“Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak;
courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.” ~ Winston Churchill
When Rosa Parks boarded the same city bus that she did nearly every day as she left her job as a seamstress in Montgomery City, Alabama, she may not have been intent on changing history. But that is exactly what she did. When she refused to give her seat demanded by a white man, which was the normal rule and procedure, she was standing up for the black population everywhere. She instantly became a national hero; and fortunately, for many, life was never the same.
There is so much power in this scripture; it will show us how to STAND.
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We can see that we are in a real battle with real forces of evil.
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It offers strength from the Lord to be able to stand.
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And gives us the armor to protect ourselves in the evil day.
All of us have come to times in our lives when we have done all WE can do. We are exhausted, physically, mentally, and even spiritually. We have tried everything we can think of to either fix a situation, or to get ourselves out of a mess.
We are spent.
We are over it.
We’re done.
Now what?
David, the great king, a man after God’s own heart, has been in your shoes.
“David was now in great danger because all his men were very bitter about losing their sons and daughters, and they began to talk of stoning him. But David found strength in the Lord his God.” 1 Samuel 30:6 NLT.
He knew where his strength came from. He went straight to the One who gave him what he needed to get through his darkest hour. David had known despair, had faced giants, ran for years from King Saul who wanted to take his life, and would even one day see his own son try to take the throne from him in jealousy and anger.
David also knew what it was to fail.
He looked when he should have turned away and his sin with Bathsheba cost him the life of his newborn son (and the life of Bathsheba’s husband!).
In all of these sorrows, whether through his own downfall or the attacks of others, David kept returning to his God.
He put on that full armor of God so he could continue to STAND.
“Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God…” Ephesians 6:14-17.
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Loins girt with Truth
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Breastplate of Righteousness
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Feet shod with the Gospel of Peace
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Shield of Faith
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Helmet of Salvation
What a blessing that the Lord gave us this suit of protection that we would be able to STAND in the evil day. We are NOT unprotected. We have the Word of God and we have the Holy Spirit, alive and living inside of us!
Let’s take advantage of it and grab hold as David did. When we come to the end of our rope, look up! When we don’t know where else to turn, call on the Lord. Run to Him!
Let us take a STAND for the Name of Jesus. We serve a LIVING GOD; One that is COMING BACK AGAIN!
God is still working for us, in us and through us. Let us not be weary in well doing, for in due season we shall reap if we faint not.
Having done all….STAND!
Amen Holly! He will fight them all if we will step back and let Him! Too many times I think I have all the answers and can do a better job…funny isn’t it? But when I get out of the way and Let Go…Let God…everything falls into place the way it should. Thank you for the linkup and for stopping by! Blessings!
I was just thinking about this scripture the other day! It’s such encouragement to stand with God and allow Him to fight our battles for us. I’m grateful every day for the pieces of armor that He provides. Thanks for linking up at Testimony Tuesday!
Nannette, thanks for sharing this post with us. I am so glad I was linked up after you tonight at Jen’s blog. I just finished doing a study of Ephesians last week, and our family is in a time of testing, so my motto for this season is “#ArmorOn.”
I love a good *pep talk* on the battlefield! Yes, having done all, STAND!
I am so inspired by that. I have a picture of a battle-wearied soldier using every last ounce of his remaining strength to stand and face the enemy – and raising his fist high he shouts, “I live to fight another day!”
In the Lord’s strength, that can be each one of us!
GOD BLESS!
Thank you for reminding us of these powerful, encouraging words!
Dear Nannettd
It is usually when we come to the end of ourselves, we learn to look up to Jesus. When hearts hears that gentle invitation to come to and abide in Him, He becomes our armory against the evil one!!
Blessings XX
Mia