Covid-19 spiritual attack part 2

Covid-19 spiritual attack - Part 2

                             

As I studied about the armor of God and fighting the spiritual battle against covid-19, I found some wonderful answers online that gives a wonderful visual to the readers from different authors, one being GCU weekly devotionals, Christianity.com, and more. In this armor, Paul uses the description of the parts of a Roman soldier's clothing.

Belt of Truth - buckled around the waist or fastened. These belts were thick and sturdy like a weightlifter's belt. The rest of the soldier's armor connected to this belt. For the Christian, truth is to be securely connected to us. Truth is the accurate information regarding God and the good news of Jesus. Truth binds together everything else we believe. Without unifying truth, we just have disjointed, disconnected pieces.

Breastplate of Righteousness is held in place by the belt along with the scabbard to hold the sword. The Roman breastplate would be made from bronze or chain mail and cover the vital body parts (heart, lungs, & stomach). Righteousness, or doing what is right, is essential to protecting the life of the believer through spiritual battle. The breastplate is a primary means of identification: Likewise, a Christian's behavior is meant to identify them to the world and other believers, as a follow of Christ. To be righteous means to obey God's commandments and to live in a way that is honorable to him. Psalm 106:3 relates to that.

Feet shod with the Gospel of Peace is standing firm with our feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. So, we must stand firm in our faith of the good news Gospel of the sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for us so that we can be saved, which brings peace in the midst of storms. Our feet our fitted with these shoes of faith because we are called to go and share that good news with others so the shoes allow us to share it successfully while protecting our feet from the dangers of the path.

Shield of Faith. Take this up to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. The shield is a form of protection. It was worn strapped to the arm and at any time could be held up to deflect attacks and also to be used offensively in knocking over enemies with force. This is calling for faith, a belief that God created you and the whole world and sent Jesus Christ, His son, to die in your place for your sins that made you worthy of death. Jesus did this so that we might have eternal life. Having faith influences the way we choose to live and also can guard us during trials. It protects us from doubt, unbelief, wavering, fear, illness, and the like. We can stand firm in knowing what we believe, why we believe it, and in Whom we believe.

Helmet of Salvation serves to protect the head, which if the attack is successful, it can cause death. To receive salvation is to be delivered from our sins and the harmful consequences that comes along with them. Jesus paid the price so that we don't have to. We receive salvation by confessing our sins and believing in God's Son, the living Word. The brain is in our heads and the main headquarters of every thought, actions, words, decision making, behavior, etc... What we believe, we will do. When we put on the helmet of salvation, we can avoid sinful thoughts and understand what is the good and true and perfect will of God. The enemy, satan and his fallen angels, also known as demons, will at one time of another plant evil or bad thoughts in your mind. But, when we have on the helmet of salvation, we are reinforcing our thoughts with God and are able to acknowledge where those thoughts came from and know good from evil and cast those thoughts far from us.

Sword of the spirit, which is the Word of God... the Bible! It is so important for us to daily read God's word, study diligently, and live it out in our lives so that it becomes a part of us. We must purposefully remember scripture so that it is in our computers called the mind so that when things happen, we are able, like a computer, to search for the Word of God that fits for that moment in time. The sword of the Spirit is an offensive and defensive weapon against enemies in that is can protect us from lies of the enemy and can counter attack as well. When it is sharp, it can cut through anything. The sword of the spirit (the Word of God) is powerful only if we actually use it. Through God's word, we can distinguish between right and wrong. Therefore, we are able to strive to live in a way that is free from sin and that pleases God. It is our greatest weapon. If we don't know God's word, we will struggle to fight the enemy in our own strength and probably will fail miserably many times. But, if we seek God's word and abide (live) by it, we will be blessed. This is a part of sharing God's Word with others. When we do that, we are taking up our swords and fighting against the enemy, not just for our survival, but for the survival of others.

Prayer, perseverance, and intercession. Praying in the Spirit is prayer with divine help. It is trusting in faith and relying on God to hear, understand, and act. It is a gift received through faith in Christ Jesus. The bible tells us to do it in perseverance and intercession. So, we are constantly seeking communion with God and listening for His leading and answers as well. It is praying (interceding) for others as well and not just yourself. So, it is a self-less exercise of your faith and your relationship with God. Just as a soldier will defend the weak, so you do the same by intercessory prayer for others.

Ok, so the soldier's tools includes a belt, breastplate, shoes, shield, helmet, and sword. In parallel, the Christian's implements are truth, righteousness, the gospel, faith, salvation, and the Word of God, as well as prayer, perseverance, and intercession. Just as a soldier's equipment is designed for their earthly battle, a Christian's equipment is meant for spiritual warfare.

So does this mean that I will not get the covid-19/coronavirus because I'm a Christian? Absolutely not, NO, NO, No, it does not mean that! Anyone can be infected with it, including Christians! So, do what you can to protect yourself, your family, and friends. It means that even if you do get infected with covid-19/coronavirus, you will have what you need to deal with the attack on you spiritually while you are fighting for the physical victory as well.

So, put on your whole armor of God today!

Covid-19 as a Spiritual Attack

Covid-19 - As A Spiritual Attack? – Part 1

My husband and I are bible workers. However, due to covid-19, the in-home bible studies have ceased and we've gone to zoom or Whatsapp to do video studies. However, one student who was newly baptized and is a babe in Christ decided to postpone the studies since he didn't care for the lessons online or via apps and wanted live face-to-face studies. Since it has now been a few months that covid-19 has reared its ugly head, my husband and I began doing the in-home bible studies again with a new student yesterday. Since we did that one, yesterday evening after the study, I told my husband that I think we should contact the other student who wanted live face-to-face studies to resume them. Today, as I was going about my day-to-day routines with work and life, I got a call from a friend who informed me that that same bible study recipient has just been diagnosed with having been infected with covid-19. I really couldn't believe my ears because we just spoke about him yesterday and was going to contact him today.

So often when we are trying to do God's will and follow His path in our lives, satan likes to throw wrenches in the works to stop our gears from continuing and to stop us in our tracks. he likes to discourage those who are reaching out to God and are depending on God to keep on the strait and narrow path. When we come to the Lord, it is a profession of faith that we are saying that we depend wholly upon God and surrender all to Him. We are saying that we are giving our all for His work and sacrifice for His kingdom as Christ had sacrificed all as our example.

When I heard of this attack on my Christian brother, my first thought was of unbelief and expressed as “What!” Then, my 2^nd thought was to realize that this is a spiritual attack on my brother's physical body to distract him, to discourage him, to destroy him so that he will want to give up on God. This man is a peaceful, kind man and a loving single father of several girls. He has a lot of burdens to bear and responsibilities to deal with. So, when satan attacks his body, it prevents him from being able to work and support his children. It also leaves him concerns for his children's health in hopes that they are not infected with the covid-19 as well. It leaves concern for his physical well-being and effects him mentally and emotionally as well as financially. satan knows how to cover it all with all out assaults and attacks on us. But, God...! But, God...! and again I say... But, God has victory over every trick from the trickster, the devil. He is victorious and has given us power to also be victorious in Him.

So, what can we do when satan attacks us spiritually, physically, mentally, emotionally, financially, etc... The first thing we can do is to be prepared. You see, many people don't plan to fail, they just fail to plan, So, they are caught off guard and unprepared. So, before the attacks come, we must daily put on the whole armor of God. In the Bible, Ephesians 6:11-18 says “Put on the full armor of God so that you can stand against the tactics of the Devil. For our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. This is why you must take up the full armor of God, so that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having prepared everything, to take your stand. Stand, therefore, with truth like a belt around your waist, righteousness like armor on your chest, and your feet sandaled with readiness for the gospel of peace. In every situation take the shield of faith, and with it you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is God’s word. Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request, and stay alert in this with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints.”

As I studied this I found some wonderful answers online that gives a wonderful visual to the readers from different authors, one being GCU weekly devotionals, Christianity.com, and more. In this armor, Paul uses the description of the parts of a Roman soldier's clothing.

Stay tuned with me next time as I share each article of clothing, what it is, what it is used for, and how it can help in our current times.

Once again, choose Living Victoriously!

Muscle Rub ToothPaste !! ???

Have you ever had the amazing sensation after brushing your teeth with Muscle Rub Pain Relieving Cream?  Well, I have.  I had the un-pleasure of doing so while on my 3rd year wedding anniversary with my husband.  Our individual toiletries bag was packed and waking up one morning in the hotel, I went into the bathroom to brush and dug out... you guessed it... the Muscle Rub pain relieving cream instead of the toothpaste.  Now, it says that it suppose to give hours of relief from minor arthritis, backache, muscle & joint pain.  If used as it is suppose to be used, it works well.  However, I don't think you are suppose to ingest it, let alone brush with it.  Well, not realizing that I picked up the wrong tube, I proceeded to squeeze the white pasty substance on my toothbrush.  It was bright white and went on smoothly.  I put the brush covered with the substance to my mouth and began brushing.  I didn't notice anything at first.  Then I realized that I wasn't tasting a minty taste and thought... that's odd.  I continued brushing.  Then I realized that I'm tasting something that I just can't identify what it is... that's really odd, what's wrong with my taste buds.  The taste stayed as a bland, but nasty, unable to identify taste.  However, then I began feeling some weird sensations in my mouth faintly at first.  I continue brushing and just pass it off as me being weird this morning.  Then, sensations of slight burning around my gum line and my lips with a refreshing menthol effect began happening.  I pause and think... ok what is going on.  Now the refreshing menthol effect is getting stronger... I begin realizing that something is wrong.  So, then I looked at the tube on the counter and realized what it was.  It was the Muscle Rub pain relieving cream.  The problem is, I didn't need this for my mouth since my mouth didn't have minor arthritis, backache, muscle & joint pain in it... except for a little tmj.  So, I began rinsing... the problem is now the refreshing menthol effect has become overwhelming and the gums continue burning.  I began squealing as I'm brushing with water and rinsing my mouth.  It all doesn't want to come out at one time.  So, I keep rinsing... and squealing.  My husband comes to see what is wrong.  I talk through the weird sensations of my mouth and tell him what happened.  He tries to stifle a grin.  Since he is trying to laugh, I proceed to try to kiss him to share the sensation and he pulls back quickly.  I finish rinsing, but the burning and menthol sensation continues to last.  I finally get to share a kiss with my husband about an hour later and then his mouth begins to burn a bit as well for about an hour.  The burning and menthol sensations in my mouth continues for hours.  My teeth felt very clean after brushing with real toothpaste!  My tongue felt a bit numb.  The fire in my gums finally died down.

You know, after I experienced this, I said to myself... "there has to be a lesson in this for me... aside from watch what you are doing".  The lesson I learned is a spiritual lesson.

Spiritual Lesson:

The tooth paste and water is the promised cleanser - Jesus Christ
The Muscle Rub pain relieving cream is any substitute could be good or bad.

In each one of us is an area in our being where only God is meant to dwell.  When we don't want God there in complete control, we try to fill that area with a substitute.  Now, the substitute in and of itself may not be bad.  It could be many good things. But, when we try to put it in place of God, it is being used in the wrong way and has now become our God.  We try to fill that area with anything and everything that we can because it is a hole and is empty without Jesus, but it must be filled.  We use the Muscle Rub (substitute) thinking that it will take away our pain and make us feel better.  Muscle Rub, when used correctly, can help take away pain.  However, when use incorrectly can cause a miserable situation.  In the same way, we will do things to fill the void with the wrong things that will put us in a miserable situation.  Then we burn and hurt and try to pull others into our misery because misery loves company.  Others will laugh at our situation and don't want to help us or share in our pain.  But, Jesus did just that.  He helped us and shared in our pain, more pain than we even experienced.  He took our pain so that we wouldn't have to experience it.  He took death away from us.  When we use substitutes to cover our sin & wrong doing, the results of what we have done will become overwhelming to the point that we can't stand it any longer and is seeking anything and everything to try to relieve the discomfort.  Sometimes we seek love to relieve the discomfort, or alcohol, or drugs, ets...  However, there is only one solution to that discomfort just as there was only one solution to the mouth situation.  I had to re-brush with the correct substance and rinse and rinse and rinse and rinse thoroughly.  In the same way, we have to go to Christ and confess our sin and mistakes and mess-ups, repent from it, Make it right to the best of our ability and claim his blood to wash away the mess. Muscle Rub is a poison to ingest, but the water rinses it away.  In the same way, sin is a poison and promises death, but Jesus took the death on Himself and washed our sin away.

Now, even when we've been cleansed by Christs blood, it doesn't mean that we are perfect and the mess that we did is not made perfect all of a sudden.  It will have results from our actions.  So, we may still have some things that we need to brush away, but that will still effect us for a little while... but we keep claiming Christ again and again and again thoroughly until Christ and only Christ.  The power of Christ cleanses and rinses away all sin.  He also continues to change you so that even if you are still having the temptation of sin that keeps burning overwhelmingly in you, it tempts you less and less as time goes by as you keep rinsing with Christ.  Less and less things become a temptation to you as Christ in you becomes more and more.  That can only happen when we claim the cleansing blood of Christ to cleanse and rinse all sin and wrong doing away from us.  Nothing can substitute that.  Only Christ & His blood can do that!  No other.

So, what do you choose today?  Do you choose a substitute or do you choose Jesus Christ?

Choose today to set your mind to Living Victoriously in Christ!