"Look out for the devil at the foot of the mountain," to quote another. What did he mean by that?
Elijah could tell you. He went up on a mountain, and there he challenged the heathen prophets of Baal. There God showed He was alive by consuming Elijah's sacrifice with fire from heaven. While all the forlorn prophets of Baal watched in chagrin, the miraculous tongues of fire even licked up the water in the trench around the altar!
Few men will experience the thrill of triumph Elijah must have felt as he ran down the mountain, passing King Ahab's chariot in the rain that had come in answer to his prayer. See 1 Kings 18:17-46.
At the bottom of the mountain, however, discouragement came. Queen Jezebel threatened his life, and Elijah hid under a juniper tree, praying to die.
It seems amazing that Elijah would become so upset by Jezebel's threat, after what he had just seen God do. But human emotions are irrational. Discouragement is one of the devil's favorite tools, and often defeats a Christian.
New converts will find the devil waiting at the bottom of their mountaintop experience with temptations, lies, and discouragement.
Satan walks about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Have you ever seen an intensely hungry lion? I was at the zoo one afternoon at feeding time. The lions were pacing back and forth in their cages, growling. Saliva dripped in long threads as the lions worked their tongues around their mouths, eyeing the zoo visitors. When meat was thrown in by the zoo keeper, they all pounced on it at once.
The devil is as eager to attack you as is a hungry lion. He waits to ambush both the mature Christian, and the new convert at the bottom of the mountain. Often he attacks the mature Christian after a particular victory. He especially loves to get an entire assembly discouraged at the same time. That way, results of blessing soon fade.
Moses found the results of Satan's work when he came down from Mount Sinai after having a tremendous experience with God, and receiving the ten commandments. He found the people had greatly sinned. But Moses did not give up. He knew there were many Israelites who would still serve the Lord, so he persevered in prayer for them.
Christians need to be prepared to fight the lion at the bottom of the mountain, just as Moses did. Moses caused all who were not on the Lord's side to be slain.
Today we cannot solve our problems by slaying individuals who give us trouble. But we can become fully aware that Satan is out to get us, and we can recognize discouragement as the devil's work when it comes. We can obey the scripture, "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you" (Jas. 4:7).
Often everything looks drab in the valley. Monstrous mountains of despair, worry, and doubt rise to cast their shadows and block our view. Instead of praying to die, as Elijah did, we can begin our fight for victory by counting our blessings and thanking God for what He has already done.
The Lord Jesus Christ promised He would never leave nor forsake us. He is with us, even at the bottom of the mountain. He will help us climb to the heights of joy and gladness. He will give us victory, for He is "God of the valleys" as well as "God of the hills" (1 Kings 20:28).