Beware of Shadow Lane

By Gene Markland

Some years ago my wife and I were planning to purchase our dream home. We searched and searched to find just the right house in the best location. We found it at the end of Shadow Lane.

It was a beautiful traditional two-story home in a quiet neighborhood. It seemed like the answer to our prayers. The price was right and we were ready to buy. Everything seemed perfect…too perfect. So I decided to check the court records on the property. It didn’t take a long search before discovering that the owner did not have clear title to the property. There were liens against the property, which he failed to disclose.

After confronting him with the situation, he refused to pay off the liens. He wanted us to lease the house from him until the liens were paid off. If we had taken the bait, we would have ending up investing our money and not owning anything. We were so disappointed! This was our dream home, our answer to prayer, our blessing from God. Or so it appeared. But it was revealed to be a counterfeit, a substitute, and a trap!

God had promised us a house. He was, if fact, preparing a house and a great deal for us, but before His plan could be fulfilled, the enemy tried to slide in a counterfeit blessing and rob us of the true blessing that God had for us.

Well, in spite of how badly we wanted the house on Shadow Lane, we rejected the deal. A short time later, we found and received the house that God had for us all along. It was a better home in a better location, and we bought it for below market value. The grief over losing what we thought was the perfect home, turned to joy when we received the authentic, perfect home.

When you walk in the blessings of the Lord, be advised that the enemy will try to rob, cheat, and steal those blessings from you. He will even go so far as offer something similar to God’s blessing, anything, in order to ruin God’s plan for you.

When Satan tempted the Lord Jesus, he offered a substitute for Father’s plan.

“Next the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. “I will give it all to you,” he said, “if you will kneel down and worship me” (Matthew 4:8-9 NLT).

As good a deal as that may have appeared to some men, it was a poor counterfeit for the kingdom that Father had for Him. Satan offered Lord Jesus every Shadow Lane in the world, but He didn’t settle for what the devil had to offer. No, He knew that the best gifts, the authentic gifts, come from our heavenly Father, and He was determined to follow Father’s will.

He faced this again through His Disciple Peter. When Jesus told His disciples that He was the Christ, and that He must suffer at the hands of the Chief Priests in Jerusalem,

“Peter took him aside and began to reprimand him for saying such things. “Heaven forbid, Lord,” he said. “This will never happen to you!” Jesus turned to Peter and said, “Get away from me, Satan! You are a dangerous trap to me. You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s” (Matthew 16:22-23 NLT).

The enemy used every trick to encourage Jesus to receive a substitute, counterfeit Kingdom, one of Satan’s making, one that would not satisfy, one that would not last. If Jesus had invested Himself in Satan’s Kingdom, then like the owner of the Shadow Lane property, Satan would have been the true owner, and Jesus would have lost everything, and missed the true Kingdom that Father had for Him.

As you follow Christ, seek His will, and wait on your blessing. Be careful not to fall for the first thing that comes along. It might look good, and feel great, but if you notice that one little detail that doesn’t fit, when in doubt, throw it out. Don’t get stuck on Shadow Lane!