Christ, Our Strength
This should show all the aspects of the “Full Armor of God” from the Helmet of Salvation to the Shoes worn to proclaim the Gospel of Peace . . . however I cannot get the full image to show. You will have to use your imagination.
Thursday in the First Week of Lent ~ 3/2/23
Christ, our Strength. For decades, as a Youth Minister, especially when working with Confirmation programs, we used Ephesians 6:13-18 as a great resource for building up the ‘Armor of God’ – protection against the temptations of the evil one, for the teens. We would act out the scripture passage, using the following items (or similar):
some obnoxious belt or fabric as a ‘belt of truth’,
a crossing guard fluorescent vest put on backwards, as a ‘breastplate of righteousness’,
swim flippers – readying them to proclaim the gospel of peace,
a garbage can lid for the ‘shield of faith’,
a strainer as a ‘helmet of salvation’,
a play, plastic sword or jedi saber as the ‘sword of the Spirit’.
While undoubtedly hilarious, as we were able to make fun of one of the teens (usually, the class clown), I know that years later, it was one of the most impressionable exercises we did. Bottom line, they learned how vitally important it was to ‘armor up’ against temptation. It was not something that you can easily swat away like a pesky fly or mosquito – temptation is pervasive. We would replace the play sword with the Bible, to reinforce, the necessity of reading the Bible and learning scriptures and about Truth, Righteousness, Peace, Faith, Salvation and the Holy Spirit.
You may be tempted by the same thing time-after-time (let’s say chocolate or sugar, in a variety of tempting situations), wearing down your resistance, -or- you may find yourself having to deny temptation-after-temptation (chocolate, then alcohol, then porn, then something else). The evil one is relentless! He wants YOUR soul! The only way he can get it is by taking you away from, or distracting you from God. But, because you were created by God, you are God’s most cherished creation, first and foremost! If you, however, turn your back on God, He will not force you back, because He gave you the gift of free will . . . He wants you to come to Him freely. Yes, He may gently remind you of His presence, but He will not force you to return to Him.
The ability to resist temptation, sin and evil lies solely in the strength of our Lord . . . even doubts and fears and negativity are not from God . . . we cannot handle this alone, by ourselves . . . we need His help. So, here is a prayer for you to consider:
Lord, help me to believe YOU alone are enough!
Your strength will help me be strong, when faced with the evil forces, rampant in our world today.
YOU are the Light that will draw me closer to You and farther away from evil.
YOU are the Truth that will stand against all falsehood and deception from the evil one.
YOU are the one who can hold me up, when I am too weak to stand on my own, and pick me up when I fall.
When I don’t think I can handle it anymore, Lord, You can handle it for me.
Help me to turn to You in my most difficult struggles.
Lord, in You, I trust! Amen.
I hope you find peace in this prayer - you are not alone! When reading the accounts of lives of the saints, we learn that the struggles they faced ended up being the stepping stones to holiness. We are all called to holiness! May you learn to embrace your struggles as blessings-in-disguise knowing they can lead you to Heaven if you suffer with Christ and offer them up for the reparation of sins and souls. Remember: God is ALWAYS ready to welcome you back with open arms, if you choose to come back to Him! The gift of forgiveness and redemption is always available to those who seek it.
Continued Blessings on your journey.