A Whole New Wardrobe, Part 1

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Ephesians 6:10-18

What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

When I was a boy we had “hand me downs” ... clothes that were passed down from one brother to another.  As I got older, the hand me downs got better: a shotgun, a car, an identity.

Growing up, my parents provided many things for their boys.  But they did more than provide ... they bestowed.   They gave us an identity to wear, values to hold, and a sense of God’s presence in our lives.  We wore them well, until the day when, as men, God fitted us with armor.

Paul writes to his apprentice, Timothy:

So you, my son, be strong [constantly strengthened] and empowered in the grace that is [to be found only] in Christ Jesus. The things [the doctrine, the precepts, the admonitions, the sum of my ministry] which you have heard me teach in the presence of many witnesses, entrust [as a treasure] to reliable and faithful men who will also be capable and qualified to teach others. Take with me your share of hardship [passing through the difficulties which you are called to endure], like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service gets entangled in the [ordinary business] affairs of civilian life; [he avoids them] so that he may please the one who enlisted him to serve. (2 Timothy 2: 1-4 AMP)

If we truly understand the Spiritual Realm (and most of us get there learning the hard way: as an occasional casualty or captive), then we understand we are going to need some serious equipping and training in order to move from a position of oppression to our rightful position as overcomer, freedom fighter, whole hearted.

This fallen place, as much as I would like to make it comfortable and decorated with all the things that make life easier, is a war zone into which our King will one day return and win the final battle against evil.  Until then, he hands me down his power and authority, clothes me in righteousness, and arms me to the teeth.

It is a good thing when a man or woman is Oriented. He or she knows and has experienced from the Father who they are, where they are, and is experiencing the good God is up to in their life.

A man who lives with nothing to hide, nothing to prove, and nothing to fear.

This is a good day, a graduation day, a deployment day, a day when the friends of God step into the battle for the heart and begin winning far more than they have lost.