Life Plan Devotion #78 [God's Armor--Shield of Faith, Part VI]

Hi, Everyone.
I didn't realize that the Shield of Faith would take so many days to cover, but God has been leading. Tomorrow, I'll post the Flashback Friday Devotion, and on Monday, we'll look at some practical ways to guarantee that you, as a believer, can extinguish every flaming weapon of the enemy. Unless God leads otherwise, that should be the last devotion covering the Shield of Faith, and then we'll go on to the last 2 pieces of the Armor of God.
As always, I love hearing from you. It blesses and encourages me, and it gives me food for thought and future topics.

Life Plan Devotion #78 [God's Armor--Shield of Faith, Part VI]

     Last time, we looked at what the Shield of Faith does. Today, let's look at Satan's "darts." In the verse, "Above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one" (Ephesians 6:16), the Greek word for "dart" is belos, and it means "a missile, i.e. spear or arrow." That tells me that it doesn't matter the size or type of weapon the enemy throws at us, with the Shield of Faith we will be able to stop every potentially harmful weapon.
     In thinking of my own life and that of other believers that I know, the 3 most commonly used "darts of the evil one" (New King James Version) are: 1) doubt, 2) discouragement, and 3) depression. Each flaming dart, arrow, or missile will come with a temptation, and the intention will be your defeat. Don't be afraid, just be aware.
     The Devil's first dart is doubt. The first words we hear from him, in the Garden of Eden, are "Did God really say...?" (Genesis 3:1, New Living Translation). The enemy will whisper words to you, to tempt you to either distrust or disbelieve God. Every word of the Evil One is a lie, but if your Shield of Faith isn't up and plastered with the truth of God's Word, you'll fall for those lies.
     The second dart of the devil is discouragement, and it is a fiery arrow. No matter how hard he tries, the Wicked One knows he cannot snatch you (a true believer) from the Father's Hand (John 10:29, NLT), so he will settle for the dis-ease of discouragement. The Adversary will orchestrate annoying occurrences on a daily basis, if he can get away with it. With your Shield of Faith, cushioned by the Word of God, nothing Satan brings to you will harm you.
     The third dart of the devil is depression, and it is definitely a flaming missile. This is the weapon he uses even with unbelievers. Satan hates every person. Why? Because each of us is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26), so no matter whom he looks at, he sees God. The Enemy's hatred is compounded, though, when a true believer is involved, and if he cannot steal your assurance of salvation and eternal future, he'll settle for stealing your present joy. With your Shield of Faith lifted up, fortified by every God-breathed Word that tells you who you are in Christ and every promise at your disposal, depression cannot enter your spirit (mind, will, and emotions).
     Satan's number one priority is to keep unbelievers in spiritual blindness and to make believers as miserable as possible. With faith, applying God's Word and under-girded with God's Grace, Satan will be the one taking the hit.

Isaiah 54:17
"'In that coming day no weapon turned against you will succeed. You will silence every voice raised up to accuse you. These benefits are enjoyed by the servants of the LORD; their vindication will come from Me. I, the LORD, have spoken!'" [NLT]

What this has to do with weight loss: The weight-loss journey is fraught with thoughts of doubt and times of discouragement, but for the true believer, it doesn't have to be that way. If you are a "servant of the LORD," you can claim the "benefits" of seeing that "no weapon turned against you will succeed" (i.e., no temptation will get you to succumb to it), "you will silence every voice raised up to accuse you" (i.e., you will quickly tell those nagging thoughts of doubt to BE QUIET!), and your "vindication will come" (i.e., you will be cleared from every accusation from the Accuser, and victory will be yours). God has spoken it. Do you believe it to be true for you?

Prayer for Today:
"Heavenly Father, thank You for the realization that I don't have to put up with the darts of doubt, discouragement, and depression that Satan tries to throw at me. I have the power of Your promises and Your presence to stop every arrow and quench every flame. I have all the FAITH I need for that, because For All I Trust Him. I trust You, Father, and Your Word. Help me to show that I do. In Jesus' Name. Amen."

Go forth today, and deflect every dart of the enemy with your Shield of Faith.

Blessings,
Mary