Nancy Hughes: Defective clothing

“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

Ephesians 6:13 (NIV)

Hand-me-down clothes were the norm for me growing up in a family of five kids. And being the middle child guaranteed that I would always be the recipient of whatever my older sister outgrew like shoes, shorts, and shirts. I never really cared because we were the same size.

Until I grew more quickly and became taller and lankier than my sister. And I inherited her swimsuit that was two sizes too big for me. It didn’t matter if the swimsuit was too large when my sisters and I swam in our farm pond; but that all changed the day our parents took us to town to swim at the community swimming pool.

The too large swimsuit dilemma was real: did I opt out of swimming with my friends and tell them I was sick or did I take a chance and swim anyway? The beautiful clear water gave me my answer: swim! And I did.

Oh the fun! Swimming under water like a dolphin with my friends. Laughing as we splashed each other. Perfect warm day. Perfect cloudless sky. Perfect blue water. Everything was perfect. Until I drove into the pool and came up out of the water. And my swimsuit did not. Defective clothing that offered no protection – that’s what I wore that day.

Ephesians 6:13 talks about a different kind of clothing. It talks about armor –the full armor of God. The protection it offers covers us, not just physically, but spiritually and mentally. Paul understood completely the spiritual battle believers face. 

Satan never rests as he tries to shake our belief in God by shooting at us with arrows of doubt and fear and anxiety. But when we are covered in the armor of God, we can stand strong against whatever is thrown our way.

As we continue reading in Ephesians 6, we are encouraged to clothe ourselves with the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness and feet fitted with readiness. And we must always put on the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation while we clinch the sword of the Spirit.

Where do we find all that armor? In the word of God, the Bible. Unlike my too big swimsuit, being clothed with God’s armor means that it will never be defective and fail. Dive into His word and come up clothed and ready for anything that comes your way!

Father, I want to be ready when Satan attacks my life. Please remind me every day to put on the full protective armor that only you can give. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

R.A.P. it up . . .

Reflect

Have you ever faced a day when you felt like your “spiritual” clothing did not fit?
If so, what could be some reasons you felt that way?

Apply

Write Ephesians 6:13-17 on a note card and place it by your bathroom sink. Every morning as you get dressed for the day, “dress” your mind and heart with this Scripture.
Praise the Lord for His power given to you through the Word.

Power

Ephesians 6:13 (NIV) “Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

Ephesians 6:14-15 (NIV) “Stand firm, then, with the belt of truth, buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.”

Ephesians 6:16-17 (NIV) “In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

(For more of Nancy Hughes' writing, check out her blog, Encouragement from the War Room.)