Day Four

'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.'  Eph. 6:16-17

The Shield of Faith:  The shield referred to in this passage was about four feet high and two and a half feet wide.  It was common for enemies to dip their arrows in pitch, light them, and then pelt the opposing soldiers with thousands of destructive, flaming missiles.  So the Romans made their shields with iron and two layers of wood, wrapped them in linen, and covered it all with leather.  But they would leave a gap between layers so flaming arrows could penetrate far enough into the shield to be quickly extinguished.  One soldier is said to have come in from the battle lines with two hundred once-fiery arrows still stuck in his shield... The fiery darts of the adversary come in the forms of lies, temptations, schemes and attacks.  His plan is simple: to get you to focus on something other than God and His purposes.  Feelings of guilt, doubt, condemnation, discouragement, fear, or hopelessness are some examples of how the enemy tries to reel us in. 

The Helmet of Salvation:  The last piece of armor a soldier would put on was his helmet.  It was made of bronze and leather and its importance was obvious:  if you're hit on the head, you're out...  Effectively wearing the helmet of salvaiton gives us the certainty of deliverance from sin and the protection of our minds in battle.  It is, in effect, Romans 12:2:  'Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.'

When the enemy fires a dart at us, our most effective response is to put up our shield of faith by applying the specific truths of God's Word to the situation, and putting on our helmet of salvation by wallpapering our minds with the truth of God's Word.  For example, if you are being bombarded with fear, quote aloud and memorize a dispelling verse: God did not give me a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and a sound mind  (2 Tim. 1:7).  If you are bombarded with worry, memorize and say often: 'do not be anxious about anything, but in everything... (Phil. 4:6-7)'.  Praying scriptures is an effective 'shield raising' tactic against launched darts.  Praying with others is even more effective: 'Where two or three have gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them (Matt 18:20)'.  I also find turning on praise and worship music to be helpful against the enemy's onslaught.  The more you soak and saturate your life in God's Word, the more equipped your shield and helmet will be.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Just as You have a plan and a purpose for my life, so does the enemy.  His plan is to confuse me, distract me, discourage me and busy me.  He is working overtime to keep me from kingdom work.  Keep me alert to his schemes, Lord!  Specifically, I know that I am weak in the area of ___________________.  Remind me today to sit down and write down specific scriptures for me to meditate on and wallpaper my mind with so that the enemy's lies cannot infiltrate.  Lord, so many women are buried under and immobilized by the adversary's lies.  I pray that Priscilla, Kay and Beth's messages will bring a breakthrough for them.  I pray they will  finally be able to break free on June 10-11.  Strengthen their faith and their salvation on this day so that through your Word they will start standing firm and defending themselves...

Lord, may You remind me often that:  You are who You say You are!  You can do what You say You can do!  I am who You say I am!  I can do all things through Christ!  Your Word is alive and active in me... I'M BELIEVING YOU! 

In Jesus' name I pray,
Amen.