Ready To Arm.

Recently, my sister and her family moved into a new house. It would appear, what with my time watching HGTV, that I’m fascinated with taking a look inside someone’s home.

Shiplap? Yes, please.

We walked through their updated kitchen and marveled at the large floor-to-ceiling windows. She has an actual laundry room now, so you can’t tell her anything. When you look up, you can’t help but oooohh and aaaah at the all-new modern light fixtures. And the bedrooms? If I was physically capable of doing a backflip, those gymnastic size rooms would have been the perfect place to get my Simone Biles’ on.

But surprisingly, it wasn’t the light fixtures or the laundry room that caught my eye. Instead, it was the small, rectangular box that hung from the wall.

The alarm system.

I know, I know. Between a large kitchen island and a security system, it should really be no competition.

But my version of an “alarm system” is a very old, very deaf Black Lab. She’s cute and all, but she will leave us to die at the slightest hint of danger.

So I was interested to know how this little piece of technology worked. My sister walked me through it, taking me through the steps of how to arm and disarm. With just a few taps here and a couple of swipes there, she turned their home into a heavily guarded, invisible fortress.

It amazes me, what with all of the different types of home monitoring technologies available, that there are still burglars and robberies.

If an intruder had the audacity to attempt a break-in today, they would get lit up like Kevin McAllister’s Christmas tree. Lights would flash, alarms would sound, the security company would be immediately notified, and the local authorities – if needed – would be dispatched. I imagine most robbers would jump ship(lap) before ever stepping foot inside the home.

Of course, that only works if you actually arm the system.

So what happens when you forget?

Life seems to have a way of getting busy, people seem to have a way of forgetting and you forget to arm the system. No biggie, right?

Well what if, when you got home, there’s a man you don’t know sitting on your couch. He’s drinking from your favorite coffee mug and has made himself quite cozy.

You would knock that cup right out of his hand and *kindly* tell him to leave, amirite?

But what if he doesn’t leave? Your own strength, words and power are no match for him. This guy is bold and doesn’t respond to your authority. Besides, he didn’t come to take your TV or pinch your pearls – that’s small potatoes. No, this intruder came with a bigger goal in mind.

Wreak havoc on everything.

So what do you do?

You arm yourself and prepare for battle — that’s what you do.

We have an adversary, my friends. This is the same foe that lied to Adam and Eve, destroyed Job’s life and tempted Jesus in the wilderness. This enemy is skillful in the art of deceit and has come to steal our joy, kill our spirit and destroy our lives.

And as followers of Jesus, we have the biggest target on our backs.

But the good news? As followers of Jesus, we have also been given the weapons required to get him out of our house.

Ephesians 6 speaks on the Armor of God and drawing from a strength that’s not our own.

So how do we do that?

Well, when the enemy tries to tell you who you are, pull out that belt of truth and whip him like he stole something. We can either take our Father in Heaven at His word, as He cannot lie, or we can believe the founding father of lies. (Num. 23:19 NKJV | John 8:44 NKJV)

When he attempts to inundate you with accusations, protect your heart by putting on that breastplate of righteousness. Remember that our blameless Savior made us righteous, and our accuser will be thrown down. (2 Cor. 5:21 NKJV | Rev. 12:10 NLT)

When he seeks to disrupt your life, lace up those shoes of the gospel of peace and stand firm in this truth – Jesus left us His gift of peace and our adversary came to devour us. (John 14:27 NKJV | 1 Peter 5:8 ESV).

When he tries to throw everything and the kitchen sink at you, pick up that shield of faith and send those fiery arrows down the garbage disposal. Our gracious God has filled us with faith, while the enemy seeks to snatch what was sown in our hearts. (1 Tim. 1:14 NLT | Matt. 13:19 NKJV)

When he questions your freedom, protect your mind with the helmet of salvation. Our testimony is clear – if we have the Son, we have eternal life, while the evil one will soon be crushed under our feet. (1 John 5:13 NLT | Rom. 16:20 NIV)

And when he gets so close to you that you can see the sweat rolling from his brow, pick up the sword of the Spirit to defend yourself and advance to attack. The Word is living and active and we are conquerors. (Heb. 4:12 NKJV | Rom. 8:37 NKJV)

So lock it down, friends. Be ready to arm at all times and get that thief out of your house.