Armor Of God And Rest

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. Ephesians 6:10-11

I was convicted one day recently to pray the Armor of God over our new President. I just had a strong feeling God needed to protect him. At the same time a devotional book that was put out and given to the new president had the same scripture for the day. A God thing? I don't know. But in the same context of praying for the armor of God I was listening to the daily 24/7 prayer call and they were discussing God's perfect rest and how we believers needed to be in it and not all stressed out. 

So my theme today a few days after this occurred is resting in Jesus. After you have trusted Him with your concerns then let go and enjoy His perfect rest and don't keep fretting over stuff you supposedly have given to the Lord. Resting is pretty important yet how many of you reading are unable to really rest and may feel guilty slowing down?  When it comes to God's rest He wants you to trust Him with your concerns. 

Today whatever you are doing stop and make sure you are protected by God's armor which is the word of God by reading it and soaking it in. Next completely give your situation over to God then REST.

PRAYER: Many times I have prayed but then start freaking out and concerned. I know you are working all things for your good so help me learn to chill and be still. In Jesus' name. Amen.

STORM CLOUDS DON'T STOP US!

As I sit on my back porch writing, ominous looking black storm clouds are forming overhead. There is the sound of distant rumbling indicating an approaching storm. My area is all too familiar with threatening storms.

Looking at the dark clouds up in the sky reminds me of the darkness that can overshadow a life when people stray from God's path. It does not mean that we can not return again to the light of Jesus. Darkness can consume a person. The way to get rid of darkness is to flip on a light switch, light a candle or open the shades. Darkness has to leave when floods of light come in.

1 John 1:5-7(NIV) says 'This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness,we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.'

Often times a person can be dabbling in the "darkness" being deceived by Satan, the father of lies. It is necessary to pray that the truth and light come into your life or the life of the loved one you may be praying for. Light and darkness can not co-exist.

The late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said "Darkness cannot drive out darkness only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.' Guess where love originates? With God of course!

There is good and there is evil in the world around us. We are in a battle for our very souls. Satan is on one side deceiving, tricking, lying, corrupting, stealing, and suffocating people and God is there with the truth, mercy, forgiveness,and love waiting with open arms for people to run back to Him and out of the darkness. Spiritual warfare is what it is called.

To fight the battle you have to be armed and ready. You can not just dabble for one hour each Sunday and not take this seriously. This requires "arming" yourself and getting serious about the truth. Satan loves it when people are just "dabblers" or "Sunday Christians" then he can do his best to keep you in spiritual darkness. You have no power because you are not serious enough to know the word of God.

Today is the day to get serious about loving God and winning the war of good versus evil we are in. Shine the light to get rid of the darkness.

PRAYER: Today Lord I will not allow the darkness and storms of this life to consume me. I refuse to allow Satan to gain a foothold in my life. I choose today to pray not only for myself but for others close to me who may be caught up in dark storm clouds and have lost their way. Bring them back to the light of Jesus! In Jesus' name. Amen.

Assignment: Read Ephesians 6:10-20 about spiritual warfare.

WARFARE ATTIRE

Do you realize here on Planet Earth we are in a battle between good and evil, God and Satan? As a former member of the US Army I know that soldiers do not go into battle wearing blue jeans and a polo shirt but they are dressed in the proper uniform to protect and camouflage them. There are key pieces of equipment that are required to give them a fighting chance in combat. If these things are not worn they risk injury, capture, or death.

In our Spiritual battle we require special items to ward off and defeat Satan. In Colossians3:14(NIV) it says 'Therefore as God's chosen people dearly and loved,  clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility,  gentleness, and patience.' Note that word "clothe" referring to getting dressed. So we "dress" in a Christlike fashion but we also "dress" for serious battle against the enemy, Satan, who is prowling around like a roaring lion(See 1 Peter 5:8-10).

Ephesians 6:10-17(NIV) says the following '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.'

Now imagine yourself in the morning, "clothing" yourself first them putting on your suit of armor to go out not the world. See where it says your "sword" is the word of God? No soldier would go into battle without his rifle and we believers should not go out into our battleground each day until we are "armed and ready" to take on the enemy. You "arm" yourself by reading your Bible. 

Are you dressed for battle today? Have you picked up your Bible and read it to help strengthen yourself for the battle that rages on in this world against evil forces?  Satan is defeated by using the word of God. Tell him to get behind you(Matthew 16:23) and leave you alone because you are a child of God.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus it is my desire to be fully equipped each and every day to face whatever the "world" throws at me. I know in order to be prepared I need to be guided and strengthened by the words found in the Bible. When the enemy tries to get me too busy to spend time with you I will resist him. When the enemy says "it is more important to watch the morning news" I realize I need to fight Him and stand firm. Help me Lord as I want you in my life early in the morning to start my day of battle correctly. In Jesus' name. Amen. 

TURN OFF THE DISTRACTIONS

This title came to me as I was sitting in a normally quiet coffee shop trying to do my writing when a group of very chatty women with babies came in and occupied three tables right beside me. They got stares from working people trying to do work on their laptops but they had a right to be there as much as others did. It was extremely distracting and I tried my best to tune them out in a polite way so I could concentrate on writing. This particular coffee shop has orchestra music playing in the background and it was drowned out by the loud conversation.


This made me think of distractions in the world each day that Christians have to contend with to stay on the path God intended for them. Temptations are all around us each and every day. The temptation to cheat, lie, steal and lust are ever present. It is very important to know the truth found in the word of God so you will be convicted of sinful behavior and ask God to help you stay on the path that leads to righteousness.


1 John 2:17 says "The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever." This world will tempt us with many things and the key thing to always ask yourself is "will this activity bring honor and glory to God" and if the answer is no perhaps it is good to not participate in. Titus 2:11-14 says "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good."
Many people define right and wrong differently but God says in Isaiah 5:20 "Whoa to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter."  James 4:17 says "Anyone then who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins."

What is distracting you in your walk to be closer to Jesus? Are the temptations of this world just too great? Do you feel that one hour on Sunday is enough to equip you to face the battles in the week ahead?

Each and every day stay 'armed and ready' to face the distractions Satan will throw at you. Your 'weapon' is the 'sword of the Spirit' otherwise known as God's word. Pick it up and be prepared for battle.(See Ephesians 6:10-18).

PRAYER: Your word is powerful and what I need daily to combat the lies and tricks of the enemy. I know distractions will always be around trying to get me too busy to spend time with you Lord. I choose today to read your word each day and beamed for spiritual battles head of me. In Jesus name. Amen.
Click on link for a very powerful song of praise.
http://youtu.be/O4QOuGI3irI

DRESSING FOR GOD , PART 3

Did you wake up today and put on your 'armor of God'? Before you step out into the world that awaits you each day you need to have on your spiritual clothes as well as your clothes in your closet. You have to be armed and ready to stand up against the tests and trials that may confront you each and every day. Satan throws darts at you and spiritual armor equips you to stand up against him and his schemes. When you exit your home you are entering the battlefield so be prepared.

Have you prayed? Have you examined your heart to insure it is following God? Psalm 51:10 tells us "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." Is your heart pure and holy? Do you have something against someone that needs to be forgiven and start the restoration process? Psalm 66:18 reminds us "If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened". We can pray til we are blue in the face, so to speak, but you are going nowhere til you have confessed your wrongdoings and sins to the Lord.

When you dress for God are you right before God and have asked him to keep you from willfully sinning? Did you know even taking  home little office supplies here and there is a form of stealing? Also making personal copies on the office copy machine is taking things from your boss as someone has to pay for it. Cheating on a time card is another. Integrity begins at home and should follow you right out the door and into the workplace and community. So when you dress up in the morning ask God to give you a heart of integrity as well.

We can look holy on the outside by our appearance but inside have a life that is nothing close to being Christlike. In Matthew 23:25-26 it says "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean."

Also one more issue for dressing for God for women is do you dress modestly? Do you try to draw attention to parts of your body or show things you should only be showing to your spouse? We are to be women of modest attire. If you have a daughter you have the authority as a mom to keep her dressed in a pure and holy fashion. Do not have her dressing to make men lust after her. Glorify God in your clothing choices as well. 1 Timothy 2:9 says "I also want women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes".

And finally make sure your mouth is 'dressed' for the day? Did you curse recently, belittle someone, gossip, lie, argue, or brag? Take time now to ask God to help clean up your speech and dress it with graciousness. Ephesians 4:29 says "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen."

Seek to 'dress up' each day both spiritually and physically and do all things to be pleasing to the Lord.

PRAYER: Father in heaven I want to be dressed for battle and armed and ready to take on any challenges the enemy, Satan, may throw at me. In Jesus Name. Amen.

DRESSING FOR GOD

When we wake up each day we get ready and get dressed for the day. How many of us who claim to know Jesus dress ourselves spiritually? The first thing we need to put on is 'the whole armor of God' that is mentioned in  Ephesians 6:10-18.  I will put it here for you to read.

"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."

If you have children at home you could pray with them to keep the armor of God on and teach them how it helps to quench the fiery darts Satan will throw at us daily through various situations in our life. The younger the child the better to imprint it in on their brain. Satan is out to get our kids and we have authority in Jesus name and can pray them into their spiritual armor.

Colossians 1:12-14 says" Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity."

So just like we dress with our earthly garments in the morning we need to also clothe ourselves with spiritual garments to be ready to meet the challenges each day holds.

Put off ugliness, hatred, jealously,bitterness, anger, rage, evil speaking, boasting, gossip, lying, stealing, cheating, sexual immorality, lust, greed, worry, fear, fighting, coveting and sensuality.

These things need to be placed in the 'rag pile'.  Do not send them to the 'thrift store' for others but get rid of them entirely. A child of God should not be 'clothing' themselves with these horrible items. If you have trouble in any area God can help you be delivered from it if I only will call out to Him.

Ephesians 4:22-24 says "You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and  to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." Isaiah 64:6 says "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away."

Today if you hear and obey the voice of the Lord seek to be 'clothed' in his holy garments and live for Him.

PRAYER:  Father God I desire to put on good things in my life that draw me closer to you. Help me as I seek to put off the things in my life which do not bring glory to you. Help me to put them in a rag pile and never pick the up again. In Jesus name. Amen.