The Belt of Truth

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

I read this book by Rebecca Brown called, “He came to set the captives free.”  It is free on YouTube if you want to listen to it.  I would warn you though, it is quite difficult to listen to . . . the evil that her friend, Elaine, got into and came out of, runs deeper than any of us could imagine.  The Bible calls Satan the “prince of the power of the air,” (Ephesians 2:2) and the “god of this age.” (2 Corinthians 4:4).  

Now, I don’t like giving the devil too much credit because of his defeated status.  However, after reading the book, I don’t believe I’ve been giving him enough credit.  I believe the devil wants you to think he is either in everything, or he is in nothing . . . he doesn’t care either way.  Satan is not God’s opposite; at best he is an angel’s opposite like Gabriel or Michael.  Satan was a created being just like the rest of us.  He has zero power to create.  Unfortunately, he can take God’s creation and corrupt it . . . and he does.

For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been praying the armor of God on my life.  In the book, Elaine discovered this armor for the first time.  She asked God, “How often should I put this on?”  She felt the Spirit say, “Once every 24 hours should be sufficient.”  It got me seriously thinking about how many days I walk in this world without this spiritual armor.  No wonder I’ve come home so pummeled so often.  

The first thing I pray is, “Lord, I put on the belt of truth . . . Your Word is truth!”  At the foundation of it all, I believe that the Bible is the Word of the Lord.  It shows me how to live, not by feelings, but by what it says.  Christians are leaving the faith in droves because they don’t like what the Bible says.  I can at least respect that, but I can’t respect changing or ignoring what the Bible says and still calling yourself a Christian.

Don’t get me wrong, I sin more often than I’d like to admit.  When I do, I don’t simply think, “Well God just needs to forgive this sin for the rest of my life because He made me, and therefore made me to enjoy this sin, it is really His fault for making me this way.”  I hated giving up my lying . . . for the longest time, I didn’t have anything to add to a conversation.  I hated giving up my sexual immorality, my girlfriend at the time dumped me for bringing up the conversation that God wasn’t pleased with our behavior.  I hated giving up pornographic materials . . . I got rid of them all.  But even now, do you think that stuff doesn’t show up in unsuspecting (and not so unsuspecting) places and try to lure me back?  The belt of truth shows me the hook that is attached. 

When I have the belt of truth around the core of my body, I recognize sin for what it is and I flee, or at the very least ask God to help me stand my ground for Him.  Even though I hated giving up my sin at the time, I could not be more grateful to God as I sit here this morning.  He loved me too much to let sin devour me.

Lord, it is so easy to get comfortable in this life.  There is so much sin willing to occupy our time and numb our spirits.  If we don’t know Your Word, we can’t rightly divide right and wrong.  Thank You for helping me read through Your Word many times.  Thank You for leading me, guiding me, and protecting me like You have.  Please help me stay on the narrow path.  May I not turn to the left or to the right.  Amen.