Getting Dressed

14 Stand, therefore,
with truth like a belt around your waist,
righteousness like armor on your chest,
15 and your feet sandaled with readiness
for the gospel of peace.
16 In every situation take the shield of faith,
and with it you will be able to extinguish
all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
17 Take the helmet of salvation,
and the sword of the Spirit,
which is God’s word.
18 Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request, and stay alert in this with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints. Ephesians 6:14-18 (HCSB)

I always read these verses and thought “That’s nice.” Today, I began to wonder “How does this apply to my life?” What does it look like to wear the full armor of God? Let’s take it apart.

Belt of Truth: Wear this, always being truthful, standing firm for what is right so you don’t get caught with your bottoms falling off, exposed for something that you did that was wrong. In our world there is a prominent thought that it’s OK to do something wrong as long as you have a good reason. That is not what God says.

Righteousness like Armor: Knowing that you are covered by Jesus righteousness, wear it like an armor over your heart. Cover yourself when the attacks come and you feel unworthy. You are worthy because of Jesus. Use his gift of grace to stand strong and face your day.

Sandals of Peace: Your feet should be ready to go on God’s call. When someone is in need, don’t hesitate thinking you are not ready. You are ready! Your response should be immediate.

Shield of Faith: Faith - the barrier to attack like a shield all around you. As the attacks come, we lift our faith in Jesus and fend off the arrows that so easily pierce our hearts and mind with lies that cripple us. With our faith we fight and remember we are loved. We counter lies with the truth about who God is.

Helmet of Salvation: What’s your covering? When you wake up every day, what do you cover yourself with so you know you are saved? Is it your good deeds? Is it because you are nice to people or because you didn’t throw someone under the bus? If it is, then with the next strong wind your floppy hat will fly away and you will not be covered appropriately. But, if instead you are covered by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, your helmet is secure. You are ready for the daily battle we call life.

Sword of the Spirit - The Word of God: I imagine I am facing the day and the battle has started. Stress here, failed plans there, hurtful words of a colleague, negative thoughts that invade my mind. I stand up with my Bible (which is on my phone) and I start thrusting it here and there to conquer the enemy. Funny thing is I can’t thrust it if I don’t read it. If I don’t know what God is telling me, I can’t wield the weapon.

How did you get dressed this morning? Get dressed with God and then….pray. Prayer is the secret weapon.

Just Because It's Hard

And I will lead the blind
in a way that they do not know,
in paths that they have not known
I will guide them.
I will turn the darkness before them into light,
the rough places into level ground.
These are the things I do,
and I do not forsake them. Isaiah 42:16 (ESV)

Back in April, I had a traumatic health event happen and afterward, I had to decide whether or not to have a surgery to fix the problem. I am one of those people who thinks you should try everything you can to heal yourself naturally. I think medicine is a good thing but I believe we could be healthier, heal naturally if we put in a little effort and look to medicine after we do those other things.

Having a surgery was something I did not want to do. At. All. Without it though, there was a good chance that I would have more traumatic events and that I may not come out on the other side. I asked everyone I knew what they thought. I studied. I researched. Everything pointed to having it but I still didn’t want to. Finally, I asked God. I felt that he said I should. I scheduled the surgery.

After the surgery, recovery was hard. I remember the second night I was awake most of it believing I wasn’t going to make it through this. I prayed and told God that I knew I had misunderstood and he wouldn’t have told me to have this surgery because this was one of the hardest things I’d ever done and it was awful.

A couple of days later the surgeon came in to discharge me. He looked at me and explained what they found on the pathology report. He said that the part they removed was so diseased and I quote “You would had have major problems with this if you had not had it removed.”

I realized as I processed this that God was in it after all. Sometimes, the path we are walking is not easy. Sometimes, he gives us hard things to do. Just because it’s hard, just because we feel like we are not going to make it, doesn’t mean God isn’t in it. He is.

When things are really, really hard and you feel like you are not going to make it through, trust. Trust that God is in it with you. Trust that he didn’t forsake you. Trust that he knows what you need to do, even if it hurts.

Shields Up!

But you, God, shield me on all sides;
You ground my feet, you lift my head high;
With all my might I shout up to God,
His answers thunder from the holy mountain. Psalm 3:3-4 (MSG)

It’s Monday. Sometimes getting started on a Monday is something I want to avoid. You know, you have to revisit the things that you gladly left behind on Friday. It was such a pleasure to just forget them and think about something else for a change.

I love today’s text because it reminds us of a couple of things.

1. No matter what you are facing, God is surrounding you with himself. He is shielding you and caring for you.

2. He keeps our feet grounded where we need to be (instead of running away from what we don’t want to face.)

3. He lifts our head to stand tall and in that motion, lifts our eyes to stay focused on him.

4. When I feel overwhelmed and slipping, I can shout as loud as I want! I can cry out for help and…

5. He answers me!

We forget that God is with us. That he is our Shield and our Sustainer. We forget that we are loved.

Remembering this today…..Everyone! Shields Up! Let’s go face the day!

A Minute In It - He Watches Over You

A minute in Gods' word will change your life. There are some days when it is good to comfort ourselves in God’s promises. He is faithful.

1 I look up to the mountains—
    does my help come from there?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
    who made heaven and earth!

3 He will not let you stumble;
    the one who watches over you will not slumber.
4 Indeed, he who watches over Israel
    never slumbers or sleeps.

5 The Lord himself watches over you!
    The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.
6 The sun will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon at night.

7 The Lord keeps you from all harm
    and watches over your life.
8 The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go,
    both now and forever.

A Minute In It - You Are My Refuge

A minute in Gods' word will change your life. No matter what is happening in our world and our lives, God is our shelter. Read through the Bible verses below and remember!

1 Those who live in the shelter of the Most High
    will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 This I declare about the Lord:
He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;
    he is my God, and I trust him.
3 For he will rescue you from every trap
    and protect you from deadly disease.
4 He will cover you with his feathers.
    He will shelter you with his wings.
    His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
5 Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night,
    nor the arrow that flies in the day.
6 Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness,
    nor the disaster that strikes at midday.
7 Though a thousand fall at your side,
    though ten thousand are dying around you,
    these evils will not touch you.
8 Just open your eyes,
    and see how the wicked are punished.

9 If you make the Lord your refuge,
    if you make the Most High your shelter,
10 no evil will conquer you;
    no plague will come near your home.
11 For he will order his angels
    to protect you wherever you go.
12 They will hold you up with their hands
    so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.
13 You will trample upon lions and cobras;
    you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!

14 The Lord says, “I will rescue those who love me.
    I will protect those who trust in my name.
15 When they call on me, I will answer;
    I will be with them in trouble.
    I will rescue and honor them.
16 I will reward them with a long life
    and give them my salvation.”

Footprints All Around

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip—
    he who watches over you will not slumber; Psalm 121:1-3 (NIV)

When I was on vacation, I went for a walk on the beach with my grandson. As he ran ahead of me, I noticed his little, tiny footprints in the sand. There was a long line of them that zig zagged across the beach. 

When looking at them in the sand, for a moment you'd think he was all alone. Just a bunch of tiny footsteps looking vulnerable and open. But as you widened your gaze to take in the entire area around the little footsteps, you saw the adult footsteps following close behind and to his side. He was never for one moment unattended.

Neither are we. The God of heaven is forever near. No matter where we go or what we do, he is close by. Sometimes we feel like we are traversing the terrain solo. We feel that way because we are only looking down at the path before us. We just need to broaden our view to see it. We are never alone.

Blocking the Storm

The Lord is my strength and shield.
    I trust him with all my heart.
He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy.
    I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.  Psalm 28:7 (NLT)

On Tuesday, we went to a funeral. The service was outside and it was cold.  I think the temperature was in the low 30s. The wind was blowing which made it even more frigid. My husband and I were talking to people and wandering around but as the service progressed, we ended up standing next to each other. He was on my right side. The wind was blowing from my left.

After a few seconds, he moved from my right side to my left side. He was trying to block the wind form hitting me directly. I could still feel the wind but the direct impact was gone.

Made me think of God. Sometimes, we go through really hard times. Times that make it feel like we are going to be blown over. It's during those times that God shows up to shield us. We still feel the wind and the storm but we aren't taking a direct hit. The magnitude of what's happening is being diverted by Him.

I am thankful for a husband who takes such good care of me. I am even more thankful for a God that helps me. My heart is filled with joy.

Hold My Hand

For I hold you by your right hand--I, the LORD your God. And I say to you, 'Don't be afraid. I am here to help you. Isaiah 41:13 (NLT)

I was at a pumpkin patch - fall festival kind of event this past weekend with my Daughter and Grandson. As we were walking around, we had to keep a close eye on my Grandson because he's little and he darts out in front of people and tractors and trains, etc.

As we were walking along, I heard a parent say to their child "Hold my hand."  Made me think of God. He says to us

"Hold my hand. Don't be afraid. I'm looking out for the tractors, trains and people that might run you over. And when you venture out, I'll be standing right beside you."

My grandson is too little to do the hand holding thing for too long but when he does head somewhere, he looks over his shoulder expecting that we'll be there.

Wouldn't it be perfect if we did this with God? First, we hold his hand but if we let go for some reason, we look over our shoulder to make sure we haven't wandered too far off.....and we would see him standing right there.