Welcome to week 1 of our Truth of the Week series! This week we are talking about winning mind battles. We hear about victories in people’s lives and how Christ has made such a difference in their world but what takes people from merely surviving and struggling to victory? It is in huge part to taking control of the mind. Do we just will it better or do we have specific tools to use for this victory?
We can break chains, have victory in our thought life and through that – our physical life. We can learn truth and live accordingly the best we can. That’s why Jenny and I felt led to start our content about truth to you all to help you fight the good fight we are all fighting until we see Jesus face to face.
Explaining the context behind our verses: Context keeps us from singling out verses and changing their meaning based on what we want to see – interpreting verses any way we want is a dangerous game. So with each verse we discuss we will cover some background so we don’t grossly misinterpret. Context is critical, just ask politicians.
(Actual Context) Paul writes to the church as a whole in Ephesus and the main theme of Ephesians is about salvation by faith alone and not by works, how spiritual truths should be evident in our conduct and also how spiritual conflict is to be handled.
The setting around Ephesians 6:17 is talking about the entire armor of God. I love how God uses analogies and parables so they make sense and we remember them better. I know I use analogies all the time to help me remember and learn new things. In verses 10-20 Paul urges us to be strong in the Lord and in His might. In order to do this we have to follow the human body armor analogy. Putting this spiritual armor on we can withstand and even fight back in the spiritual realm. Both pieces are equally important. We don’t just sit on knowledge and truth but we hurl our weapons back at evil to have victory over the battle for our minds. Our minds have so much control over our lives so this aspect of putting on everything given to us to withstand and fight is crucial to our faith – our lives – everything really.
Verse 12 says we don’t wrestle against flesh and blood but principalities, evil powers and spiritual hosts of darkness and says that’s all done in the heavenly places. Begs one to reason that everything going on in our minds is subject to the observation and left available to the heavenly arenas. So that mind thing you and I struggle with everyday? That’s happening to everyone all of the time and we are all fighting or just plain getting our butts kicked and it can swing all over the place – have ebs and flows but hopefully always trending up. You aren’t alone is what I’m saying. We are all in this mighty big mental game that is really very spiritual and we need to treat it as such.
So how do we fight? That’s exactly what the armor of God is all about. It lays it out for us. But it requires action on our part. Not to save us, we are already saved when we call upon the name of Jesus, but to win our mind wars. Verse 14 tells us to stand. Stand as in realize you need to be in ready position. When we stand we have the ability to react and understand we need to be ready for whatever is coming our way. Stand as in recognizing each day that you have to be in ready mode for what will come your way. “Having girded your waist with truth.” Truth is to be around our ab muscles as it’s the core of what holds us and makes all the other parts of us work. We need to be grounded in God’s truth and we have to know His truth to be able to do that. We are to add the breastplate of righteousness, our feet should be strapped with the readiness to spread the gospel of peace. Side rant- His peace is the best feeling in the entire world and it is at our disposal all of the time – it’s already been given to us but we have to let it rule. We can forfeit it and we do. Oh I do let it go sometimes, but when I allow it to rest on me, that’s the greatest and with practice you have it more and more.
Next up we are told – but above all we have to take on the shield of faith so we can quench the fiery darts from the evil one. How do we get this kind of strong-like-a-shield faith? We learn God’s word and believe it. Like, believe it to our core no matter what life at the time looks like. Which brings us to our truth of the week…….
(Application) Ephesians 6:17 – “And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Why this verse? Our salvation in the form of a helmet protects our mind when we realize what that salvation actually means and who we are because of it. Jenny and I want to encourage you to press in with us on our life’s fight, keep learning scripture, bury this truth in our minds and souls so we realize what a highly important child of God we are. We must realize this and the best way to do it is know the Word. The Word will be what we hang on in the darkness and throw back at all the negative “voices” we hear. That is our weapon. Evil can’t withstand the words from our Creator. This is how we break chains, overcome strongholds, fight depression and pessimism and hopelessness and so much more.
(The Challenge) We started with this verse as our base for doing our podcast and this season’s weekly blog post and want to give a new verse for the week to print off from our website and tape it anywhere you are going to see it daily. The bathroom mirror, the wall above the kitchen sink, the dashboard of your car, right next to your name plate on your desk at work on the side facing you, the bottom of your computer monitor, you get it. We would love it if you would commit to paying attention to one new verse a week for a year with us. Every day devotionals frustrate me and a few women I know because we start off strong and then fall off the wagon a few days and then feel defeated because we couldn’t keep up so we would throw in the towel – what Jenny and I are suggesting is meditating if you will – on just one verse a week. We will bring it mid – week on Wednesday’s in our podcast along with the corresponding pdf of the verse and offer easy challenges each week. We offer the option to write to either one of us and ask us whatever you’d like. We will address one a week in a separate podcast or vlog on our website!
We are here for you, offering hope and truth in the busy and challenging but beautiful life you’ve been given. Plus we need your insight and knowledge, too. We are just trying to grow and be better people just like you. Praying for you guys and hope you have an incredible week.
