Fight Like Heaven — Be Battle Ready
“13 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.
14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.”
Dear Sister,
In order to fight like heaven, we must be battle ready. This means to be prepared spiritually before the battle begins.
To be battle ready, we must put on the full armour of God, through this we are protected against the attacks we face daily from the enemy.
Standing strong will become impossible if we are neglecting our prayer life and not spending time in his word. When we do this, we learn to recognise the truth.
The Belt of Truth - truth is what holds us together, it replaces the lies with the truth of God’s word, so when the enemy attacks you replace the lie with what God has spoken - the truth defeats the lie. Use the truth to push back when the enemy attacks you with fear, doubt and despair.
The Breastplate of Righteousness- protect your heart by choosing God’s way and deny your fleshly desires, decisions or choices. These will only pull you further away from God. Remember it is not about earning God’s love through trying to be perfect, it is instead a decision to live with integrity, honesty and obedience.
The Shoes of the Gospel of Peace- when we allow God’s peace to guide us, it changes how we react to the challenges of life. The enemy wants us to react out of fear, anger or frustration. We cannot let him do this, because that is how he gains a foothold of our emotions and uses that to pull us away from God. If we want to be a reflection of Jesus to others, we must learn to walk in peace.
The Shield of Faith- When we are afraid, starting to doubt God’s word or his promises the enemy can use this to weaken our faith. By using the shield of faith, it protects us from the fiery darts from the enemy. Faith is something that grows the more we know God and his word.
Helmet of Salvation- Remember to keep your mind on who you are now through Christ. The hope that you have now, who God says you now are. The enemy would have you believe that all is hopeless and you are beyond God’s unlimited Grace. Remind him that the battle has been already won through the sacrifice of Jesus for our sins. Jesus has the final say not Satan.
The Sword of the Spirit-This is God’s word and it is the most important spiritual weapon. When the enemy tries to attack your mind, use it to strike back. Jesus showed us by example and did exactly this when he was tempted by Satan in the wilderness. This is why we need to make reading God’s word a daily practice, even if it is just ten minutes a day, and learn to live it not just know. Knowledge is only power if it is used.
Finally, never stop praying. I have found this essential during my own battle as it keeps my connection to God. Pray when you’re weak, pray when you are strong. It doesn’t matter if you don’t know what to say because God knows your heart. Do not wait until you are at breaking point-strike first.
You are fighting from victory not for it. The battle has been won.
Journaling for the week
This week in your journal, take the time to write a prayer.
Ask God to prepare your heart, strengthen your faith, and help you stand firm in Truth.
A guided prayer
Dear Heavenly Father,
Strengthen my heart each day and remind me that I do not face this battle alone. Teach me Lord to use the armour you have given me, so that I may overpower the enemy when I am under attack. I thank you because you have already won the battle and the enemy is now under my feet through the sacrifice of your Son Jesus. Help me to endure and to keep my eyes on you always.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
A benediction
May the Lord strengthen, protect and guide you always, and may you walk the rest of this week in Victory. May you know the true peace of God even in the midst of the battle and may you never forget who is fighting for you.
Further Bible study
Worship song of the week
With love,
Alice.