Forty-seven days…

Recently my life has been a series of “close calls.”  Saturday was no exception.  We were travelling down a highway in Nashville, TN.  My husband was driving the vehicle, when out of nowhere a huge rock bounced off the road and within a millisecond hit our windshield.  I heard the smash and the next thing I knew I was screaming as the glass shattered all over us.

My husband is an incredibly calm person.  It’s a good thing he is, because I am not.  We balance each other.  Actually, I’m not sure how much I help in the balancing act.  I’m pretty sure he does just about all the work.  He soothes me with his strong gentle presence.  He kept repeating to me, “We are fine.  We’re alright.  It’s okay.”  I kept yelling, “We could have been killed!!!”  His soft answer was, “Let’s praise God that we are okay, and not think about what could have been.”

That is a huge lesson for me.  I easily become frightened.  My mind always goes where it shouldn’t.  I’m working overtime to overcome fear.  Considering the last couple of weeks I’ve had, I think God is trying to speed up the process for me.  In life, one minute everything can be fine and in a split second, your whole world can change.  Fiery darts always seem to fly straight at us.  Because of this, the armor of God is fundamental in the Christian walk.

Ephesians 6:10-18

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.  Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,  and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;  above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints (N.K.J.V.)

Every single one of us is in need of spiritual protection, and the perfect instruction for it is Ephesians 6.  I’ve been striving for what seems forever to apply this to my life.  We all have apps on our phones we can’t seem to live without.  The Bible is an application for our hearts.  We need to “install it.”  Put the word in and use it daily.  It has the power to transform our lives.  As soon as I could get my hands on the Bible today, I read the above passages.  My “heart app” is installed; I’m working on using it exactly as it was intended.

What about you?  Are you using the Bible as a daily application for your life?  If not, I urge you to begin today.