Have you ever found the order in which Paul talks about the Armor of God interesting? In Ephesians 6, when Paul is describing the Armor of God, the first thing he instructs us to do is to put on the belt of truth. Then you put on the breastplate of righteousness and then the shoes of readiness. I found this interesting in the order that it is listed. There is a reason, this is not happenstance. The order is similar to an athlete who puts on shin guards in soccer or knee pads in volleyball or football pads in football before anything else. Before your socks, shoes, jersey, you need to put on the belt of truth in order to protect or stand firm in a game situation, in the strenuous activity that you are about to engage in.
So some of you are asking what is the truth? Great question. Let’s start one leg at a time. Truth is God’s word, the bible, it is dependable, trustworthy, constant, faithful and filled with goodness.
Open it. Read it. Let it soak in. Journal about it. Do it in community. (AKA Sign up for a bible study ;)) Pray that it will change your life. (2 Tim. 3:16-17)
For some of us, every day is a heavy, laborsome, emotionally exhausting day. Just to get out of bed is work, to get dressed and mentally and emotionally get ready for your day is more work and then sprinkle in other people, geez. So the belt is like a girdle, it binds you, it is your state of mind. It allows you to stand firm knowing that God is in control of this day. It is the reason you can stand firm, stand tall. (Psalms 118:24)
What if we stopped saying I needed coffee to start my day but said I need a cup of TRUTH? (Ps. 119:60)
You can equate putting on the Armor of God with TRIUMPH! If you don’t like TRIUMPH use, winning, sweep, checkmate, last laugh, landslide, blowout. (Phil 4:6-7)
So today I am going to put on the belt of truth (mine might be a leopard print) and look at myself in the mirror and say “You can do this!” I might even pass by my kids today and whisper to them, “your mom is winning.” Let’s stand up and proclaim your victory over your day or whatever you are battling.
You got this girl! Today is going to be amazing and so will tomorrow. Looking forward to worshipping with in person on September 16th.