MyLeslieNotebook

As we wrap up our study on battle gear today, it's fitting that it ends with prayer: "Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request, and stay alert in this with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints," (Ephesians 6:18, HSCB). Prayer is such a powerful tool and we know it. We've all heard stories of how situations and lives are changed through the power of prayer. But if you get into a discussion about prayer with other Christians, there's a recurring statement: "I don't pray like I should." Why is that?   I'd like to present a guess: because to pray "like I should" is more than we know how to do. Whenever I sit down to pray, it's a struggle. My mind wanders. My phone rings. I think of 10 things I need to do or at least write on a list so I won't forget them later. I need more coffee. My kids wake up and need breakfast. SOME.THING.ALWAYS.INTERRUPTS.MY.PRAYER. Yours too? What a coincidence...

I've been waiting for this one. If there is any weapon I've learned to depend on, become skilled with, and use efficiently over the last 15 years, it's my Sword. I distinctly remember sitting in front of a television screen with about 30 other women watching my very first Beth Moore video; it floored me. I wanted to know how she knew to connect scriptures. I wanted to know how she quoted those verses off the top of her head. I wanted to know the Bible like she did. So I jumped in. With both feet, my whole heart, and every bit of my brain. I was newly married and working in the afternoons, so as soon as my husband left for work every morning I'd pull out my Bible, my Beth Moore study, my concordance, and every other piece of Bible Study equipment I could round up. And I'd sit there, swimming in the scriptures, for hours. Every morning. I learned how to use a Study Bible. I learned how to memorize-- really memorize-- scripture. I learned how to do a word study and...

So far, we've put on a belt, breastplate, shoes, and taken up a shield so we're ready for our spiritual battle. We now turn to what might be the most important piece of gear: the helmet of salvation. Now, Paul may not have actually meant for each of these pieces of battle gear to correspond with the spiritual concept he attached to it. He may have simply made a list of things we need to live our lives for Christ (righteousness, truth, gospel, etc.) and chose random items used in battle (belt, breastplate, shoes, etc.) to make his point more visual. So the Helmet and Salvation may have just ended up together by chance, some say. But I think God is pretty intentional in what He has allowed in His Word, especially when we can back it up with other Scriptures, particularly when we find the same phrase in the Old Testament and New Testament. Isaiah 59:15-17 describes the LORD Himself preparing for battle. (We looked at this verse on the Breastplate of Righteousness day!) And i...

I'm going to take just a second to breathe and reflect.   If nothing else, this study has taught me that being a Christian is work! It takes thought, preparation, and continual assessment. Even if we followed only the instructions given in Ephesians 6:10-18, our lives and minds would be full of thoughts about God, Christ, salvation, the Holy Spirit, and others. So I guess when we're consumed with those things, we're right on :) Also, did you catch that I pointed out that Ephesians 6 gives instructions? Paul can't be accused of being passive/aggressive. He's just straight up bossy! (And that's good. We need bossy every now and then.) But look at what he says: "be strengthened," "put on," "take up," "stand," "take," (HCSB). As followers of Christ, these aren't suggestions. They are straightforward instructions of how to really  live as Christians. He didn't make us to be timid, but powerful (2 Timothy 1...

So far, we've looked at the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness. (Please catch up on these two pieces of equipment in the posts below.) Next for our battle gear: proper footwear. I don't need to explain the need for having the right shoes for what you're doing. Few girls have gotten to their high-school years without having a wrong-shoe testimony. My most painful experience just happened to be my wedding day. I wanted the absolute highest heels I could find so I could look as tall as possible for those few memorable hours. (Hey...when you're barely 5 feet tall, you take all you can get!) I found a pair of strappy white shoes that enabled me to practically stand tip-toe for only $4. Perfect, right? Of course...for about 5 minutes. For the entire photo session, I found myself looking for an opportunity--any opportunity--to take them off and walk around barefoot. I was tempted to ditch them right before I walked down the aisle. They went to Goodwill imme...

Today we look at the second piece of battle gear: the breastplate of righteousness.  It's a short, simple phrase found in Ephesians 6:14. But as I dug into a variety of translations, I found the different words so rich: "righteousness like armor on your chest," (HCSB) "put on God's approval as your breastplate," (GW) "the protection of right living on your chest," (NCV) "the breastplate of righteousness in place," (NIV) "the armor of godliness on your chest," (NIRV) "a piece of iron over your chest which is being right with God," (NLV) "having put on the breastplate of integrity and moral rectitude and right standing with God," (AMP) Two words: righteousness  and breastplate. The breastplate for a Roman warrior at the time of Christ covered basically from the neck to the waist*, made of medal, protecting any kind of frontal attack on the chest cavity, which meant it protected all the inte...

(You'll find the intro to this lesson below. Please read it if you haven't already!) So you're ready to put on the full  armor of God, complete with Christ's power, and stand ?  Great. Let's start looking at your battle gear. The first thing listed is found in Ephesians 6:14, "with truth like a belt around your waist," (HCSB). The NIV words it like this: "the belt of truth buckled around your waist." If someone had asked me to make a list of battle gear for first-century Rome, I doubt that a belt  would be the first thing I'd list. I didn't even know you needed a belt for war. So I started digging and found that a belt was a necessary part of any kind of wardrobe at that time because it held up pants. (And by "pants" I mean both A) the lightweight, linen, hang-down-to-your-knees under layer that was like Jesus-era boxers that men wore for hard labor as well as B) the heavier, external pants you'd wear in public.) A...

No, this isn't a "modesty" lesson. Maybe later. Or maybe not. :) This is more of a how-to-dress-for-war post. Because we're in a battle. One that's been going on for as long as humanity has been the pinnacle of God's creation. And Satan, who was there to deceive the first of God's glory, has been at his old tricks for a long time, meaning he's pretty good at it. And as I was reading in Ephesians 6, it hit me that though the passage seems very manly in nature (battles and armor and all that), it should be a lesson for us girls, as well. If you'll remember, Eve--a woman--was the first person he tricked (Genesis 3). I don't want to be like Eve. I don't want you to be like Eve. And we don't have to. We know what it takes for the battle. In Paul's letter to the church in Ephesus we see these words: "Finally, be strengthened by the LORD and by His vast strength. Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the...