As I grew in my Christian faith, I was excited to make God’s word come alive in my life, and then I could prayerfully put on the Lord’s armor every day. Mostly I dealt with the defensive armor in keeping myself strong in the Lord. Gradually I also began to embrace the power of this armor for going on the offensive to attack demonic power in my own life and in the lives of those close to me. Please don’t freak out at the term “demonic,” because most of the tricks of the devil are very small, like telling you that you are not good enough.
One day after someone was cruel, I worried, “Do I love this harsh person? How can I love this person if I feel such anger?” Suddenly the “sword of the word” I had been praying about seemed to cut between the bone and marrow (Heb. 4:12). I realized I hated the man’s sin and still loved him. I could forgive him while still recognizing his actions as sin (I could see the source, this man’s sin as ungodly pride). Before I did not know exactly what was wrong, although I knew his harsh behavior was not right. God showed me, and my heavy burden of fearing I was an unloving Christian was lifted. I could now pray against this man’s sin, and pray for his well being and my protection against the risk of this man’s future attacks. Hatred is righteous when it is hatred of sin.
I was amazed and delighted. I had read that God’s word is alive and sharper than any two edged sword (Heb. 4:1). I had never had such a Holy Spirit clarification about The Word, like this. I was so excited and invited God to clarify more of his armor to me.
Talking to the Holy Spirit is still a new way of living for me. I grew up in a church where we were taught we were either too naïve or too foolish to tell the difference between talking to the Holy Spirit and talking to a demon. We were taught to never seek a conversation with the Holy Spirit or ask for his guidance. I read the Scripture with that falsehood blinding me. Yet as I attended churches that showed me I could speak to and listen to the Holy Spirit, I began to recognize this false teaching as a lie, and I embraced God’s leading.
As a result I welcomed this truth about God’s armor and welcomed future revelations. I had learned some general truths about the armor, and now I could better apply them. For example, I had learned the breastplate of righteousness relates to our relationship, not only with God, but also with others. And the breastplate of righteousness protects our heart, which means we must be careful to guard our heart lest we develop a feelings or attachments to things that do not please God. (Proverbs 4:23 “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.”)
Now that I welcomed his insight on the armor, God began to show that some of our quirks are not a sin, but may still grate the nerves of people. When we are with a weaker brother or sister in Christ, we may need to rein in a quirk if it deeply irritates them. God showed me this aspect of the breastplate, in relationship to a quirk of mine that had upset my daughter. I wake up easily and cheerfully. One of my daughters does not wake up so easily nor so quickly. When I give her a gradual wake up call and I am more subdued around her as she awakens, she is less prone to grumbling and anger. I end up not arguing with her or pushing her to move too fast. Our morning times are more peaceful now, and God used my understanding of the breastplate of armor when I asked him to show me other pieces of armor I needed to use.
When I pray about my feet being shod with the Gospel of Peace, I find myself more aware of times when I leave the house and might interact with an unbeliever, such as at the grocery store. I have put on my shoes of the Gospel of Peace, and I aim to share God’s good news with the people I encounter. I now pray for specific grocery workers through out the week so their hearts may be open for me to share more when I next see them.
One day I realized a terrible (and self defeating) lie I had believed for years. As I put on the belt of truth, layer after layer of truth flooded my mind. I had been told a certain person was far more important and valuable in the position I now hold, even though that person had abandoned this position decades ago. Even in a dream, God kept showing me how right I am for this place where he has put me and how I am serving Him well here.
While these four pieces of armor have brought me joy and safety, I was surprised to realize I use the shield of faith, even though I have been a believer for decades. I used to think the shield of faith was just for new believers. No, instead I learned that Satan may not be able to cause us to lose our faith, but he may cause us to doubt God’s goodness or our faith in God’s goodness. I realized that even seasoned believers can suffer problems that seem senseless and counter productive and then perceive God as cruel or unproductive. Be sure to read the Old Testament book of Job. Job began to question God’s goodness to him, due to the extreme suffering he went through. Job was the most godly man in the East at that time, yet even he needed the Shield of God.
The shield of faith has enabled me to tell God I trust Him, even when He does things I don’t understand. I can trust Him, not only with my salvation, but also with every other aspect of my life.
Perhaps I have used the helmet of salvation less often, because God reassured me, since I was a very young child, that He loved me. I have a strong trust in my salvation. But some people cling to their helmet tightly, because they struggle with insecurity about their salvation. They need that reassurance of the helmet of salvation. In a way, I do struggle with that. I need the reassurance and reminder of God’s plan for my life. Sometimes my life seems so small and insignificant, and then God reminds me I am in his plan, even when I do not have great significance in the world. I matter to those in my small world. That is enough for me!
I have felt God’s urging regarding these pieces of His armor in a direct and personal way. This armor has freed me from bondage Satan had used to hold me back from fully living in God’s grace and joy. I was not as effective in standing against the attacks of Satan, because I only saw them as attacks of people. Many people are puppets of Satan, not our actual enemies. When we use God’s armor, we can love the abusive sinners, hold them accountable for their sin, yet also pray for them to be freed from Satan’s hold.
Being strong in the Lord is never cruel. Using God’s armor, we are not attacking people but attacking Satan. And by protecting ourselves, we also help people who sin against us. We must confront sin, as sin, because when we do, we can more fully love others. To allow someone to continue to verbally abuse us without our fighting back (in Christian truth and love) only allows Satan to keep hurting that person. Our strong offensive stand against Satan is the kindest thing we can do for others. This is just one place where the sword of the Lord comes in. As we read the Scripture, God can give us ways of dealing with these people. We cannot allow people to browbeat us, because this hurts us and them too.
God’s armor truly works, and His Spirit truly speaks to us when we open our hearts to allow him to use us. I know, because he has done this for me. I am still learning how to use this armor, and I welcome your thoughts and stories of your experiences with his armor too.