Acting on an Untrue Theory

It's too late at night for me to accurately convey what I'm thinking right now, but I'll give it a go.

About five years ago (six, in a few months), I submitted an Utterly Ridiculous and Admittedly Untrue Theory about how Satan is like a personal trainer. According to the untrue theory, Satan isn't actually trying to destroy us; he's trying to strengthen us by presenting us with challenges for us to overcome. Granted, I know that this theory is untrue. Many prophets, if not all of them, have taught that Satan is trying to destroy us. But I still kind of wish that my theory wasn't false, and the fact that it is doesn't mean that I can't pretend that it isn't.

Even though I know that Satan is my adversary, I can still treat him like a personal trainer or like a really tough coach. I can respond to his temptations the same way I respond to the trials God gives me. I'm not thankful for them, and I'll do my best not to let them destroy me, but I can be grateful for the strength I gain from overcoming them, preferably without becoming resentful toward nor angry at whichever being presented me with them.

Satan is no friend of mine, but I can still become a better person as a result of his involvement in my life, whether he intended that or not, and since I'm benefiting from his existence, it seems strange to regard him as an enemy. Besides, I'm not really big on fighting enemies anyway, not in real life. I suppose I could learn to hate Satan (even though hatred is itself a sin) and channel that hatred into fighting him, but I really don't need that much negativity in my life. Satan is my adversary and my opponent, but that doesn't mean that he needs to be my enemy. I need to fight him, but I don't need to hate him.

I'm probably not making a whole lot of sense to you. Maybe the rest of you are okay with hating Satan. But I'd rather not. I'd rather not hate anyone. I'd rather think of Satan as a personal trainer trying to help me become stronger than as an immortal enemy hellbent on destroying me. I know the truth about Satan, but I like my untrue theory better, and I believe that using Satan as a personal trainer will serve me better than regarding him as a hated enemy.