The Ride—Part 1
“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. 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. 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.” Ephesians 6:13-20 NIV
I like to start my days by daily putting on the amour of God. Mentally I put on my shoes (to walk where God wants me to go), my helmet to protect my mind (my thought life), my eyes for what I am seeing (paying attention to and avoiding harmful things), my mouth (what I am saying or more important not saying), my ears (for what I am listening to). I go on to put on my breastplate to protect my heart (feelings and emotions), my shield of faith (to protect me from evil), my belt of truth around my waist (to walk confidently), and finally my sword of the Spirit (God’s Word) to fight off the enemy and encourage others.
Today I got the chance to put on real armor. It was a beautiful, sunny fall day and my husband said he thought he would go on a motorcycle ride around Whiskeytown. I quickly asked if I could go along. He said yes with a surprised look on his face. You see, he’s had a motorcycle our entire marriage and I have only been on a ride a couple of times. I asked what I needed to wear; he said I should wear pants to protect my legs from the hot tail pipe, shoes to protect my feet, a snug-fitting top so the wind would not blow my shirt all over the place, and—most important—a helmet.
I put on my protective clothes and then my husband helped me to put on the helmet snugly for safety. I intently listened to my husband’s instructions about safety and how to lean with him into the turns as we ride. Even getting on the back of the bike was a new lesson I had to learn. I had to cautiously balance one foot on the tiny pedal and then shift my weight to the center of the bike as I swung my other leg carefully so I would not tip over my husband along with the bike.
Sometimes following instructions is not easy for me. Tomorrow I will share the rest of what I learned on the ride.
Lord, thank You that You give us instructions in Your Word about how to protect ourselves daily with the full armor of God.