the beach a little longer than usual. Hold off on that extra application of sunscreen. Leave your visor and glasses inside, figuring the shade is sufficient cover, a trusted guard against overexposure.

And yet that cloud cover is misleading. Its skimpy filter cannot completely contain the effects of the sun’s intense light. Its ultraviolet strength may be invisible, but it is powerful and cannot be diminished by passing attempts to dilute its energy. In fact, the sun damage to human skin is most pervasive when cloud cover prevails, when we think it’s not working hard enough to be worried about, when we’ve worn no sunscreen and taken no precautions. The conditions outside may be cooler and less glaring. More comfortable, less worrisome. But the sun’s harmful rays invisibly penetrate the gauze of visible clouds, and skin can be seared and burned, damaged and diseased. In actuality, the disguise makes the sun’s work more potent and its heat more injurious.

Not unlike the way Satan disguises himself . . . and his dangers.

There are days, of course—and certain times or scenarios—when you more easily see, sense, and expect his withering rays of temptation. You can feel the heat of his schemes against you bearing down on the back of your neck. So you take precautions. You slather yourself in prayer and Scripture, dressing for the occasion in your spiritual armor.

But at other times, when you’re feeling steady and secure in your faith and the cloud cover of good times have lulled you to sleep, you no longer sense the need to do as much proactive safeguarding. Your marriage is reasonably strong, your finances steady, your children safe, your own hang-ups somewhat silent for the moment. So you relax your pursuit of holiness and the priority you place on spiritual things.

But the smokescreen of happier times, even just normal times, shields the brazenness of his strategy, hoping to catch you unaware. You may not hear the clink of weapons being aimed your direction. You may not think the situation requires as much preparation and protection. You may be too tired or too comfortable to be concerned about being overly watchful.

That’s when he’ll burn you.

So today, plan ahead and pack spiritual supplies to keep his intentions at bay. Don’t overlook the shady, innocuous spots. Even there, apply your spiritual sunscreen at full strength—so you can come home blessed and believing, instead of blistered and beleaguered.

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

—1 PETER 5:8