Ephesians 6:14-17
"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 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."
Well, as much as I would have liked to have kept that promise of a speedy return from my previous post, that pesky food poisoning decided that I would not! I'm back now though...and happily so, I might add!!
So how'd everyone do so far? That whole "fitting the feet" part threw me for a loop a little, I admit it, but then I looked at it this way:
So much peace comes from the promise of Heaven for all that believe in Christ and ask for His salvation....that peace is so incredibly powerful...so incredibly refreshing...
How could I not feel ready ...
...How could I not say,
"Bring it on!"
when I've got such a powerful and promising peace such as that?! After that realization hit, I was able to more or less "live" that last part of the verse rather than memorize it!
So where are we now...
...two days left...
...two verses left!
Ephesians 6:16-17
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.
METHOD:
Still going with the whole visualization angle, so here goes...
"In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith..." So now I've got the belt, the breastplate and the ready feet. I see the shield of faith, pick it up, and wonder, "What's this for?"...totally my lead-in for the next part...
"...with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one."
YIKES!! I mean, seriously...YIKES!
Are you imagining these arrows flying your way? (Which, by the way, they DO each and every day...sometimes even before your feet ever make it out of bed!) I don't know about anybody else, but
I want my shield of faith SUPER-SIZED, please!
Thankfully, God is wanting to increase our faith always...if we would just ask and believe (Matthew 21:22).
So these arrows are coming at me...
...I'm behind my shield of faith...
...What about my head?
..."Take the helmet of salvation..." You might be wondering, if you're behind that super-sized shield of faith, and you're walking in that faith that keeps you protected, won't that keep the arrows from getting through? As each of you has likely experienced in your own lives, all Satan needs is a moment...the teeniest of cracks or breaches...and he's in. He'll take whatever he can get to poison our minds, our thoughts, our emotions...
Our faith is imperfect...
...we NEED that helmet!!
The helmet keeps our minds in Christ, reminds us who we are in Him, helps us to see the truth from lies...the clarity from the smoke and mirrors...so we can rise above!!!
WE-NEED-THE-HELMET!!
Okay, we're fully guarded now...so what do we do, just hide behind the shield 'til it's over? Not at all, my friends...if we did that, we'd be waiting an awfully long time! Not only does God provide us with protection, but He provides us with the Power too: "...and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."
...and it's that very same sword of the Spirit we are strengthening in this challenge!!
So there you have it!! Week one's visualization tactic now comes to a close! Hopefully my descriptive up there will help you to remember these verses as well!
Did you try a different method? If so, tell me about! I'm planning on trying a new memorization style each week and would love to give yours a go!
'Til then, Soldiers!!
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