“To be a Christian is to be a warrior… [you] must not expect to find ease in this world: it is a battlefield.” – Charles H. Spurgeon

As I’m writing this blog, the Stay-at-Home order has just been extended another two weeks. It reminded me of a conversation I was having with some students and young adults in our church right after the last two-week extension. We were talking about how to use the time that we now have greater control over in this period of home quarantining. One of the students was commenting that “while we have greater control over our schedules now, it’s not about us. It’s still about things beyond us.” This reminded me of the passage in Ephesians 6 where Paul is talking about the Armor of God – and about the warriors to whom they were given.

The picture that we have there is one of a soldier, who knows that the day of battle is coming (verse 13) and is using the downtime that he has to prepare his armor, weapons, and himself for the time when he will be called upon to engage in battle with the enemy.

In a similar way, many of us have this time (who knows exactly how long) to prepare our own armor, to get better at using the shield, sword, and other tools that we’ve been given for the purposes of engaging the world around us on behalf of our Commander – Jesus. Perhaps one of these following ideas would be a helpful next step for you in becoming a more effective warrior during this downtime…

Remember Who You Are

2 Timothy 2:4 says, “No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.” As followers of Jesus, each of us was rescued and recruited. We were rescued from the enslaver’s camp and recruited to join with God as he fights to rescue all those still in captivity. It’s not that “civilian pursuits” are wrong, it’s just that to make them the focus of our lives is to forget our true identity and therefore, the purpose of our lives. We are now Rescuing Warriors! Do you see yourself that way?

Take Inventory

What is the Belt of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, the Sword of the Spirit, etc? Do you know what to do with each of them, and when to use them? They’ve been given to us both for us to survive and have an impact in the supernatural war we’ve been recruited to engage in. Take some time to dig deeper and better understand what these core truths represent, and why they’ve been given to us.

Evaluate Your Readiness

Perhaps you’ve been in the Rescuer’s camp for a while, and understand what these tools are and how they were meant to be used. But, have you used them for their intended purpose recently? What is the condition of your equipment? Is it rusty, dented, dull? Consider, where you can invest time to revitalize the Shield of Faith or the Helmet of Salvation or any of the others that you haven’t used in a while. Remember, they’ve been given to us for a purpose! And don’t forget Ephesians 6:12!

In truth, the “battlefield” is all around us, and we could be thrown into a battle at any time. How we choose to use this downtime from our normal schedules can make all the difference to ensure we are “standing firm” on the other side. Let’s be faithful, warriors!