Armored up

Each morning I stare at my two small sons, desperately praying and hoping that they will a) know the Lord and have their own relationship with Him and b) that their identity will be rooted in the Lord God. Each night as my husband and I tuck them in, we pray and ask the Lord to give them dreams from Him and lead them to Him. 

I need to be honest here, but as a mother just at the start of her motherhood journey, sometimes it gets so overwhelming trying to figure out how to raise your children so  that they will love God. Social media creeps in at every glance, speaking of teaching your children “self affirmations” to build them up. Movies repeatedly reveal that it is normal and a part of life that a child will resent their parent’s faith and mock it. Some branches of therapists started leaning towards acknowledging the “big feelings” and labeling them, but that has spiraled a generation of parents to start teaching their children that feelings lead lives. None of this is right, but this is the cultural parenting battle my husband and I are up against. 

God eased my overwhelm this week while studying the “Armor of God” in Ephesians. Inside of God’s armor for us, He gives us “the Sword of the Spirit” which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:17). Upon researching this mighty Sword of the Spirit, I was reminded of Hebrews 4:12 NLT “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires”. This, this right here is the key to so many of our battles today! He began to reveal to me that the best way to cut out the noise and lies of the world and worldly parenting is with the word of God and using His armor! Not only by placing His armor over myself as I walk out my role as a mother in battle for her children, but teaching my boys how to “armor up” themselves. 

Check this out, all pieces of the Armor of God feed into each other- truly making it strong. God said that His word is our sword (Ephesians 6:17NLT) and that His word cuts through anything (Hebrews 4:17NLT). When we look at other pieces of the Armor of God, we see the “Belt of Truth” that we are to wrap around ourselves (Ephesians 6:14NLT). Do you know where we learn the truth of God? His words! Either written from the Bible or spoken over us prophetically, in dreams, or visions. And what else do God’s words do? Cut through the toughest parts of our lives and reveal our innermost thoughts when used as the Sword of the Spirit! When we wrap His truth around ourselves, we can use it to fight back when lies from the enemy come swinging at us. The “Breastplate of Righteousness” guards our hearts because of Christ’s blood on the cross covering our sins when we repent (Ephesians 6:14 NLT, Romans 3:21-26 NLT). Do you know how we access the right to put on the “Breastplate of Righteousness"? Through “The Helmet of Salvation” (Ephesians 6:17NLT). When we cover our minds with the fact and belief that Jesus Christ died on the cross as payment for our sins so that we might be saved, we are filled with the knowledge and understanding that we are God’s children. When we put our faith in Jesus and claim our inheritance as God’s children over our lives, our hearts will be covered from attacks towards our identity in Christ under His own righteousness. Then, when a battle does approach us, we can rest assured in His peace through our feet being fitted in “The Gospel of Peace” (Ephesians 6:15NLT). Ephesians 6 references that we will have a “readiness” about us for battle because the Gospel is our peace. We do not need to sit and worry for when lies and temptations might be hurled at us like a flaming cannon from the Devil because the Gospel has made us ready to stand strong with God. Finally, when the enemy’s arrows are upon us, we extinguish each one and find protection from “The Shield of Faith” (Ephesians 6:16NLT). 

Now that we see how connected God’s armor really is, let’s take an example and put it into use: 

The overwhelm of teaching my sons correct affirmations- that their worth lies in Christ alone and that they are wonderfully designed with intention by God struck me weeks ago. After using the armor, this weight has turned into an intentional battle plan.

First up, put on that “Helmet of Salvation”. I’ve been teaching my sons the gospel for their level. Did we make a serpent with a playdough kit and a cross and smash the serpent’s head with the cross? Absolutely! 

Secondly, let God guard my heart with the “Breastplate of Righteousness”. Any accusations from the enemy need to be called out and squandered rather than absorbed. If my kids see my identity is planted in Christ, I can show them how to plant theirs in Christ. 

Third, grab a verse to put on “The Belt of Truth”. The verse I’ve been reading to my sons and praying over them is “He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession” James 1:18. I tell them that God made them from the truth of His words, and by His choice to birth them with His truth, we are His most prized possessions. Not by anything that we have done, but by who HE is. 

Fourth, we turn this verse into a splitting battle weapon with “The Sword of the Spirit”. I start fighting future battles for their identity over them by telling them “if God IS truth, and He designed you WITH truth, that means God does NOT lie, which means your design is NOT a lie. God made you with a purpose that He did not lie about, and because of this- YOU are his most prized possession”. The enemy cannot tell my boy’s they were meant to be anyone other than who God made them to be. 

Fifth, we rest at night under the "Shield of Faith” believing that God said His word will never return void (Isaiah 55:11NLT). As long as God’s word are poured over our sons, those words will not leave them and they will know their identity in Christ. 

Finally, because our feet are ready with the “Gospel of Peace”, our sons will see that because of God- they can stand against any battle once they believe in Him themselves. And in the meantime, my husband and I stand ready with peace for them.

All that to show- we are fully equipped under the name of Jesus Christ to stand strong against the enemy and how he works in this world. We have been given this armor as believers in Christ, and whether we choose to pick it up and use it or not is up to us. If you need help in learning how to fight spiritual battles, contact The Adi Project today. 

By: Abigail DeWitt