I have two links to share with you today. This is a bit of a follow up from my previous post about simply being “worn out.”
Sometimes I can’t believe how relentless the world is to continue to beat you down… it comes from every direction, non-stop, to the point that there are no more safe zones where you can relax your guard.
Ephesians 6:10-18 is all about putting on the armor of God. It’s an incredible passage. One of the things that was brought out to me this last Sunday at church was that we are to put on the “WHOLE” armor. It’s no good to leave one piece off.
- You can’t forget to protect your feet and expect to win.
- You can’t forget the breast plate and not expect to take a vital hit.
- You can’t forget your helmet without taking a thumping in the nugget.
You get the idea. It requires the full armor…
…but why????
Why do we need all this? Really… it can be a pain in the butt, every day, to have to put on my helmet of salvation, my belt of truth, etc. I would rather just… well, I would rather just relax and try and take care of myself for a bit.
Here is why… and it comes out 4 times in verses 11-14:
- so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes
- when the day of evil comes you may be able to take your stand
- and after you have done everything, to stand
- Stand firm then
So, why do we even need to bother? The answer is right there… so we can STAND!
Think about it. When you’re in battle, what is the opposite of standing?
If you ain’t standing in battle, you’re either lying dead on the ground or you’re wounded, lying on the ground, waiting for a medic to perform triage on you.
I think I’d rather stand.
For an excellent message on this passage, have a listen to Russ Barksdale on putting on the armor of God: Link –> http://www.rushcreek.org/sermon/spiritual-warfare-1
Back to the topic… feeling worn out by the relentless bombardment around me.
I don’t actually have a solution for the bombardment, except to disconnect from watching sports on TV (that’s not safe anymore because of the constant parade of beer, sex, and Jason Collins saying he’s gay), turn off the TV all together (so you don’t see any news channels, gay cooks, nudity on regular TV, and language that would embarrass a sailor not too many years ago), stop going to the mall (so I don’t have to see the gang members and teenagers half-dressed), turn off the radio (so I do not have to listen to Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity bitch on and on about how bad things are in Washington and all that is wrong with the Democratic liberals)… and maybe not least of which is to disconnect my computer from the internet so I do have any news stories, facebook posts, or some advertisement slap me in the face with some crap).
Huh… Maybe the answer is to just go live in the mountains of Montana or somewhere in the Australian Outback.
The reality, as a Christian, is the world is going to continue to turn against us. There is a great article on ChristianPost.com, by Bethany Blankley. If it feels like everyone is against you, it’s because they are. Go read this article:
Christian Post Article by Bethany Blankley
So, the answer?
First of all, read Ephesians 6 and put on the FULL armor of God. All of it. Cause if you ain’t standing, you’re lying on the ground.
Second, shut down some of the junk that is beating you up in your faith, your emotions, your well being. Take a break from something and stop taking so many hits.
Third, take your stand. You can’t stand if you don’t have the full armor on… but we do this so we can stand. It doesn’t do you any good to deny you are in a battle. You are.
By standing, we let God, in all of who He is, in our trust in Him, guard our hearts, our minds, our families, our salvation, and our sanity (if need be).
So, whether you look like the Roman soldier above, or you dress in something more modern like the U.S. Marine…
Stand!