The Most Powerful Belt You Can Wear

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"Let's begin to analyze the armor of warfare, piece by piece, and learn what can be accomplished by each.  Paul, the author of the letter to the Ephesians, begins with the belt of truth.  Why would the Spirit lead him to start there?  I doubt we can know for sure, but I do know this:  nothing is written in the Word without His touch.  So, I will offer just one suggestion.  Do you recall what satan's only weapon is?  It is his lies.  There is only one thing that I know of, for sure, that has the power to overcome a lie--THE TRUTH!  Our ability to know and grasp the truth is of great value to us in this fight!  When we begin to stop believing the lies, victory is just around the corner.  No matter how strong a Christian you are, satan's lies have infiltrated your heart, your mind, and possibly even your actions.  But the battles always begins with a thought in your mind.  Spiritual battles, more often than not, begin with a lie from satan that you choose to believe.

Do you pay close attention to your thoughts?  I have begun to, for this very reason.  I know that when I want to say something to myself, I phrase it somewhat like this: 'Now, why didn't I think to stop and pick up milk on the way home?'  But there are times when in the same situation I hear it more like this:  'You are so dumb.  It's just like you to forget.  You always forget.'  Do you see the difference?  I don't talk to myself with the second-person pronoun 'you'.  I talk to myself with the first-person pronouns 'I' and 'me'.  Second person pronouns are used when someone else is talking about me, to me.  This is an important point.  Who is talking to me, about me, if I am not talking to myself?  It can either be the Spirit or the enemy.  But it is the enemy for sure if your thoughts are using the second-person pronoun ('you') and also have an accusatory tone.  The enemy accuses the saints.  The Holy Spirit never does.

The Spirit's words might sound more like this, 'You have been very distracted today.  Fix your eyes on Me when you are distracted.  I will help you remember, if you will do this.'  The Spirit convicts us; the enemy accuses and whispers his lies to us every chance he gets.  Remember, his lies are his only weapon, so it is critical that we learn to discern the words in our head and to do combat with the lies by using the truth.

So just how do you handle this in battle mode when it happens?  The best way that I know is to speak the truth out loud to satan immediately.  Speaking out loud is important because satan is not all-knowing.  He has no ability to read your thoughts.  Saying something along these lines seems to work:  'It is not dumb of me to forget to stop and get milk.  I have been preoccupied and distracted today, thinking about other things.  And by the way, I rarely forget.  This is not my usual habit!'

I know that this example is very simplistic, and many of you have experienced the lies of the enemy regarding some very deep and hurtful things from your past.  This is still practical and useful to you, though you may have to work very hard to identify the false belief system and its associated lies.  Once identified and accepted as a lie, you still have to replace the accusing and false thoughts with truth.  Sharing with a Christian counselor, your pastor, or a close Christian friend might be beneficial, as they might be helpful in pointing out  thoughts that are lies.  And of course, the Word of God is your biggest source of truth!  The Sword of the Spirit is the most important weapon you can use!

No matter to what degree you experience false beliefs, fighting the lies with truth is always your best answer.  We are to strap on the belt of truth in order to overcome the lies that the enemy will always tell us."

(From Spiritual Healing:  The Surrender That Brings Victory)

Unarmed And Surrounded By The Enemy

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We all have gods and sins in our lives that we are commanded to overcome.  It is a spiritual battle to do so.  Is your armor uncomfortable because you do not know how to put to proper use?  Do you carry your "sword of truth" but have no idea how to wield it against your enemy, Satan?  Read on friends!

"POINT #2:  We must be fully armed when we cross into that place in our journey called the Promised Land, into the Holy of Holies where our gods will be dispossessed.  We must be prepared for this battle, and we must know what God's battle plan is.

Had Israel crossed the Jordan without any weapons, they would have most assuredly been annihilated.  The people who had been living in Canaan would certainly have banded together against an unarmed foe, and the defeat would have been a crushing blow to God's chosen people.  Without a battle plan, there would have been no organization, and therefore, no victory for God's people.   The same is going to be true for us if we attempt to just 'go in' and destroy every god, idol, attitude, or sin in our hearts that is contrary to God and His purposes.  Without weapons and a battle plan, we will surely fall to an enemy who does not want his territory encroached upon!

God has given us the perfect plan of attack when it comes to our spiritual battles, and the armor and weapons that He has chosen for us are perfect as well.  As our Commander-In-Chief, He has set us up to be victorious, if we will but utilize what He has already given us.  The problem is that we seldom choose to enter into this kind of battle, and when we do, our armor seems cumbersome to us because we have not been trained for this kind of war.  We are usually unarmed and unprepared because we have not even attended spiritual 'boot camp,' so we are ill-equipped for the battle with the forces of darkness."

(Quoted from Chapter 8, "Fully Following God's Commands" found in Cheryl Gnagey's Spiritual Healing:  The Surrender That Brings Victory)