So far in this series, we've looked at the
importance of being covered in God's armour, and we've looked at the sad
life of my brother as an example of what can happen when we don't wear
God's protection. The remainder of this series will be looking more
specifically at each piece of God's armour, based on
Ephesians 6:10-18.
We begin today with
God's admonition to be strong in His power: "Finally, be strong in the
Lord and in his mighty power." (Ephesians 6:10 NIV)
Can we be strong
always? Many say they can. Many think that nothing can hurt them. But
what happens when you are well established in your dream job, and your
boss calls you into his office and fires you. Would you still be strong?
Most of us would not...
It isn't possible to
always be strong of our own might. It is only through our Heavenly
Father that we can be strong: "...in His mighty power..."
This all reminds me of
my short sojourn in Haiti. I spent a few months there as a relief
missionary, where I pastored and taught English. I really liked my
position. I loved the people, and I had a lot of fun learning their
culture.
There was a Comodo Dragon in a cage near where
I was staying, and every time I went out for a walk, I would stop and
talk to this dragon. One day, however, as I started my hike, I looked
into the cage to see that the dragon was not there. I didn't think much
of it, and I continued my hike. I had only gone a few paces when I saw
the Comodo Dragon. He was only a few feet away, and when I talked to
him, he appeared to be listening.
Suddenly I heard
yelling behind me: "Get away from the dragon! He will eat you!"
I didn't know that
Comodo Dragons could be vicious, but I didn't take the time to argue. I
just scooted away!
This incident didn't
stop me from stopping by his cage in the future, and the dragon didn't
ever cause me any harm. In fact, I felt bad for him. I knew, however,
that I had been in a potentially dangerous situation, and my Heavenly
Father had saved me.
What if I had said,
"No worries! I can handle myself!" Who knows? Maybe no one would have
ever seen me again... It is only through my Heavenly Father that I could
be saved. Not of my own strength, but of His!
Please join us on
Monday for "God's Armament", Part 17.
In His love,
Rob Chaffart
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