Can God’s armor really give me peace?

September 25, 2013: Can God’s armor really give me peace? Please “Share” this new Blog Post for Precious Prodigal: http://wp.me/p1D8dQ-cX

Ephesians 6:15 “And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.”

John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

I don’t know any woman, including me, who doesn’t love shoes. However, I’ve never seen anyone whose love for shoes could compare with my daughter’s. She recently had an issue with her house that caused tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage. She was frustrated with the entire situation…the damage, the insurance adjuster, the contractors, not to mention the things destroyed that couldn’t be replaced. But the thing that really broke her heart and made her cry was losing all her shoes.

Shoes were even more important than that to the Roman soldier. His feet and legs had to be protected in battle, and his sandals were designed to do exactly that. They had strong straps, and the sole was hard leather with spikes in the bottom that would give him good traction and keep him from stumbling or falling on slippery ground. A broken shoe was an indication of defeat (Isaiah 5:27), so having the right shoes was critical. The next piece of our armor is having our “feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.” (Eph 6:15)

There is no gospel or “good news” better than the truth that we can have our sins forgiven through Jesus Christ. But that isn’t the only good news referred to in Ephesians 6. The good news referred to there is also peace, and it’s the kind of peace that will keep us from slipping or falling and being defeated even when the battle is long and hard. I believe there are two parts to that kind of peace.

The first is that we can have peace with God. While that peace certainly begins with receiving Christ, I’ve known a lot of Christians who were not at peace with God, with others or with themselves. Receiving Christ gives us a relationship with God that we didn’t have before. However, being at peace with God means keeping that relationship fresh and new and real. Relationships may start with a commitment, but they grow only when we work on them. That’s true about our relationship with God as well. If I spent half the time in prayer and meditation that I spend in trying to fix and control other people, my level of peace and serenity would probably grow proportionately.

The second part of the peace that will keep me from falling is peace in the midst of and regardless of my circumstances. That kind of peace is a promise from Christ, who cannot and did not lie when he said, “My peace I give unto you.” You see, peace is not necessarily the absence of conflict. And it’s a good thing it’s not, because there will be plenty of conflict if you love a prodigal. That kind of peace will only come with prayer and meditation and remembering God is in charge. That’s how I will get the best shoes ever…the shoes that are the “good news of peace” that only trusting Him will give me.

Challenge for Today: Can you, just for today, refuse to let your heart be troubled and instead put on those shoes…the ones that are the “good news of peace?”