“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.” Ephesians 6: 10-20
I love this passage of Scripture. I love Paul’s strong, commanding tone. I love his absolute faith in the tools and weapons God gives us. I love the confidence with which he sends us out to fight spiritual battles. What I don’t love is the battle itself. Battles are difficult. People get hurt, sometimes killed, in battle. It’s scary. It takes effort and courage. Just look at the words Paul uses to encourage us to fight the battle; be strong, stand, wrestle, be ready, take up, put on, use a shield and a helmet, withstand evil, be bold. The spiritual life is an active life, full of action verbs. And preparation.
To experience or live a full spiritual life, you have to be ready. Paul is arming us with everything we need to live this full life. We don’t need to be afraid or caught unaware, blindsided by the enemy coming in a side door. In his encouraging, commanding way Paul is reminding us that the enemy exists and is actively attacking us everyday, so get ready! You have already lost the battle if you allow the enemy to deceive you into believing he does not exist or is not after you. The devil comes to steal, kill and destroy. He can destroy you through your inaction, procrastination and lack of faith just as easily as he can through flaming darts, substance abuse, anxiety and financial difficulty.
You have already won the battle, however, when you remember that He who is with you (God) is greater than he who is against you (the devil). The goodness of God trumps the evil of the devil every time. As you are outfitted and ready with God’s truth and righteousness, His peace and salvation, you will be able to stand against all of Satan’s schemes and attacks. The Spirit of God will fight for you and in you. “Be alert and stand!” Paul cries out, “Pray with perseverance!” Be prepared.
Paul’s charge reminds me of battle scenes in movies where the commander is readying his troops to charge into battle. Part cheerleader, part football coach, part general, the words work to conjure up courage in soldiers, sports figures and anybody that needs a boost to give it their all. Paul’s words, like those of the coaches and generals, can not conjure up what is not already there. His admonition is to utilize tools and equipment you have long been practicing with. This is no foxhole prayer for safety, this is communication with a Heavenly Father you know and love and trust. This is not a quick, once memorized redo of John 3:16, this is relying on the truth of scripture you know from years of investing time in the Bible.
Standing in battle, spiritual battle, will only result in victory if you are prepared and willing to stand. Doing battle without the armor of God will end poorly, and you will only be able to wield the sword and shield if you have not procrastinated on the fencing lessons. There are so many things I have wanted to learn in my life that I never learned because I procrastinated. According to AI, procrastination is “the act of delaying or postponing tasks, often despite knowing there will be negative consequences.”
That is true in my life in a variety of arenas big and small, but how much greater the consequences for procrastinating putting on the armor of God! Spiritual battles happen, whether I want them to or not! The key is to be ready, equipped, and able to withstand them. God has given us the tools, will we procure and use them?
I wanted peanut butter cookies the other day. The first time I proposed making them my beloved ones suggested they wanted the regular; chocolate chip cookies. I conceded. The second time I made the suggestion I had a willing compatriot who helped me mix, roll and bake. Peanut butter cookies require a bit of preparation. You must have all the ingredients, which I did, but you must also have the time to allow the dough to chill. Immediately gratifying they are not! although the dough is delicious. The preparations were well worth the outcome.
My peanut butter cookie recipe is not as old as the scripture passage, but the pages are worn and well used. My prayer is that your Bible gets as much use as this cookbook has! I always double this recipe, my recipe will supply you with 5-6 dozen cookies, depending on size.
Peanut Butter Cookies
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup peanut butter (I use crunchy)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 1/2 cups Gold Medal flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
Mix butter, peanut butter, sugars and eggs thoroughly. Add dry ingredients and stir until well blended. Chill dough by wrapping it in plastic wrap and refrigerating it for several hours, until dough is easy to handle.
Remove chilled dough from refrigerator, and use a knife to separate the dough into small portions. Roll into balls of equal size so that each cookie will bake evenly. Size can very from small, walnut size balls to larger golf ball size balls. You may roll each ball in granulated sugar but it is not necessary. Place balls on lightly greased cookie sheet.
Using a fork dipped in water, press cookies into a criss-cross pattern, flattening them to about 1/4″ thick. Invariably I neglect this part of the procedure for at least one batch! When that happens, you can add a few chocolate chips to the tops of your hot cookies! Or use Hershey’s Kisses if you have them.
Bake flattened cookies for 6-8 minutes, until set. For truly old-fashioned cookies, bake longer until cookies are crispy, 10-12 minutes per the original recipe.
