How to Get Strong And Stay Strong

Have you ever had one of those moments when something bad happens and you know that the right thing to do is run to God and lay your troubles down at His feet, but instead you decide to stress out? I have. I even had one of those moments recently.

Currently, I am living in a house that I rent from relatives. A few months ago my relatives told me that, in the near future, they really needed to sell the house, because my rent didn’t cover all the costs and the house was becoming too much of a financial burden. I couldn’t afford to pay more rent and I didn’t have anywhere else to go. Then, just for a moment I found myself thinking: I need to pray right now; I need to ask God for help.

One moment later… I freaked out and stress and tears took over.

We all know what I should have done: I should have prayed. I should have been stronger and run to God. I should have trusted in the Lord with all my heart instead of leaning on my own understanding (Proverbs 3:5). I know that, so I don’t want to get into what I should have done, but I want to get into the reason why I didn’t.

Why is it that sometimes we cannot find the strength to do what's best for us? To trust and obey?

The answer is spiritual health. Looking back at my situation, I can see that I was not spiritually healthy at that moment. Just like physical health, if you don’t invest in eating properly, resting and working out regularly, your spiritual health will deteriorate. When you’re unhealthy, you are not as strong as you should be. As a result, it’s harder to make the decisions you know are best for you, because it takes strength to make those decisions.

So how can you become spiritually healthy? How can you get so strong that when those moments come - when you have to decide whether you're going to fight the battle with or without God - you choose God time and time again?! The answer is in Ephesians 6:

Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. – Ephesians 6:13 (NLT)

So, if you've put on God’s armor before battle, you will come out victorious. Note that I said, before battle. If you read Ephesians 6:13 closely you will notice that Apostle Paul implies that you should put on God’s armor before the enemy strikes. Too often though, I find myself going into battle without my armor. This seemed fine at first, but once the enemy opened fire, the arrows and lances filled up the sky, and I realized that I needed my armor. Trust me, it’s so much harder to put on your armor in the midst of battle, because you have to act quickly in a very stressful situation.

What I’m trying to tell you, my beloved sisters, is that it’s difficult to work on your spiritual health when you're in the midst of a battle. That’s why Apostle Paul instructs us to get spiritually strong before we even see or hear trouble coming our way.

In Ephesians 6, Apostle Paul very beautifully describes what it means to wear God’s armor and I urge you to meditate on this part of Scripture. But for now, I want to focus on its core, on the foundation of this message in Ephesians 6:13.

An armor is very closely connected to a soldier - you cannot touch, let alone harm, the soldier without touching his armor first. The same goes for God’s armor. When we wear God’s armor the enemy cannot touch us without having to go past God first. That's why, if you want to be strong enough to do what's best for you, then you have to become very closely connected to God and stay connected to God.

But thanks be to God, who brings us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. - 1 Corinthians 15:57

Connect to God, my sweetest sisters. Find Him in your thoughts and prayers. Seek Him now and stay with Him! Full immersion in our Godly armor is what will get us through the difficult times. Constant connection to our Lord is what will bring us victory.

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