How Strong is YOUR Shield?

"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil 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 firm.  Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.  In all circumstances, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. 

(Ephesians 6:10-17)

At the beginning of our Armor of God series, I placed a poster of a construction board boy at the front of the room.  He was wearing nothing but his skivvies.   

"Let's pretend there's a war going on.  Do ya'll think this guy is ready for battle?" I asked the class.  

The response was unanimous, a ringing "No way!"

"Well, what is missing?" I probed further. 

Aside from a few wise cracks about how I had forgotten to draw him a face and how he had no hair, the responses were right on.  "He is naked!" "He'll get killed instantly." "Where is his gun?" "He's tiny!" 

After reading the passage from Galatians, we discussed the reality of war in our world today.  Of course, we mentioned the very real physical wars going on - Syria, Libya, southern - but more than that, we talked about spiritual warfare.  The devil is constantly fighting to pull our attention and affection away from our God.  His weapons are often less tangible than those used in physical warfare but far more deadly.  How can we fight his attacks?  How do they come?  

In this passage from Ephesians, Paul uses the armor of a Roman soldier to convey the nature and make-up of God's armor.  While I was gone, Miss Audrey did a wonderful job of teaching on the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, and the shoes of the Gospel of peace.  (A big thank you to her and all the other volunteers for taking care of everything while I was out fundraising! Ya'll are the best!)

This week, it was all about the shield of faith.  Why does Paul use a shield for faith, you may wonder?  Well, to answer that question, we must first look at what faith is.  Hebrews 11:1 says, "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not yet seen." Faith is the trust that God will do what He has promised to do.  It is a belief in God's omnipotence even when He is not fully visible to us.  

Satan continually attempts to introduce doubt and fear into our lives.  He preys on our weaknesses and criticizes our actions.  When we respond in faith, these attempts are rendered completely ineffective.  Our faith reminds us that no matter the circumstance, no matter the obstacle or difficulty, the Lord will reign victorious.   

So why the shield?  Don't the other pieces of armor protect us too?  

Yes.  However, the shield is the first line of defense.  Without it, the soldier takes a beating.  A shield moves to cover our weakness.  It is effective even when the soldier does not anticipate the blow, when he does not see the arrow flying in His direction.  Faith moves to compensate for our weaknesses and to cover what we cannot foresee, as a shield protects the soldier from unexpected attacks and acts to supplement his lack of strength.  When we lack faith, the attack penetrates our protective covering and we take the hit.  

To illustrate the effect that our faith can have on our defense, the Brewer ladies were chosen to take up three different shields representing three different levels of faith:

Marleigh's shield, a tennis racket, represented a "hole-y" (not to be confused with holy) faith.  A person with this kind of faith trusts God in some ways but not in others.  They may believe that God loves them but not believe that He will protect them from harm or that He has a plan for their life and will bring it to fulfillment.

Bella's shield, a paper plate, represented a weak and superficial faith.  This kind of faith may appear to be strong when everything is going well; however, when faced with challenges, it breaks down and the person falls to Satan's attacks.  

Lily chose for her shield, a large, dirty garbage can lid.  This represented a strong, enduring faith - one that had stood the test of time.  A person with this type of faith trusts that God is in control no matter the situation and turns to Him in times of trouble.  

Check out these photos to see how each one held up to the enemy's attacks. 

Don't worry, ya'll!  Lily didn't stay dry for long.  After wrapping up with a short recap and prayer, an all-out kid vs. volunteer water balloon fight ensued.  No one was safe from that battle.  And on a 95 degree day, who would want to be?  

It's always a splash at Kids Community!  

Until next week, stay cool everyone.  And remember that the Lord will keep you, no matter the circumstances.