Life Plan Devotion #63 [God's Armor--Belt of Truth]

Hi, Everyone.
I'm so excited to have you on this journey with me, discovering more about the armor God has given to His children, to use against the enemy and to gain victory, daily.
Today, we look at the first piece of armor, the Belt of Truth. Tomorrow, we'll make sure we understand how to put it on and what to do if we let it slip.
As always, I love hearing from you, as it encourages me, and God often uses your comments to direct me in writing subsequent devotions.

Life Plan Devotion #63 [God's Armor--Belt of Truth]

     The Roman soldier of biblical times took special care of his armor. He knew that without it, he wouldn't stand a chance against his enemy. The same is true of the Christian soldier, who faces spiritual warfare and an enemy who will try to fight dirty. Take care to put on each piece of the Armor of God, every day.
     The first piece of armor you must put on is the Belt of Truth. When I first read the key passage in Ephesians (6:14), I found it odd that the belt of truth is listed first, until I studied about the pieces of a soldier's armor and discovered that his belt is what held the rest of the armor together. It held the breastplate in place, made sure the soldier's tunic stayed put (so as not to be tripped up during battle), and contained the sheath for the soldier's sword or dagger. The belt was crucial.
     For the believer, the Belt of Truth is crucial, if one is to be victorious in daily spiritual warfare with the enemy, Satan, and his minions. Ephesians 6:12 says that "our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, authorities, and the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms," and because we war against supernatural beings, we need supernatural assistance. God has provided that, with the full armor of God, and the foundation of it all is Truth.
     Truth must be present in two places, our heart and our mind. Holding anything else (especially malice and bitterness, which are falsehoods) puts a big dent in our armor and leaves us wide open to demonic attack. Our prayers of faith will be rendered ineffective if we do not wear the belt of truth.
     Truth in our heart means serving God with the right motives, and loving and serving others with sincerity. It is being honest, in everything we say and do. Truth in the mind means having clarity of sound doctrine. It is knowing what you believe, knowing that God's Word is absolute truth, knowing what Christ has done for you, and having that translate into godly living. Truth in our heart makes us sincere and teachable before God. Truth in the mind helps to strengthen our spirit (mind, will, and emotions) to serve the Lord. Truth in the heart and mind keeps us rooted and grounded in Christ and acting on what we know is true.
     Next time, we'll find out how to put on the Belt of Truth and what to do if we let it slip. Until then, pay attention to how well you're living a truthful life and whether or not you're allowing God's truth to hold your life together.

Ephesians 6:14
"Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist."

What this has to do with weight loss: Obesity has, at its very core, a foundation of lies. The obese person has fallen prey to the lie that he/she can eat anything wanted and not suffer the consequences. His/her life is full of excuses, which is the cleaned up version of lies. If we are ever going to be victorious in the area of weight loss, we must get honest about where we are and how we got there. We must drop all excuses, take responsibility, and determine to live an honest life, including our weight-loss journey and all that entails.

Prayer for Today:
"Heavenly Father, I desire to live an honest, truthful life. I want my heart to be full of sincerity and my mind to be full of truth, so much so that my daily walk mirrors that. May I harbor no falsehoods, for I know that if I do, I am open to attack from the enemy. Help me to daily choose to put on Your Armor, beginning with the Belt of Truth. I pray in the Name of Jesus who said, 'I am the...Truth.' Amen."

Go forth today, with the Belt of Truth on and evident in your life.

Blessings,
Mary

Dear Mary,
I'm so excited to have found your forum!!!!  I was just blogging and said that I felt lonely and that I needed someething else to do at night besides sit in front of the TV.  Oh, It's a long story.  Anyway, You do not have because you do not ask!  Praise the LORD!!!  I'm so excited to find such a well thought out devotion and other christian women.  I'm just so thankful. 
P.S. and that's the truth!
can't wait until tomorrows devotion, or do you have one every day?

Anyway, thanks again!
jewelsks

Hi, Jewel (assuming that's your name).
How wonderful that you found the Christianity forum. I know it looks like "my" forum, with so many posts belonging to me, but it was here long before I found it. :)  There are precious Christian women here. Not many posts, but if you ever need prayer, just post and you'll be prayed for, for sure. It would be nice to see more posts and get some discussions going.
Thank you for your kind words about the devotion. I post Monday through Friday and have been for about 6 months, I think. Can't believe it's been that long. God has sure used it to touch lives, and I'm so very grateful for that. He gets all the glory. As you can see, you can easily read the previous devotions, here on the Christianity forum. They're also on my profile blog.
Thanks again for reading and replying. Take care, and I look forward to hearing from you again.
Blessings,
Mary