Today is the fifth post in this Armor of God series, and I have learned so much! We've discussed the belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, feet fitted with readiness, helmet of salvation, and today we're diving into the shield of faith! It is my prayer that the Lord would open up our hearts and reveal to us how we can truly apply this to our everyday life and effectively defend ourselves from the enemy's attacks.
Let's jump right in!
Obviously, the shield is so important to a soldier's protection. Like the breastplate, it protects the soldier's most vulnerable parts, but can be moved and adjusted to defend any part of their body. And, when strategically placed together, a team of soldiers can use their shields to defend an entire group of people. In Roman times, a shield could even be as large as the soldier and used to push against the enemy.
Our faith is meant to be that shield for us. Hebrews 11:1 says that "faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." Our faith is our belief, our security in who God is and what He can do - with or without seeing it with our eyes. Our faith brings us back to what the Lord has already done in our life, a reminder of His faithfulness and kindness to us, and a continued trust that He can do it again.
Our faith is our protection against the devil's lies, the little whispers in our mind that maybe God can't do it, or maybe He doesn't care enough. Our faith shields us against the doubt and temptation that we could slip into at any time, any day. It helps us to stand firm against the enemy's attacks, against the spiritual warfare surrounding us and pressuring us. It allows us to hold onto hope, to cling to joy, and to walk in the peace that comes from what Jesus has done in our life.
This shield of faith is vital, because the moment we set it down is the moment we expose our entire life and relationship with the Lord to attacks from the enemy. And the moment we face those attacks without our faith is the very moment that we can fall into sin, temptation, unbelief, depression, anxiety, and loneliness. That point is exactly what the devil wants us to get to, because that is our weakest point, farthest away from God. This doesn't mean that our faith will prevent us from facing hard things or experiencing difficult situations, but it does mean that our faith will help guard our hearts and lives in the midst of those difficult times.
So, as Christians, as followers of Christ, we will choose to pick up our shield of faith and defend ourselves, protect ourselves, protect our community, and push against the enemy.
We will believe and trust who God is and that He is capable of pulling through for us. We will intentionally cling to Scripture, confident that what God has done in the past, He can do again - and will do again. We will take captive every doubt, every thought that sets itself up against Christ, and make it obedient to Him (2 Corinthians 10:5). We will stand firm against the devil and declare that nothing he says can break our foundation that was carefully built on Jesus, our solid rock and the Almighty God, because He who is in us is is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4).
And we will stand firm together. The body of Christ will link arms and strategically place our shields against the enemy. We will put our faith together, supporting each other and denying the devil's tactics to tear us apart and destroy the church. And when one is struggling to hold up their shield, we will cover them and defend them in Jesus' name. Because that is what we, a family of believers, do.
As we do that, we will press into enemy territory. We will resist his schemes and tear them down entirely. Our faith and love for the Lord will overflow and embrace the "more than conquers" that we are promised. The devil will no longer reign in our lives, in our community, in our world - because we will go out and spread the truth, spread the Gospel message, with love and gentleness, and by the grace of God, take over the territory that rightfully belongs to the Almighty.
All of this with the shield of faith.
Clearly, it is a vital piece of armor.
So how do we practically put it on, every day? Below, you can find a visual to download, screenshot, or simply take a look at with simple yet specific ways to practice using this shield of faith.
I would really challenge you to pray over each of these points and ask the Lord to open your heart to what step He wants you to take to use this shield of faith in your life. Reflect over what areas you are walking in faith, and what areas you may be walking in more doubt or unbelief. Surrender that, and allow the Lord to continue to work in your life and strengthen your foundation on Him. At least for me, some questions that have been really helpful for my reflection are:
Am I fully surrendered to the Lord?
What doubts and questions have I left unaddressed?
What situations in life have I tried to take control of instead of walking in faith?
Before studying this piece of armor, I had no idea how complex and powerful the shield of faith is, but now I am so excited and inspired to practice using this shield every single day. Without it, I am so exposed to the enemy's attacks and my foundation could easily crumble. It is my prayer that you have learned so much as well, and feel equipped to go out into every day and use this shield correctly and effectively.
What have you learned from this post? What step are you going to work on implementing in your life? Let me know down in the comments below; I love to hear from you!
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