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Armor is meant to be worn

1Wear the full armor of God. Wear God’s armor so that you can fight against the devil’s clever tricks. 12 Our fight is not against people on earth. We are fighting against the rulers and authorities and the powers of this world’s darkness. We are fighting against the spiritual powers of evil in the heavenly places. 13 That is why you need to get God’s full armor. Then on the day of evil, you will be able to stand strong. And when you have finished the whole fight, you will still be standing. (Ephesians 6:11-13 ERV)

It was Abraham Lincoln who penned the words, "Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm." Where we have our feet planted is an important thing to take notice of as it determines just how secure our stand will be in the end. I have planted my feet on occasion on more than one "moving stone" and ended up getting a little wet, muddy, or losing my footing all together. It is too late to consider your next step when you have already lost your footing!

One of the ways we determine our "footing" in life is just how well we are "secured" within the armor God intends for us to put on in our lives. If you have ever been in a museum or at a movie studio, you may have come across the suit of armor worn by someone, or used as a movie prop of some kind. The true armor of yesteryear was made up of some pretty impenetrable stuff - heavy metals that kept the wearer safe against attack, but also made it a little less than easy to move! The good thing about the armor we are told to "don" is that it not only protects us, but it makes it easy to move when we need to and stand firm when that is the best plan!

The armor we "don" isn't made of stuff that we can see as much as it is made of stuff we can sense and lean into when we are experiencing attack. The helmet of salvation, for example, can be sensed when we are receiving all manner of accusation - those voices that want to wear us down with thoughts like "you aren't good enough" or "you have gone too far to ever come back again". The belt of truth may not seem significant until we are faced with confusing choices that need to be sorted out, weighed in the balance of truth until we see clearly which choice rises above all the rest.

While armor is helpful to the warrior, the "everyday commoner" didn't usually wear a suit of armor in yesteryear. It was the knights, warriors, and such who donned such suits. In case you didn't realize it, none of us is an "everyday commoner" in God's family. We are all members of his army and as such, we are given the very best "suit of armor" to wear that both protects and defends us in times of attack. A soldier doesn't want to be "unprotected" when under attack, as much as we don't want to lose footing when we know to do so would result in wet feet, twisted ankle, or other not so pleasant results. To be "secure" we need to surround ourselves with the things provided to us that help us to stand as strong as a tall, immovable cedar. Just sayin!

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