Monday, January 7, 2008

The belt of truth...Ephesians 6

Armor of God

Well, we know that putting our armor on is and should be as normal for us as brushing our teeth! But, I hate to say this.....I don't put all of it on. As a mom, I'm in my prayer time praying many things for my family, for situations, for all sorts of things and I don't immediately ask for my armor to be on. That's a scary thought y'all.....

We go out into the daily world without our armor. Maybe we have one piece of it or even two or three, but all six??? I can promise you that I have NOT had my full armor on more than I have had it on. And...if you read below, this 1st piece of armor is key to holding up the rest of the pieces....

Vs. 12 of Ephesians 6:10-20 tells us that our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, authorities, and powers of the dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil.

I read this as not fighting against actual bodies or people, but about all those things listed above that is our struggle. I am under attack daily...even hourly on some days. Today I felt under attack by feeling pressures from requests made to me, inadequate feelings in speaking, not using my time wisely, being short with my children, having thoughts of pride, the choices I make, etc, etc, etc. My list can change and also go on and on and on.

We need to be able to see and know when life is happening around us and when things are not of God. Life will hit us and in order to handle, deal with, and battle against Satan we must have our armor on.

The 1st piece of armor listed is the belt of truth.

This makes more sense to me with each day that I walk closer with Jesus. Ya see...if we have no idea what His Word says or how He feels or what He says or how He thinks about our life, than we have no concept of right vs. wrong, good vs. evil, yes vs. no. The Truth did not become known to me until I was 28 yrs old. And, I grew up in the church. I had NO IDEA what the Truth was or how in the world it impacted me in daily living.

So, our 1st line of defense is His precious Word. Y'all...I'm not the best and I'm so much better than I was even last week, but His Word is life to me. I think I realized it most recently when we were moving and I couldn't find my Bible. I felt like I had lost my child. It was a terrifying, scary, sad, anxious feeling. It took me 24 hrs, but it was found. My heart felt differently when this Truth was found and put back at my side. It was like being reunited with my best friend. And, it wasn't too long ago when I thought folks like me were completely C-R-A-Z-Y!

Dig into His Truth and dig into it OFTEN! Don't use your Bible only for Sunday mornings or Wednesday nights. Get yourself into Bible study, small group, individual study time, whatever floats your boat.....but, get into His Word. Remember, in order to be covered, your 1st line of defense is the Truth. And, we gotta know it. And, know it well. And, desire it. And, can't get enough of it. And, want to be around others that will teach me, encourage me, help me. Y'all this is what drastically changed my life. I just had no idea what I was missing.

Ephesians 6:14..."Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist....."



From the "Living Word Library...." The comprehensive description of all the pieces of armour is a very useful aid in discerning and understanding them. The first piece of armour is our belt. A belt made of truth, holding up and keeping in place all the other pieces of armour. Naturally speaking, a belt is used to hold things in place; spiritually the belt of truth does the same thing. Truth keeps us secure in Christ and makes effective all the other pieces of armour.



Couldn't have said it better myself! :)



Spend time in His Word. I pray for all of you to put your armor on. And, I pray that you and I will learn how valuable each piece is to daily living. Teach this to your children if you can. Share it with others who may need to be reminded of the armor that is ours.



May you stand firm. Isaiah 11:5 tells us that "righteousness will be his belt and faithfullness the sash around his waist." Tighten your belt. He is our fearless leader. We are mighty soldiers.



I'm going to be ready. Hope you will too! The breastplate of righteousness is tomorrow!
Blessings~

9 comments:

annette said...

I love your love for the Lord and the Word. The Belt of Truth. You're an inspiration. Great post-can't wait for tomorrow's breastplate of rightousness. "We need the full armor - Before we leave the house." Amen. Blessings, annie

Lisa said...

Keep speaking truth, girl! Love it!

Lisa :)

Bev Brandon @ The Fray said...

Fran, I love the verse, it so encourages me...
after having done everything you know to do to stand, just stand firm and beckle that bult of truth...see I even do in writing what I do in my speech...buckle that belt of truth...
don't ever think for a sec that
you have to say you missed one cause you are permanently exempt...and on top of everything else in life YOU MOVED!!!! We are very flexible around here. This is for you to find your beautiful God through His Word and He will show up for you. Yes ma'am He will.

Alana said...

This is something I'm working on, finding more and more peace in the process!

Given Grace said...

Thank you for sharing such truth...I needed to hear this Word today.

And I'll be back tomorrow.
Stacey

Holly said...

Ooooo! I love this...and can't wait to read all of the posts on armor. My favorite part about truth is thinking, "Is it truth to the inmost part?" For I have learned that it is easy to sell lies as truth. So I ask the Lord daily to rat me out, if I'm trying to wear lies and accept them as truth.

Love you much, Sister!
Holly

ocean mommy said...

Fran, this was awesome. I'm reminded of my mentor reading these post on armor. She told me one time that she put her armor on every morning while she was in the shower!! She would literally say, "I am putting on the ......." go through the list and gear up for the day.

I'm really looking forward to the rest of this "series".

Love you girl!
steph.

BethAnne said...

We forget that we are at war with satan and the powers and principalities of this earth. It is so easy to be taken prisoner by sin. Hopefully, we wont be needing our earthly armor for very much longer!!!! wooooohoooooo!!!! I tell ya, I really believe that Jesus is sitting on the edge of His throne looking at His Father and saying "Can I bring them up now?"

Praise the Lord!

Denise said...

Your love of the Lord brightly shines through.


I blog so you can get a glimpse into my life as wife, mom of 3 boys, and someone who simply wants to bless others along the way. Have fun and be sweet :)


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