** Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. ** Ephesians 6:16
Fiery darts.
They burn, they hurt, they catch us off guard.
They come in the form of criticism, hateful self-talk, temptation to sin, the little voice in our head that condemns us for every mistake we make.
They are burning doubts, tempting us to give up and go back to the world.
They are discord, division, little lies, exaggerations, words taken out of context.
They are anything we say that begins with ‘I’ . Me. I want. I need. I am. I have to have. I, I, I.
They are insults we receive because we believe in and follow Christ. They are the jokes, laughter and digs of “good-humored” people.
They are health issues and physical limitations.
They are the thoughts of suicide.
They are the thoughts of self- importance.
How do we put out those fiery darts?
** Above all, taking the shield of faith** Ephesians 6:16a
Choosing to hand each of these problems over to God will calm our minds and hearts.
Deciding to trust the Lord with all the hurt and injustice in this world, and that He is our avenger, will help us have perspective.
Remembering that when this life is over for us, we will be in His Heaven with Him. Our Accuser will not.
Remembering that we are waiting for our happy ending. The lost are not.
Faith. Believing and trusting. Faith strong enough to put out fires.