Daily Devotional – 11/18/11 “Watch your mouth!”

On last night my sister was singing this song by the Chicago Mass Choir entitled “I pray we’ll all be ready,” and when I got up this morning the song was still in my head.  I had to go to YouTube to listen to it because I wanted to get the real meaning.  I couldn’t understand why God was leading me this way but of course I obeyed.  Then I logged into Facebook to see some folk’s statuses and talked to some folk at work and then I knew exactly why God was leading me this way. 

The song simply says:

I pray we’ll all be ready
I pray we’ll all be ready for his return
I pray that we’ll get our business straight
So we can all meet at the gate
I pray we’ll all be ready for his return

Hmph!  Don’t you know that mouth of yours can write a check your butt can’t cash?  Let me show you.  You get pissed off at your boss because of an email that was sent to the entire group, not just you, so you go into his/her office ranting & raving about how tired you are of this and how you are always being picked on.  You’re talking so fast that you’ve yet to realize that you’re talking yourself out of your job and by the time you see the mess you’ve stepped in, it’s too late.  You’ve just fell into quick sand and no one is around to pull you out.  Now, you’re packing up the few things you got at your desk to go home and explain to your husband how you actually lost your job.  You need to watch your mouth!

You’re over at your girlfriend’s house complaining about your husband.  He’s smothering me, he always doing everything, I can’t even pump my own gas or he’s always around.  But didn’t you pray for a provider, a husband that God said was yours?  You don’t understand why he doesn’t want you to hang out every weekend with your friends or why they are always hanging at your house.  Then you say, “I just wish he would leave me alone.”  Now, he’s fed up with your lack of concern for him and your marriage.  He has done all he can do but you say you don’t need to change.  He files for divorce and you don’t fight it because you got your girls and they are probably saying “Girl, he ain’t no good no way, you can do better,” so now you’re alone.  A few months later you see him in the store but wait, he isn’t alone because the person pushing his basket is the same friend that was listening to all the complaining you were doing.  You need to watch your mouth!

You get mad at your family because you feel like they treat you differently from everybody else.  You always got something to say about this person and that person and you could care less who your words hurt because this is you.  You always begging and looking for a handout but the minute they say no, you curse them out.  You sit around and talk to your sisters and they tell you stuff in confident but the minute you get mad and stuff isn’t going your way, you spill everything because again, it’s all about you.  You don’t care that she asked you not to tell, she shouldn’t have made you mad.  Your mouth runs more than a MLGW meter but you say, this is me and it’s who I am.  You find joy in cursing folk out through text message and a phone call and you find no fault in any of it because it is who you are.  But then a day later, you need that same person who you called every name but their own.  You need that person who business you spread on Facebook.  You need that person whose husband you called and told them what you think you saw.  But guess what, just like you are tired so are they so they press ignore on their phone and the help they normally give isn’t there anymore.  Now, what will you do?  You need to watch your mouth!

Don’t be quick to put your mouth on folk.  When God said in 1st Chronicles 16:22 “Do not touch my anointed ones; do my prophets no harm,” he wasn’t just speaking about Pastors, Bishops and Elders, because anoint means to dedicate to the service of God and if you’re dedicated to him, then he is speaking about you.  So just because I put up “Godly” statuses, speak a few scriptures here and there or sometimes pray for you, you say I’m acting Holier than thou, you are putting your mouth on me.  When you defame my name by spreading lies and gossip, you’re putting your mouth on me.  When you talk about Pastor So & So, you’re putting your mouth on God’s anointed.  When you talk about Deacon Do Right, you’re putting your mouth on God’s anointed.  When you talk about Sis Shirley’s clothes and hair, you are putting your mouth on God’s anointed.  No matter how a person lives outside of worship service, it isn’t for you to judge them.  Matthew 7:1 says “Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” But who are you anyway?  Who are you to judge how my life is lived?  Just because I won’t wallow in your pit of pity, it doesn’t make me more than you.  Just because I won’t be mad at Momma for the stuff she use to do, it doesn’t make me less than you.  Just because I don’t look like I’m struggling, it doesn’t mean I have more than you.  Just because our paths were separated and I went one way and you went another, it doesn’t mean I don’t know where I came from.  What it means is I’m not letting my past define me.  Baby these scars that I have, whether they are visible or not, on my skin made me who I am.  Whatever you’ve been through, going through or about to go through, don’t let it take you out.  But you’ve got to stop blocking your own blessings by running your mouth.  When you are mad at someone, pray and let the situation cool down before you react because the words that come out your mouth can’t be taken back.  When someone has let you down, pray and let them go because the words that you speak cannot be taken back and words can cut deeper than any knife.  Be careful what you say and who you say it too.  That person you’re talking about today could be the one saving your life tomorrow.  You need to watch your mouth because you have the power of life and death in your tongue. 

“You may think you can condemn such people, but you are just as bad, and you have no excuse! When you say they are wicked and should be punished, you are condemning yourself, for you who judge others do these very same things.” Romans 2:1

Daily Devotional – 11/17/11 “You might want to change if …”

I’ve always wondered about the saying a zebra never changes it stripes and why it is often referred to people who try to change.  Now, I would think that a zebra’s stripes wouldn’t change because if they did then it wouldn’t be considered a zebra right? But if a man or woman changes their ways does that make them turn into something other than a man or woman?  The answer would be no because their physical appearance wouldn’t change (unless they had plastic surgery) but their mind should and in changing their mind, their actions should change.  You should be able to see a change in them by the way they walk, talk, dress and feel.  The change I am referring to is a mental change on the inside and not a physical change that money can buy.

Let me explain.  You’re a man who finds laughter in the belittling of your wife.  You can never give her a compliment so instead you give her an insult.  When she asks you how she looks in her dress, you laugh and say she would look better if she dropped a few pounds.  She asked you how was dinner and you say it was better when your momma cooked it.  Now, you may have been raised by your dad that way or there was probably not a man around to teach you how to treat a woman but I’m here to tell you that just because you don’t give her a compliment, doesn’t mean she isn’t getting one.  That dress and perfume she asked you about when you weren’t paying her any attention caught the eyes of her co-worker who happens to step in just when she is feeling low.  That dinner you hate so much, someone else will find pleasure in enjoying it.  The affection you’ve seemed to have forgotten to show, someone else will find joy in taking your place.   Someone else will find a treasure in the one you’ve treated like trash and taken for granted.  Yea, she probably has stuck with your lowdown butt for 20 years, but the door still opens to go out. So, you may want to read God’s word that says He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the LORD (Proverbs 18:22).  So you might want to change if she is longer affected by the insults and the lack of what she needs from you because that means that she has changed. 

You’re a son or daughter whose mother takes care of your every need.  No, let me rephrase.  You’re a grown son or daughter whose mother takes care of your every need.  You moved out of her house but she still stops by to clean, cook and do your laundry from time to time.  When she is out shopping she picks up things she think you may need.  You don’t know how to take care of your own space because she has never allowed you to learn things like making up your bed or cleaning a kitchen or bathroom.  She bails you out when you get in trouble and she gives you extra money when you want to hang out with your friends.  She even accepted the fact that college wasn’t for you even after she wasted the money on your tuition.  When she calls you for a favor, you got your mouth stuck out.  Because she woke you up at 10 on Saturday to ask you to cut her grass or go pay a bill for her, you got the nerve to get an attitude.  When she needs a little extra money for groceries you tell your friends that she is always begging.  When she was telling you that girl or guy wasn’t any good for you but you married him/her anyway only to be divorced a year later, you’ll wished you had listened.  Baby, I can promise you that momma won’t always be there.  It may seem like all will be ok when she is gone, but wake up the day after she dies and tell me if you feel the same.  Those small things that you took for granted will have you wishing 100 times for another chance to apologize to momma.  Those moments when you didn’t appreciate her will have you sobbing in a corner like a baby after she is gone.  Yes, it’s a mother’s job to take care and nourish their children but you as children also have a commitment.  Deuteronomy 5:16 say “Honor your father and mother, as the LORD your God commanded you. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the LORD your God is giving you.” So, you might want to change if you act like a spoiled brat even though you are over 30.  Trust me, it isn’t a good look.

You’ve been working on your job for what seems like forever.  You’re older now and don’t like change.  You didn’t like your old boss and you don’t like the new one.  With every change comes lip and attitude from you.  When you walk into the meeting, folks rolled their eyes because they know you are coming in with some mess.  You always complain about this and you complain about that and you get up every morning, get dressed, and drive away from your home only to come into a place that is causing you so much Hell.  Other folks aren’t seeing the same things you complain about so you call them crazy.  You go home gripping to your spouse and/or kids about your day never once giving them an opportunity to get a word in about their day.  You keep saying you’re going to find another job but you know deep down inside that no one will hire your crazy tail.  You come & go as you please from your current job, call in when you want, never complete the assignments given and always argue with coworkers and you think you need a new job.  Chile, you have yet to realize that you’re the problem.  You bring the damper to the workplace but you’re quick to say moral is down.  No, it’s not the morale that needs to be raised but it’s your butt from your seat that needs to be.  Be careful who you tell your woes too because they may be the one signing your pink slip.  Proverbs 18:24 say “A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.  Yea, you may want to change if you stopped getting invitations to anything from co-workers a long time ago.   

You may want to change if you party, drink and smoke every day because one of these days that body that you are destroying won’t last.  “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself.” (1 Corinthians 6:19)  Now, God didn’t say don’t drink because 1 Corinthians 10:31 says “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” But it doesn’t say get drunk, talk stupid, fight folk, destroy relationships and not be able to work because a man that don’t work is not supposed to eat.  Well, that’s what the bible says in 2 Thessalonians 3:10.   When you make a change in any aspect of your life, for the better, you tend to lose folk.  I didn’t say you lose friends because if they were true friends they would want better for you and will gladly welcome the change. 

You might want to change if you can hardly breathe but you’re still smoking.  Yea, you’ve heard people say that you can get lung cancer even if you don’t smoke but honey you are surely increasing your chances.  You might want to change if you can barely walk from the weight that you’re carrying but still spending 6 days for 2 hours each at a buffet.  That’s why your blood pressure is up and you can’t see your feet.  Yea, I know that obesity runs in your family but can’t you break the curse?  All it takes is a 30 minute walk and changing your eating habits.  You might want to change if trouble and gossiping don’t start until you come around because you may be the one bringing it.   

Changing your ways won’t kill you.  It may make you look better but it won’t kill you.  If every time you go out and you’re the loudest most embarrassing person in the bunch, you might just want to change.  No one is telling you this because they are scared to hurt your feelings but this is why no one wants to hang out anymore.  They are hanging out just without you.  If you are always begging and never offer or is even there to help when other folks need, you might just want to change because this is the reason your call is being ignored.  If every time you do something for somebody or the Pastor asks you to lead a task and you boast and brag about it for months afterwards, you might want to change because this is the reason why folk stop calling you.  If every time we talk as friends and you spread my business faster than windshield wipers in rain then you might just want to change because this is why we don’t talk anymore.  If every time I come around you have to talk about my personal appearance to make yourself look good, you might just want to change because this is the reason I don’t stop by anymore. 

You may like the person that you have become with your mean & nasty ways, comments of negativity and dirty looks but it doesn’t mean I have too.  If thanksgiving use to be at your house and folk couldn’t wait to get there and now everyone has plans, you might just want to take a moment to reflect over yourself because sometimes it will put you in the place you need to be.  If I tell you something about you that you do and it makes you look ugly, if I am a true friend, then you should welcome the criticism.  Stop getting mad every time someone says something.  You knew that hair color was wrong before you left the salon so don’t get mad at me for saying it.  You knew your shoes were too little when you paid too much for them so don’t get mad at me for saying it.  You knew that boy wasn’t baby daddy or husband material when you laid down with him so don’t get mad at me for saying it.  You knew that girl was a garden tool when you took her home, so don’t get mad at me for saying it.  Yes, criticism sometimes hurt but if it is coming from the heart of a true friend then it should be received gladly.  If you know you need to change then ask God to “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. (Psalm 51:10)”  For it will be then that your change would not be in vain.

Daily Devotional – 11/16/11 “Love shouldn’t hurt this much!”

There’s this young lady, 20 maybe 22, who has been in a relationship with a man she thinks is her world and who could never do any wrong.  They’ve been together for 5 years and even have a daughter together.  In front of family, friends and in pictures she displays a smile so big that no one can see the pain underneath it.  She tells her family this is the man for her and he provides for her and the baby better than she could ever expect.  But what she forgot to mention was the cost she was paying for the providing he provided.  Behind closed doors, this provider was a monster.  He would come home after a long day and unwind by knocking her around.  He was careful to not leave bruises and scars that were noticeable to folk so he hit her in places she could hide it.  She was so scared to leave because he always threatens to find her.  Now, she was raised in a Christian household with a father that would never lay a hand on his wife or any woman for that matter and she was taught that God loved her and he would take care of her if she let him in.  But she thought this was the way love was supposed to be because she didn’t read the bible for herself that states “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love (1 John 4:7-8).  But somewhere in the midst of this relationship she lost her focus on God and her life was spiraling out of control.  One night, while her man was out with friends, she settled in for a quiet evening with her daughter.  She fixed her bottle and had put her down to sleep and afterwards she sat her desk writing a letter.  After she finished, she ran a bath to clear her head.  She put on her nightgown and went to bed.  When her man came home, he found her unresponsive in the bed with an empty bottle of sleeping pills.  He raced to the baby’s room to find her, too, unresponsive (from the medicine that had been placed in her bottle) and he dialed 911.  After realizing the 2 women in his life would be there no more, he found the letter on the desk that simply read, LOVE SHOULDN’T HURT THIS MUCH!

Maybe you’re not facing a situation like this and maybe you’ve never felt pain like she felt but are you dealing with hurtful love?  You’re a 19-year-old young man who has dated the same girl since 9th grade year.  You all made plans for college, for her business and you, football and a life together always.  But then an injury happens and you are no longer the shining star she once held so high and college didn’t work for her because she wouldn’t go to class.  Now you are living together in a 1 bedroom apartment with your 2 month old son and you’ve been working your butt off to pay the bills while she stays home.  You pick up all the extra hours that you can just to make ends meet but every day you come in, she is nagging. (You know the word others use but since this is a devotional, I’ll keep it PG).  Every day she reminds you of your faults instead of your good deeds, she complains about the time you’re gone instead of thanking you for being a provider or she says she should have left you a long time ago because you’ll never amount to  nothing.  When you mention going back to school, she laughs because her momma told her that you won’t be nothing either.  Each time you want to hang out with friends you have to tell her you’re every move because she says I love you but I don’t trust you.  Now, you were also raised on God’s word and you know the man should be the head of the house but you are doing all you can.  You read God’s word that says “Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them (Ephesians 4:29),” but you keep accepting the hatred coming from the mouth of the person who claims to love you?  You begin to pray and God shows you that love is building up, not tearing down and love is kind, not mean so you leave.  After you’ve packed your bags and moved back home, you send her a text that simply reads, LOVE SHOULDN’T HURT THIS MUCH!

Love shouldn’t hurt as much as it does.  Love is not cuts, scars and bruises because love does not have hands.  But so many of the young ladies and young men, of this day and time, are dealing with grown folk issues before they are even grown and are not being taught the real meaning of the 4 letter word.  We don’t teach them that John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” We don’t instill in them that Romans 5:8 say “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  We don’t tell them that 1 John 4:9-11 say “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another “or John 13:34 that say “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” 

We are so busy being focused on our own lives that we as women are not teaching the girls and men aren’t taking the time to teach the boys how to respect themselves.  Instead of telling our children that no one should put their hands on them in a relationship, we wait until it’s too late.  Instead of telling our daughters that love shouldn’t leave scars, we buy Neosporin to cover them up.  Instead of getting them out of a violent situation we wait until there is a detective standing at your door saying your daughter/son was killed by the hands of the person they said they loved.  Yea, you saw signs but you didn’t want to get involved because when you did they went running back.  But it was at that point, you should have been running to God for Psalm 11:5 say “The LORD examines the righteous, but the wicked and those who love violence his soul hates.” 

Instead, you walk around your own house on egg shells because you don’t want to upset the kids.  You pay a cellphone bill but can’t go through the phone.  You pay the internet bill but can’t use their computer, you pay the mortgage or rent but you’re not allowed in their room.  Chile, please stop it! Grow up and parent!  Who cares if they get mad, what can they do?  You should be in your child’s business then maybe you’ll see the text that she gets calling her every name but her own or the Facebook statuses she puts arguing with other girls over a boy.  If you get more involved now, you may be able to stop the abuse before it starts.  Yes, emotional abuse is still abuse.  You allow your daughter to wear skirts so short you can see her butt when she bends over and then have the nerve to wonder why her name is floating around school like a bird in search of food.  You allow your son to wear sagging pants (because you bought those 2 sizes too big) so that he thinks he is “hard,” and then have the gall to say I don’t know why he is acting like that.  You allow your son to talk to you any kind of way and then wonder why he treats a girl so bad.  You allow your daughter to see you being belittled and torn down by words from a man and then she grows up to accept the same treatment. 

Love should be required in any relationship but in order to get it you have to love yourself first. Just because no one says you’re pretty doesn’t mean you’re not. Just because no one says you look nice it doesn’t mean you don’t.  Just because no one says you’re talented doesn’t mean you’re not. Stop waiting on FOLK to assess your value and STOP allowing folk to devalue you. Don’t you look in the mirror for yourself? Don’t you trust in the gifts God has given? If no one ever says or shows they love you, God does! Isn’t that enough? Value yourself and then others will value you.  Love shouldn’t hurt as much as it does, so stop allowing it too.

Daily Devotional – 11/15/11 “Who’s talking about me?”

How is it that we can allow folk to stop us from getting what God has for us?  I hear people saying all the time about how folk act at church and this is the reason they don’t go anymore.  But if you stop worrying about how folk look at you, what they whisper about you and how they run their mouth, you wouldn’t have a problem.  So what if they look like they are talking about you when you walk into church that means you are worth talking about.  So what if they looking at you funny when you walk in that means you’re worth looking at.  Just because folk got your name slipping from their lips it shouldn’t stop you from going into fellowship with God.  It should make your relationship stronger because you are supposed to pray for those types of folk.  Don’t believe me, read Matthew 5:44 which says “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.”  Don’t you know that when you pray for your enemies, it increases your blessings?  Well, that’s what God has promised.  Luke 6:35 says “Love your enemies! Do good to them. Lend to them without expecting to be repaid. Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as children of the Most High, for he is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked.”      

If you are more concerned with how folk look at you rather than the ministry of God, then you are going to church for the wrong reason anyway.  You say, “Church folk are so messy and they wonder why I haven’t been to church in a while,” but no matter what church you attend, there will be messy folk.  So stop running from them because I can guarantee God won’t accept that excuse when you’re standing in front of him on judgment day.  “Lord, I haven’t been to church because people always talking about me.”  So what?  Does the talking that folk do affect your day-to-day living, the amount of money you make, the clothes & shoes you wear, how you sleep and how you eat?  Then why does it affect your relationship with God?  It didn’t affect Jesus’ choice to be dragged from judgment halls, getting beaten all nights, pricked in the head with thorns, pierced in his side and nails dug into his hands & feet for our sins.  Instead he prayed to his Father on their behalf.  Even in the midst of his pain and agony, he prayed for his Father to forgive them.  In Luke 23:34 he says “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”  But instead of us praying for the forgiveness of those who “hate on us”, we run from our church and from God. 

It’s like you needing a specific medicine that’ll save your life but every time you go to the store you feel like the people there are talking about you.  Do you risk your life by not getting the medicine you need or do you walk into the store each and every month with your head held high in order to live?  It’s the same way with God’s house each and every Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.  When you allow folk to keep you out of worship with God, it hurts you.  Oh, don’t get me wrong, it is also hurting them because whenever you sit in God’s house with your mind filled with hate, dislike and hurtful feelings for your brothers and sisters whom you are supposed to love; your prayers are hindered too.  For John 4:24 says “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”

You should know that if you are the topic of people’s conversation, then that makes you worth talking about.  Grandma always told me that the more folk talk about you, the more you should bend your knees to pray.  But, Bonnie Raitt sang “Let’s give them something to talk about!”  Usually when folk talk about you they are jealous of the blessings and the favor you receive.  You know that it’s a sin to boast and brag about yourself, so chile, let them brag about you!  Continue to do the work that God has given you to do because eventually they will either want to worship the way you do in order to get like you or they’ll move on to talking about the next person.  But if you feed into the insecurities of those gossiping Christians, it makes them talk more. It’s just like adding fuel to an already burning fire but if you leave a fire alone, it usually burns out.  And just in case you didn’t know this let me be the first to tell you, if they are talking about you when you’re at church, they are talking about you when you’re not.  So there is no reason for you to miss the teaching of God’s word and the praise that is being given to him by staying home.  Because if they spent as much time minding their own business as they do yours, their praise would be more genuine anyway.

So, stop allowing folk to affect your relationship and walk with God because when it comes down to it, they can’t get you to Heaven because their ticket hasn’t been stamped anyway.  Being focused on them takes your focus from God and it’ll make you to sink every time.  That’s what happened to Peter when he wanted to walk on water.  He began to walk towards Jesus but as soon as he looked out to see the high winds blowing, he begin to sink because it was then that he started to doubt (Matthew 14:28-31).  But don’t you know that God will take care of your enemies?  Psalm 110:1 says “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”   So instead of worrying about what folk are saying, get up, put on your Sunday best and walk into the church with your head held high ready to get your praise on and if the folk are there gossiping as usual, say to them “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only (Matthew 4:10)! 

Daily Devotional – 11/14/11 “Where is your battle gear?”

When a man or woman prepares for war they have to be just that, prepared.  They have to have on the appropriate clothes, the right body gear and have usable weapons.  They know, or they should know, that it would be crazy, irresponsible, and a death sentence to walk into a fight unprepared.  What good would it do for them to have a gun with no bullets, a shield that is cracked or not strong enough to withstand or a bulletproof vest that won’t stop bullets?  What sense would it make to jump into battle without being strong enough to endure it?

Well this is what happens every day when we, Christians, go out into battle without our gear and being unprepared.  Yea, I know you got a bible in your car, but if you never blow the dust off of it and open it, it’s ultimately worthless.  Luke 12:35 says “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning.”  God has equipped us with all that we need to handle the battles of this world, but we choose not to prepare ourselves for when the battle is at hand.  It is like you getting up in the morning and looking out the window to see the clouds forming.  You then turn on the news which states there is a 90% chance of rain but you still leave the house without a raincoat, rain boots, umbrella or jacket because you are looking at the 10% chance that it won’t.  But then the rain starts and you have nothing to shield you from the drops that are soaking your hair, clothes and shoes and now your jeans are so heavy from the rain that you can barely move your legs.  But had you prepared yourself before leaving home, you would have been covered and no matter how much rain falls, it’ll roll off of you like water does oil.

Ephesians 6:11 says “Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.”  This says the full armor of God, not partial or some but the full.  But we’ve become so fast paced that we don’t have time to properly prepare ourselves.  But let me give you the necessary pieces to make sure you are prepared for war, the war of this world, the devil and his imps and the attacks that he sends.  For the bible tells us that our fight will not be against man itself because in Ephesians 6:12 it says “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Here are the 5 things I’ve found that will help you defeat the enemy.

  1. A belt of truth around your waist (Ephesians 6:14).  What good is it to lie when the truth shall set you free?  I’ve found that it’s easier to remember the truth because it never changes rather than a lie that you’ll soon forget.  Grandma always says that the little lies will send you hell quick.  I don’t know about you but I refuse to live in Hell to die and then be sentenced to eternity there. Proverbs 11:3 says “Honesty guides good people; dishonesty destroys treacherous people.”
  2. A breastplate of righteousness.   A breastplate is usually made of metal that is place to protect the chest area of your body and righteousness is defined as acting in accord with divine or moral law being free from guilt or sin.  This breastplate protects your heart and other vital organs from things that are thrown at you that are meant to kill or do bodily harm.  You know how folk lie on you, walk away or all over you, or wish bad things on your life.  But you have to first remove that badge of guilt and that patch of sin that is keeping you exposed to the evil darts that are being thrown your way.   Then you’ll be able to cover your chest with God’s word that tells us to love our brothers, to pray for our enemies and to forgive those who have hurt us in the past.  Whatever guilt you have over whatever situation, turn it over to God and let him work it out.
  3. A helmet of salvation.  Salvation is being delivered from sin and the power and effects it has.  1 John 1:9 says “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”  Isn’t that all you need to know? That you can wear a helmet of salvation if you ask for it because God says, yes you’ve sinned but I’ll forgive you of those sins if you just ask me.  Yes, you’ve fallen a few times but I’ll raise you back up if you ask.  Yes, you’ve back slid into the world, but I’ll pull you back out if you reach out your hand.  Yes, you’ve ask for it many times before but I’ll keep forgiving you if you keep asking.  (enough said)             
  4. A sword of the spirit.  Now, this isn’t your normal sword but this is God’s word.  You know that book that is usually in the back window of your car that has been there so long the sun has changed the color of the pages or the one that is in your trunk that you keep throwing stuff on top of or the one that is home on your bookshelf that you walk past every day.  Yea, that one.  A sword is a weapon that is used for cutting and inflicting pain, when used in a fighting manner.  Well, if this is the case, why don’t we use God’s sword more rather than our mouth?  I’ve come to realize that God can hurt folk worse than I can.  It is written in Romans 12:19 “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord.” Still don’t believe me, read Deuteronomy 32:35 which God says “It is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them.” So why are you still trying to fight a losing battle?  I know that they’ve hurt you and you want to get them back and folk have walked away and now you’re bitter and wishing bad on their life; but it’s only hurting you.  Take God at his word when he says that he’ll handle this fight that you’re in.  Didn’t he give David strength to defeat Goliath and Samson strength to destroy those that held him captive? Why, because they asked.  Then why are you constantly standing on the front line of a fight that keeps knocking you down?  Eventually, if you keep trying to fight by yourself, you will get worn out and then your enemy will knock you out.   
  5.  Prayer.  Ephesians 6:18 says “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.” Prayer works every time. When you tired of being lied on, when you can’t see your way, when you are hurt, sick and even when you are weak, pray!   Romans 8:26 says “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.”  Haven’t you heard the expression, if I couldn’t say a word I’ll just wave my hand? If we are sincere in our asking and in our prayers, God hears even when we can’t say a word.  Because he is there, seeing the trouble that we are facing and he’ll be there to help us through it if we let him in.

We will face battles every day of our life because it has been promised but God won’t leave us to battle it alone.  He has given us a step by step guide to handle these battles but we have to be willing to open it and read it.  If you buy a piece of furniture that needs to be assembled, the only way to properly put it together right is by reading the instructions.  Living your life and winning the battles of the world are the same.  You have the instructions right in front of you, but you have to open them.  If you don’t know where to find them, go to your local Wal-Mart, Christian book store or online and ask for the Bible.  It comes in many different versions and languages to help you understand in order to properly prepare you for battle.  This war you are in may be getting the best of you now, but it isn’t over yet and you still have a chance of winning it.   Bible – Basic Instructions on Beating Life’s Enemies