[A]nd you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary. Revelation 2: 3.
Heavenly Father please help us to remain in the race. May we be inspired to do it all for Your name’s sake. This we ask in the matchless name of Jesus our Lord and Savior. Amen.
This is day three on this topic. So far we have discovered that prayer will give us the strength to persevere. Then we talked about what inspires us to remain in the race and persevere. Today we are going to bring back into the conversation, two pieces of the armor of salvation that were mentioned in our first devotional on this topic: the helmet of salvation and the preparation of the gospel of peace that covers our feet.
The helmet of salvation. In order to appreciate the importance of this piece of the armor, I believe, it is necessary to understand how, and for what purpose a helmet is used on the battlefield. Let us begin by defining a helmet. In a few words, a helmet is a gear usually made of a study material such as metal or plastic that is worn on the head to protect it.
If we give this a spiritual application, we find that all our decisions, good or bad, whether to continue in the race, or to give up, begin in the mind, that is, in the head. Immediately it becomes clear that in order for us to be able to decide to persevere, we must have minds that are functioning well, and are able to reason from cause to effect, among other things. Therefore, the head must be protected.
There is a rather interesting statement by Arlene R. Taylor PhD about the brain: “Your brain is your greatest resource—use it by design to help you achieve health, happiness, and success!” The following adds more light: “Applying what I’ve learned about the brain in general, and mine in particular, has improved my life in every way imaginable. I can now thrive by design!” (Emphasis provided).
Wow! What a powerful statement. What an even more powerful posibility! That knowing how our brains work, what triggers the different feelings, emotions, inspirations, disappointments, we can actually take charge of our lives, and thrive!
The mind, according to Webster’s New College Dictionary, third edition, is: “The human consciousness that originates in the brain and is manifested especially in thought, memory, perception, feeling, will or imagination.”
“The brain is the part of the central nervous system in the vertebrate cranium that is responsible for interpreting sensory impulses, coordination and control of bodily activities, and exercise of emotion and thought”
If we were to determine to become more conscious about what we allow to enter our minds, and what we are going to think about, perhaps we could strengthen our will, sharpen our perception, calm our feelings, enhance our memory, and control our imaginations, and thrive physically, emotionally, and spiritually!
We would learn how to preserve our joy, by choice, in all situations. No one could make us give up and fall out of the race, especially when we are surrendered to the perfect will of God. This brings to mind one of my favorite Bile verses, Isaiah 40: 31: “But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”
Tomorrow we will talk about the preparation of the gospel of peace for our feet.