Good morning people who were created to flourish in God.

3 John 1:2 NIV Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.

Your health matters – spirit, soul and body.  

While there are some things that are beyond our control, including in our health, there are things that many of us can choose to do or not do that would improve our overall health – spirit, soul and body.

Why is this important?

We must ensure we are as holistically healthy as possible in order to finish the work that Father has given us to do.

Many times we steward our own health poorly – spirit, soul and body.

We go to a doctor when things are not as they should be. Even Jesus used the reference, “It’s the sick who need a doctor” (Matthew 9:12). But going to the doctor doesn’t make us healthier. We need to listen to their wisdom and start doing what they tell us to do (while this doesn’t always work out perfectly with human doctors, I believe you understand the principle that we are talking about here).

It’s time for a health check-up with the Great Physician who knows and loves us intimately.

God wants you to flourish in Him, not flounder in life. God wants you filled with His peace and joy, not riddled with anxiety, worry, guilt or shame. God wants you strong in Him, not weak and tossed backwards and forwards when life throws a curveball. And if we are healthy, this is possible.

How is your health – spirit, soul and body?

What is your next step forward into a healthier way of living?

Good morning people who enter more deeply into God through the power of prayer.

Ephesians 6:18 NIV And 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 Lord’s people.

While praying in the Spirit on all occasions might not be part of the listed armour of God that we read about in the preceding verses, it is a thread that ties them all together into a powerful package.

Our partnership with God in prayer flows through the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the word of God.

Prayer is a master key in the life of a believer.  

Prayer from a pure heart terrifies the devil.

Prayer that is in the Spirit is a weapon that thwarts the enemy’s plans.

Prayer that is not interrupted by the challenges of life, but rather, is strengthened and fortified through every dark valley changes outcomes.

Prayer that breaks free from mindless formulas and enters into the heart of God through the realm of the Spirit brings heaven to earth.

Prayer steps us beyond the natural into the supernatural, beyond the seen into the unseen, and beyond the possible into the impossible.

Prayer takes us into deep fellowship and covenant communion with the Great I Am; with the Lord God Almighty!

The most important thing you can do is pray.

How much will you use God’s master key of prayer today?

Good morning people who know how to wield the sword of the Spirit of God.

Ephesians 6:13-17 NIV Therefore put on the full armor 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. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

The sixth part of the armour of God that empowers us to stand firm is the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Oh, the indescribable power of wielding the sword of the Spirit against the enemy! It’s not just our sword, but it’s the sword of the Spirit.

God’s Word in our mouth has divine power to demolish strongholds!

2 Peter 1:3-4 NIV His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

Our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness is known through God’s Word. When we allow God’s Word to shape our theology of God, and then we live boldly by the truth of who God is, this is a powerful sword to fight with against the lies and attacks of the enemy!

He has given us His very great and precious promises, and these promises are found in God’s Word. When we read what God says and we believe what God says, miracles happen! When we take out the Word of God and declare, “It is written”, the impossible becomes possible!

We can participate in the divine nature through anchoring ourselves to the truth of God’s Word and using it as part of the provided armour of God. In no way will we ever become God, but this is not what participate in the divine nature means. God is God, and we are not! But we do become alive in Christ and enter into Him through the power of the Word of God and the Spirit of God!

Have you picked up the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God today?

Good morning people who have been delivered from sin and have been brought into life.

Ephesians 6:13-17 NIV Therefore put on the full armor 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. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

The fifth part of the armour of God that empowers us to stand firm is the helmet of salvation.

We can’t save ourselves. Our good works are insufficient. We need God. We are saved by God’s grace through our faith. We are saved by the salvation of God; the deliverance of God from the power of the enemy.

So much of the armour of God is simply a bold declaration of our reality in Christ Jesus! And each piece is interconnected with the other pieces. The helmet of salvation is beautifully connected to the gospel of peace.

When the enemy hurls attacks on your mind and tells you that you are not good enough because of what you have done, we need to take up the helmet of salvation. We need to declare the truth according to the following Scriptures:

Ephesians 2:8-9 NIV For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. 

Romans 10:9 NIV If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 

Have you put the helmet of God’s salvation on today?

Good morning people whose confidence is always in the One who is trustworthy.

Ephesians 6:13-16 NIV Therefore put on the full armor 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. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

The fourth part of the armour of God that empowers us to stand firm is the shield of faith.

Remember, this is the armour of God; it’s God’s truth, God’s righteousness and God’s peace. Therefore, it must be God’s faith. This is a game changer!

Yes, we must believe (have faith in) God’s Word, but as a foundation, it is God’s Word that is our shield, and it is God’s Word that stirs and ignites our faith.

Proverbs 30:5 NIV Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.

Romans 10:17 NIV Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.

God Himself is trustworthy. He never fails, and what He declares will come to pass. When Jesus spoke a word of healing, people were healed. Jesus had an absolute conviction (the essence of faith) in what His Father was doing.  

When the enemy fires flaming arrows of doubt, fear, worry, or temptation of any description at us, the power of “It is written” is a shield of defence that we can rely on. Getting into an argument with the enemy is not a great strategy, but rebuking him upon the foundation of God’s Word is an incredible shield of faith!

We believe because God has said!

Have you put the shield of God’s faith on today?

Watch episode #28 – ‘Bible Meditation: Matthew 6:10’