Showing posts with label spiritual armor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spiritual armor. Show all posts
Monday, October 20, 2014
The Battle(s)
Quite honestly, the battle gear seems a bit dinged lately. When the battle is in your own head and spirit, it is easy to become battle worn and weary. Sometimes the battle just seems to follow us around...nipping at our heels...waiting for us to feel frustrated enough to let that armor slip and uncensored words fly out of our mouths. Of course, that is IF we even remembered to put on armor. Here lies a piece of the dilemma. It is not difficult to see that the battles in this world are coming closer together. Often it feels like there is no relief. Just one battle. After another. After another.
No wonder we are weary! Where is your battle gear? Is it in your closet or at your church with the thought process of better to have it and not need it? Have you fallen into the trap of keeping that armor looking spiffy and shiny? If we do that, we can continue to pretend that WE fight all the battles we face. Alone.
Battling
Alone
Takes
Time and
Lots of
Effort
Time to remember that we do not need to fight alone or armor-less. God promises to provide HIS armor so that we CAN stand when things get wearisome. Part of the battle is recognizing the enemy and identifying the battles worth fighting.
Personally, lately I've neglected a few of the key items in the arsenal. I looked up the verses to remind myself...and you... Read it through. What pieces are you missing?
Ephesians 6:10-18 (NIV) The Armor of God
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Sunday, April 03, 2011
Dinged Up and Firey Darts
AAAARRRRRWWWWW! Ok, now that the screaming is out of the way.....it's an internal scream....it is late at night/early in the AM and I have sleeping family members I don't want to scare!
This thought has been on my mind a lot lately. There is SO much going on in the world right now. Maybe there has always been a lot going on, but with almost instant access to any and every possible newsworthy (and some NOT so newsworthy) event it seems there is always something happening somewhere.
In my own little world things stay busy. I've been trying to do better at not filling all the squares on my calendar with something I have to or choose to do. Some days/weeks are better than others. I'm trying to get back to scheduling at least one day my "catch up" day so I don't start to feel so overwhelmed. However, there's a saying that we plan, God laughs.
Frequently that happens, at least the planning part. On the days I actually make it to do a list of what should get done that day, someone will end up sick and change the direction of the day. Or I get a call from school. Or, or, or. You get the picture. I recently talked to my husband that the more we try to get closer to God the more the devil tries to get in the way.
Sometimes though, I get so busy with the doing that God uses (even if it was intended for bad) whatever He can to get my attention. About a month ago, it was a car accident. That thing where insurance says a lot of accidents happen within 10 miles from home, yeah. I didn't even get all the way out of my driveway. I was in a hurry. Thought I'd get stuck at the end of my driveway. Looked before the tree, but not after. I'm still not really sure how it all worked out. However, another driver's car was damaged. My back end passenger side got dinged up pretty good.
A part of me wants to fix the worst part of the van, but leave some sort of reminder of the dinging up. More than likely, the main reason I had any issue is that I was in a hurry. The car is just a physical version of the dinging up I do to myself and have watched others do to themselves mentally and spiritually.
The Bible refers to the armor of God in Ephesians 6 (below). Honestly, I feel like my armor is getting dinged up, especially my shield and my helmet. However, the dings remind me of the reason I need the armor in the first place. Darts fly frequently and we live in a world with a lot going on.
The Armor of God
Ephesians 6:10-18 (NIV) Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
This thought has been on my mind a lot lately. There is SO much going on in the world right now. Maybe there has always been a lot going on, but with almost instant access to any and every possible newsworthy (and some NOT so newsworthy) event it seems there is always something happening somewhere.
In my own little world things stay busy. I've been trying to do better at not filling all the squares on my calendar with something I have to or choose to do. Some days/weeks are better than others. I'm trying to get back to scheduling at least one day my "catch up" day so I don't start to feel so overwhelmed. However, there's a saying that we plan, God laughs.
Frequently that happens, at least the planning part. On the days I actually make it to do a list of what should get done that day, someone will end up sick and change the direction of the day. Or I get a call from school. Or, or, or. You get the picture. I recently talked to my husband that the more we try to get closer to God the more the devil tries to get in the way.
Sometimes though, I get so busy with the doing that God uses (even if it was intended for bad) whatever He can to get my attention. About a month ago, it was a car accident. That thing where insurance says a lot of accidents happen within 10 miles from home, yeah. I didn't even get all the way out of my driveway. I was in a hurry. Thought I'd get stuck at the end of my driveway. Looked before the tree, but not after. I'm still not really sure how it all worked out. However, another driver's car was damaged. My back end passenger side got dinged up pretty good.
A part of me wants to fix the worst part of the van, but leave some sort of reminder of the dinging up. More than likely, the main reason I had any issue is that I was in a hurry. The car is just a physical version of the dinging up I do to myself and have watched others do to themselves mentally and spiritually.
The Bible refers to the armor of God in Ephesians 6 (below). Honestly, I feel like my armor is getting dinged up, especially my shield and my helmet. However, the dings remind me of the reason I need the armor in the first place. Darts fly frequently and we live in a world with a lot going on.
The Armor of God
Ephesians 6:10-18 (NIV) Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Monday, November 19, 2007
The Armor of God - Spiritual Armor to keep fighting the good fight!
The Armor of God (I added) NIV New International Version
Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
================================
Oh, lately I've been feeling those flaming arrows of the devil's schemes! It is SO hard to keep the peaceful feeling when under attack. My feet want to run, not stay and fight! But this verse says stand, so fight I must. I need to daily remind myself to put on this armor that God so readily provides. Some of my thoughts on the pieces:
Belt of Truth around the waist: Our waist is pretty much the center of our body. We need to make the Truth only found in God, our center.
Breastplate of Righteousness: I looked up the word righteous and found: acting in accord with divine or moral law : free from guilt or sin. A breastplate would protect our heart. We need to keep our hearts free from guilt and sin.
Feet fitted with the gospel of Peace: I believe another version refers to the shoes of peace and good news. We can use our feet to go and tell others about the source of our peace.
Shield of Faith: A breastplate stays on the body. A shield can be moved around to protect us from attack in any direction. Bigger attacks need a bigger shield of faith!
Helmet of Salvation: A helmet protects our head and salvation protects our minds. When that helmet is in place, we can focus on the truly important and weed out those negative thought tapes that try to play in our minds. We are saved and protected by God. His voice, even when it's that still small voice, speaks truth and love.
Sword of the Spirit - word of God: Like the shield...bigger attacks require bigger equipment to fight. Spending more time with the Bible gives us the reminders of verses to use when things look worse than they might be.
Pray - in the spirit....we do not fight alone!
Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
================================
Oh, lately I've been feeling those flaming arrows of the devil's schemes! It is SO hard to keep the peaceful feeling when under attack. My feet want to run, not stay and fight! But this verse says stand, so fight I must. I need to daily remind myself to put on this armor that God so readily provides. Some of my thoughts on the pieces:
Belt of Truth around the waist: Our waist is pretty much the center of our body. We need to make the Truth only found in God, our center.
Breastplate of Righteousness: I looked up the word righteous and found: acting in accord with divine or moral law : free from guilt or sin. A breastplate would protect our heart. We need to keep our hearts free from guilt and sin.
Feet fitted with the gospel of Peace: I believe another version refers to the shoes of peace and good news. We can use our feet to go and tell others about the source of our peace.
Shield of Faith: A breastplate stays on the body. A shield can be moved around to protect us from attack in any direction. Bigger attacks need a bigger shield of faith!
Helmet of Salvation: A helmet protects our head and salvation protects our minds. When that helmet is in place, we can focus on the truly important and weed out those negative thought tapes that try to play in our minds. We are saved and protected by God. His voice, even when it's that still small voice, speaks truth and love.
Sword of the Spirit - word of God: Like the shield...bigger attacks require bigger equipment to fight. Spending more time with the Bible gives us the reminders of verses to use when things look worse than they might be.
Pray - in the spirit....we do not fight alone!
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