I began a month-long series with the children recently on the Armor of God. I was struck by the fact that God has provided every tool, every weapon we need to do battle with our flesh, the world, and the devil. But sadly, many Christians spend their lives in defeat - not because they are defeated in the battle, but because they are on the sidelines. As Christians, we do not need to spend more time analyzing the weapons, or admiring the strength of the armor, we need to put on the armor and use it! I imagine a football player in a pristine white jersey, looking at himself in the locker room mirror, admiring how good and strong he looks in his 'battle armor'. Then he refuses to go into the game because he does not want to get grass stains on his precious uniform. Don't we do this sometimes? We praise the Lord that He has given us His truth, His peace, His righteousness, salvation, the gospel, faith, and His Word, and we even look on the power of these weapons with pride. But we fail to pull out the weapons and do battle. We decide spiritual battle is just too much of a hassle.

Make no mistake; battle on the front lines is messy. Satan does not want you to get victory over your besetting sins. And he most certainly does not want you to encroach on territory that he thinks belongs to him. A few days ago, I was talking to one of my AWANA leaders who also works in our transportation ministry. He said that over the last few weeks, they had seen some folks they brought to our church get saved, but then came a week with nothing but mechanical problems with the bus. Has this ever happened to you? Satan attacks ferociously right at the time God is working in a situation. Have you ever come under spiritual attack right after a big spiritual victory?

Yes, battle on the front lines is messy and sometimes painful. It can be painful to repent and turn from that pet sin that has become a comfortable part of your life. It is hard to turn from your bitterness and forgive someone who has hurt you. It can be messy to get involved in the life of someone who is hurting. It can take you out of your comfort zone to speak the truth in love to a relative or friend. It can be frustrating to graciously endure the vicious verbal attacks of those you are trying to help. It can be difficult to share Christ with your co-workers. But God has provided you with every weapon you need. Even more, the Holy Spirit is there to guide and comfort you along the way. Get off the sidelines, use your armor, and do battle.

I like the attitude of a friend of mine. We live in the Arizona desert, so scorpions are not uncommon and in some areas, they are abundant. At nighttime when you shine a black light, scorpions light up and glow fluorescently. They are very easy to find this way. After being bitten by a scorpion in his back yard, my friend decided he would not allow scorpions to conquer his back yard. He was not going to wait for more scorpions to come to him; he was going to (in his words) 'take the battle to them.' I love that! Several nights a week he and his family pull out the black lights and go 'scorpion hunting' in his back yard. Usually, at least once a week, they find and destroy one of his 'enemies'. The point is he takes the battle to them.

Stop floating through life allowing your flesh and Satan to have the victory. Put on your armor and get in the fight.

Bryan Miller, B.A.
Children's Pastor