10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For 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. 13Therefore put on the full armour 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. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And 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.
Ephesians 6
Last weekend nearly 50 women from across the parish spent time together on retreat. During that time people made significant moves forward with God. Many Christians will testify that after a time like that they have faced a real sense of spiritual battle. As soon as we get serious with God, so the spiritual opposition gets serious with us.
So we’re not uniquely evil if we find ourselves questioning what happened, doubting or forgetting what we thought God did, or just allowing the rush of normal life to snatch it away. It was the experience of Jesus and part of his teaching (parable of he sower) and the first disciples and the early church.
Thankfully God has made in Ephesians 6 and reminds us that:
• we are in a battle so be prepared
• pray for the resources of truth, righteousness, salvation, God’s Word and Spirit, for each will help me our doubts, fears and forgetting
• pray for each other (‘all the saints’ vs.18) to be sure everyone is supported
Today let’s pray these things for all who attended the retreat, in particular that:
• nothing would snatch away the truth, insight and healing that people received last weekend.
• the growth received would be the start of lasting and deep renewal for each person
• all of us would ‘put on he armour’ of God each day to protect and equip us for the spiritual battle
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