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                                                                  35 As evening came, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” 36 So they took Jesus in the boat and started out, leaving the crowds behind (although other boats followed). 37 But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water. 38 Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” 39 When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Peace! Be still!”…

In this season we are being called to do just this, to lay down life as we know it so that others might live. Maybe it is hard for you to see your part in that. Maybe what you have given up feels small compared to what others around you are doing. But remember death by a thousand paper cuts is still painful. Each small thing we lay down is an act of love and it matters.

“…and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”  -Ephesians 6:17b We come across the final piece of the armor of God that Paul says the Christian must be equipped with for spiritual warfare, the sword of the Spirit.  Unlike the other pieces of armor Paul mentions which are defensive in nature such as the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of preparation of the gospel of peace and the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit is offensive in nature.  It is not just armor.  It is a weapon with which to attack the enemy.  You might recall when Jesus was tempted by the devil…

“Take the helmet of salvation…”  -Ephesians 6:17 Helmets are vital in protecting the head from serious injuries.  I am a bike rider and never ride my bike without a helmet. I never snow ski without a helmet.  Many people have been killed with head trauma when they accidentally skied into a tree like famous singer Sono Bono a few years ago. And I would never drive a motorcycle without a helmet.  Years ago, I saw a man die just after I helped place him into an ambulance late one night after he had a motorcycle wreck near my house.  He was not wearing a helmet and his motorcycle had flipped end over…

“In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” – Ephesians 6:16 So far, we have looked at three pieces of the armor of God.  We looked at the belt of truth which is the teaching of Scripture which helps hold the rest of the soldier’s armor in place.  We looked at the breastplate of righteousness held secure by the belt of truth and learned that the breastplate of righteousness is the righteousness of Christ which protects us from the temptations of the enemy which often come in the form of pride, self-righteousness and legalism.  It reminds…

“…and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” -Ephesians 6:15 The third piece Paul mentions that composes the armor of God is what he calls the [shoes] of the “readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.”  We generally don’t consider shoes as being a part of a soldier’s armor.  But think about it.  If soldiers don’t have solid, comfortable shoes that will hold up on the field of battle, they will not be able to prevail.  Romans soldiers’ sandals were often fitted with nails or spikes to anchor securely to the ground.  Similarly to share the good news anchors us to the marching orders of our…

We are currently fighting a health battle against an unseen enemy called Covid-19. While this enemy may be invisible to our eyes it is nonetheless real and is inflicting deadly damage to our economy, our society and most significantly to real people. As Christians, we are also fighting an unseen enemy, the Tempter who Jesus confronted during his temptation. We too must confront this same enemy but we must be spiritually equipped with what Paul calls “the armor of God” to be able to withstand his attacks. Each piece of this armor represents a part of God’s strength that God extends to us when we become God’s children.

“Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist…”  -Ephesians 6:14a  Paul, begins his list of the panoply of the armor of God with the “belt of truth.” The belt—known as the cingulum or balteus—played a crucial role in the effectiveness of a soldier’s armor. The belt that Paul’s talking about here isn’t meant to hold up a soldier’s pants.  A Roman soldier wore a loose and floppy shirt. It was called a “tunic.” And the tunic was meant to be loose, so that when the soldier was marching, or exercising, or doing his daily work, he wouldn’t get too warm. But, if the soldier ever had to fight with someone, his loose and…

One thing I have noticed since this pandemic began is how often medical experts and government officials have used military language in speaking about our response to the threat of the Covid-19 virus.  Several people have described this as a war and I believe they are correct in doing so.  While it is not a war against human enemy combatants, it is still a war just the same.  Even though the enemy we are fighting is almost invisible and unseen, the attacks of the enemy are real.   Real people are being seriously sickened and real people are dying each day.   And just as in any war, we are using a variety of…

My friend Nancy Wofford wrote this devotional and I wanted to share it with all of you as I found it relevant and helpful.  Enjoy.   I read a story recently about two boys who went visiting early one January.  They lived out in the country, and only a large pond separated their home from their neighbor’s.  Ordinarily, they would have to walk around the pond, but since it was frozen, they decided to go across.  Everything was fine until they got to the middle of the pond where a large crack ran across the ice.  The older boy could easily have stepped across it, but not his little brother.  Knowing this, the older boy…