Girded by Truth

Last night I was reading Stormie Omartian's The 7-Day Prayer Warrior Experience. 

This free kindle book is quite excellent!

How often have I read something in the Bible and thought, "Well, I don't quite get that, but it sounds good." That is the way I have always felt about the Armor of God passage in Ephesians 6:10-18 [see whole passage at bottom of this entry].
I can certainly rattle off each piece of armor and have even pantomimed putting on armor (as Hank Hennegraff had suggested). However, I didn't really 'get' it.
Stormie, somehow, made it quite clear to me.
For instance, the first piece of armor is the Belt of Truth. I had always thought this just meant God's word, but Stormie describes it as simply God's truth which strengthens us at our core. The word 'core' really got me thinking about all of the exercises we do in Jazzercise to strengthen our core. Likewise, I can strengthen my inner spiritual core by knowing and agreeing with God's truth and promises. Wow! What an easy way of thinking about it. For some reason, this idea is so much more tangible to me. We know that the enemy tries to confuse us or get us off track by focusing on lies - this, in turn, causes anxiety or fear. Therefore, we must put on the first layer of our our armor by remembering who God says we are and what we are in Him.

Prayer: Dearest God, Help me to strengthen my inner core. Keep my focus on your truth and help me to hold every thought captive that is deceptive and not from you. Teach me how to experience your truth every moment of my day. Amen.

Ephesians 6:10-18New International Version (NIV)

The Armor of God

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.