Lay It on Me

A T HRESHING B EFORE THE F INAL B LESSING / 77

floor. The Philistines watched the Hebrews till the ground, plant the seed, water the soil, pull out the weeds, then harvest the barley and wheat. Then, when the Hebrews took the grain to the threshing floor, the enemy would steal the grain, thus robbing the farmer of his increase and his finances. Remember, the Devil never plays by the rules. He comes "to steal, and to kill, and to destroy" (John 10:10). The enemy will let you pray, plant the seed, and get to the brink of your harvest, then suddenly bring a problem that will eat your finances and steal the blessing you have been waiting for. The threshing floor is a place of battle. Boaz was sleeping near the pile of grain in order to protect it from any invader that might come at night! By Ruth coming to the floor, she was showing him again that as he protected the grain, she was willing to be by his side! The battle at the threshing floor turned into the blessing at the threshing floor. T HE T IME OF T ESTING Christ revealed to Peter that "Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat" (Luke 22:31). Jesus said Satan wanted to sift Peter's faith (Luke 22:32). All spiritual testing is designed to sift your faith. God sends a test to build your faith and character, but Satan sends a test to destroy your faith in God. Satan told God that if He pulled the rug out from under Job and took his financial blessing, Job would lose his faith and curse God. When Job lost his wealth and his children, his