SELF-PROTECTION IS A MUST -- Devotional for August 5, from "Good Seeds"

Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the powerful rulers of the godless overworld, and the spiritual forces of the dark underworld. So take up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming missiles of the evil one. (Ephesians 6:11-12,16)

Wherever the apostle Paul turned he found himself engaged in spiritual warfare, facing resistance and fielding flaming missiles originating from three arenas of evil: 1) The heathen world, where he confronted false religions with their false gods and false prophets; 2) the religious world, where his former Pharisee friends came at him with the full force of the Jewish Law; and 3) his own Christian companions and co-workers, who for reasons of their own had now turned against him, causing strife and disunity within the body of Christ. No wonder he could describe in such vivid word pictures the forces of evil a Christian will face – he lived it, every day! There is a time to turn the other cheek, but there is also a time to put on the full armor of God and resist the evil one, to the death if need be. When Satan attacks, we must go into protective mode. We must "not be ignorant of his devices” (II Corinthians 2:11), but rather put in place some devices of our own, as guided and provided by God. I play guitar for hours on end, in church, around the campfire, and late at night at home, just for fun. How can my fingers endure the constant impress of the fine steel strings? Calluses – skin still clinging to my fingertips, but dead and hard, protecting the softer inner flesh from pain. How can a factory worker or cabinet maker or rock musician endure the constant barrage of whirring machines, buzzing saws, or screaming amplifiers without losing his hearing? Deeply inserted ear plugs. And speaking of music, we are installing a Plexiglas cubicle for the drum set at our church, in order to contain and control and balance the sound, to keep the rhythmic beat where it belongs, at the base and in the background, to embellish the harmonies and voices, and not overpower them, for the glory of God. Just so, the time may come when those of that third category – our so-called friends – begin to hurl their stones of criticism at us, or shoot their darts of jealousy or judgment. That’s when we will need to put a plexi-shield around our hearts so that the missiles will just bounce off and we can move ahead, unscathed. If erstwhile ministry partners begin to rain on our parade, we take out our umbrella. Or if they would pull us down in the muck of discouragement, we step back up on the Rock of Ages. When the missiles start to fly, my friend, don’t stand around unprotected: find your shield of faith – and put it up!