By Josie Siler

In July there was a heartwarming story going around about a little boy who asked a Marine to run with him after getting separated from his group during a 5K. The Marine not only finished the race with the boy, but he “urged him on when the boy wanted to give up and ensured that the boy saw the course to completion where he was reunited with his party.” You can read the full story and see a photo here: http://lite987.com/soldier-boy-5k/

As impressed as I am with a little boy who can run a 5K, I’m also struck by the kindness of the Marine who put his own desire to beat his friends aside to make sure this boy finished the race.  We all need a little help sometimes!

We just finished a study of the spiritual armor given to us by God. Let me ask you something: When you think about yourself fighting a spiritual battle do you imagine yourself fighting alone? I did. I had this picture in my head of myself decked out in my belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness and shoes fitted with the readiness of the gospel of peace as I hold the shield of faith - extinguishing every fiery dart the devil throws my way. The helmet of salvation is on my head and I’m wielding the sword of the Spirit with incredible agility. All the while I’m praying, asking God to help me in the battle. It’s me and an army of angels fighting against the rulers, authorities, cosmic powers, and spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Then I read the second half of Ephesians 6:18. Reading in The Message, we are told to, “Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.” The picture in my head just changed. I’m not the only one in this battle. You’re not the only one in this battle. We’re in it together. We are responsible for each other.

Not everyone chooses to take on this responsibility. However, if we do pray for each other and keep each other’s spirits up, we’ll all make it! Some of us will get there slower than we intended, like the kind Marine. Others will be like the boy who asked for help. We’ll make it only because others have decided to take the time to help and encourage us all the way to the finish line.

Why is it so important to make it to the finish line? The finish line is eternal life with our Heavenly Father. That’s important, friends. Let’s help each other fight the good fight and finish the race. I’m running with you!

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of His return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to His appearing.” –2 Timothy 4:7-8, MSG

© September 4, 2013

By Josie Siler

Do you ever have trouble communicating with others? Do people have difficulty grasping what you are saying? I’m fairly confident you answered yes to at least one of those questions. Communication is difficult. Communicating while living with a chronic illness is even more difficult. We struggle to find the words to explain how we feel or why we can’t do something. We struggle to remember what we need to talk to our doctor(s) about. We live in a “brain foggy” world and find it difficult to understand what’s going on around us. We hear the “womp, womp, womp” of adult voices from Charlie Brown instead of words, as we give others the blank stare of confusion.

We all know that communication, as difficult as it may be, is important. In fact, it’s a crucial part of the spiritual armor we’ve been talking about. Most people say there is only one offensive weapon as part of our spiritual armor – the sword of the Spirit that we talked about last week. However, I believe there are two offensive weapons. In the same breath as Paul tells us to “take up the shield of faith…and take the helmet of salvation…and the sword of the Spirit” he finishes the sentence with “…praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication (Ephesians 6:18a).”

Prayer is an incredible offensive weapon; it is our lifeline to God. It’s what sustains us, encourages us, humbles us, and connects us to our Maker. In prayer, we praise the Lord, giving glory and reverence to our God. If you’re intimidated by the thought of praying, let me ease your fears. Prayer is simply talking to God. Yes, it’s an incredible privilege and a holy experience, but God wants us to come to Him. He wants us to talk to Him about not just how amazing He is (though we need to do that too), but about our pain and struggles as well. He wants us to ask Him for help. Like any good father, our Heavenly Father loves to give good gifts to His children. Matthew 7:7-11 (MSG) confirms this.

Sometimes life hurts too much to know what to pray. We don’t understand what’s happening and have no idea what to say to God. In that case, God offers us help. “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words (Romans 8:28, ESV).”

Prayer is crucial in spiritual warfare. Do you remember a couple months ago when we first started talking about the spiritual armor God gives us? In Ephesians 6:10-12 (ESV) the Apostle Paul tells us to...

There is a spiritual battle going on in the heavenly realms and it affects us here on earth. The battle is for our hearts, for our souls. When we cry out to God and ask for His help, He will help us.

My favorite Psalm is Psalm 34. Verses 4-8 say…

That’s why I believe prayer is the second offensive weapon in our spiritual armor. When we pray, the Lord saves us. He sends His angels to encamp around us and to fight for us. He is so good, and if we take refuge in Him, we are the most blessed of all His creation.

Today I challenge you to put on the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness. Shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; take up the shield of faith and put on the helmet of salvation. Grasp the sword of the Spirit and pray at all times. If you do this, you will be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might – and you will stand against the schemes of the devil. Shout the battle cry! Victory is yours for the taking!

© August 29, 2013

By Josie Siler

“Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.” I’m guessing most of you will recognize this line immediately. If not, you’ve been deprived! It is a classic line in the movie The Princess Bride, one of the most quoted movies ever made. My brother and I watched it so many times when we were kids that we can quote almost the entire movie. In the movie, Inigo Montoya is someone who has practiced sword fighting almost his entire life for the sole purpose of exacting revenge on the six fingered man who killed his father. I can’t help but think of this movie as I prepare to write to you about the sword of the Spirit.

Ephesians 6:17 tells us to “…take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Today, we pick up our first offensive weapon. It’s the sword of the Spirit, which the Bible clearly tells us is the word of God. Why would the word of God (aka: the Bible) be called the sword of the Spirit? The sword that Paul is most likely thinking about here is the short stabbing sword the Romans used during battle. It’s a small sword, but it can inflict great wounds because it’s easy to wield and accurate. (Information found in video below.) When we are familiar with God’s Word, we’ll know how to use it accurately to fight off the attacks of the evil one.

If you’re having a foggy brain day, this may all seem a little much to take in, so let me give you an example. Let’s say you woke up this morning and it feels like you were run over in your sleep by a Mac truck. You’re in pain, you’re exhausted from another night of restless sleep, you haven’t bathed in four days, and it’s been three months since you were last able to attend church. It’s moments like this when we become vulnerable to attacks from the evil one (aka: Satan). At first, the attack seems small, insignificant, not worth the energy to fight him off. He starts to feed you half-truths that build to full-fledged lies. The more discouraged you get, the stronger the attack becomes. Before you know it, you’re under a full-fledged assault. 

What can you do? You try using your defensive weapons. You put on your belt of truth and try to remember what God says about you. You put on your breastplate of righteousness and remember that you are in right standing before God because Jesus died for your sins. That reminds you that you are saved and you put on your helmet of salvation. Finally, you find the strength to pick up the shield of faith. You trust in God’s goodness and you have faith He will come to your rescue. Before you know it, you’re wielding your shield like a highly skilled Roman soldier. You’re blocking arrows and darts and even mortars with your shield. However, the attack is escalating. You need something more. That’s when you remember the sword of the Spirit. You ask the Holy Spirit to remind you of Scripture. You remember what we’ve talked about in Ephesians 1-3 and recount who you are in Christ Jesus. You get out your Bible and start reading. With each word you read you hear a gasp and a stumble. You realize you’ve been wielding the sword with the skill of Inigo Montoya. And before you know it, you’ve won the battle with the help of God’s Word. You cry out to God (like we’ll talk about more next week) in prayer and ask Him to fight with you and for you. Your bad day turns into a fantastic day because you were an overcomer. 

You were victorious because you are a child of God who is trained well for battle. Life on this earth is hard; it’s not the way it was meant to be. Life as a chronically ill person is even more difficult. We have to fight for our rights, we fight for medication, we fight for dignity, we fight for equality, and we fight for understanding and compassion. We are in the fight of our lives, both physically and spiritually. 

However, if we rely on God and use the weapons He has given us, WE WILL BE overcomers!

“The same Man, the Great I Am. The One who overcame death. Is living inside of you. So just hold tight, fix your eyes. On the one who holds your life. There's nothing He can't do. He's telling you. You're an overcomer. Stay in the fight ‘til the final round. You're not going under. ‘Cause God is holding you right now. You might be down for a moment. Feeling like it's hopeless. That's when He reminds you. That you're an overcomer. You're an overcomer.” –Overcomer by Mandisa

© August 20, 2013

By Josie Siler

What would you say if I told you I ride a Harley Davidson Nightster Motorcycle? Unfortunately, I can’t see your face right now; I love the looks on people’s faces when they find that out! Granted, I don’t get to ride very much because of my health. In fact, I’m sad to say that I haven’t driven it at all this year. However, when I do go for a drive I make sure that I am well-protected. I always put my leather coat and chaps on, even if it’s hot out. I have my riding boots with a nice firm toe for shifting and soles with great traction so I don’t dump the bike when I stop. I wear either full finger or half finger gloves, depending on the weather and most importantly I put on my full face helmet to protect my noggin. I’m sure you’ve seen people driving motorcycles on the interstate with nothing on but a pair of shorts and flip flops. The thought of what would happen to them if they got in an accident makes me cringe. I, for one, would like to keep my skin fully intact, thank you very much!

Now that you know my riding history, you can appreciate this billboard I saw in North Africa several years ago. One of my friends took this picture, and even if you can’t read Arabic, the message is clear. Helmets are a very good thing!

Today I want to talk to you about the helmet of salvation. This very special helmet is part of the spiritual armor that God gives us in Ephesians chapter six. The beginning of verse 17 tells us to “…take the helmet of salvation….” I’m fairly certain that when the Apostle Paul wrote to the people of Ephesus and told them to take the helmet of salvation it was an active term. They weren’t supposed to just pick it up and walk around with it under their arms. Like a motorcycle helmet, it does no good strapped to the back of the bike; it’s only useful if you put it on your head and securely fasten it.

We know why motorcycle helmets are so valuable, but what’s the value of the helmet of salvation? Let’s think this through. A helmet protects your head. It keeps it from being physically harmed in case of an accident. It withstands forceful impacts and, if made well, takes the beating that our head would have taken, and is destroyed in the process.

Our spiritual helmet does the same thing on a spiritual level. Remember, it is the helmet of salvation. Salvation comes to us when we believe in the saving work of Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection from the dead. This is what protects our head – our mind! Because it’s part of our spiritual armor, it is what protects us when we are attacked by Satan. One of Satan’s favorite things to attack is our minds. He is constantly whispering lies that make us doubt what God has said. When we’re wearing our helmet of salvation, when we are constantly aware that Jesus died in our place and that we are right before God because of Him, the lies of Satan can’t get to us. We are protected by the blood of Jesus.

Just as a motorcycle helmet is destroyed when it saves a rider’s life, so Jesus was destroyed by saving our lives. The good news is the grave could not hold Him. He rose from the dead, conquering sin and death once and for all. He sits at the right hand of God and He intercedes on our behalf. Romans 8:33-24 confirms this. “Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.”

We’ve all heard the lies that Satan likes to tell us. Lies about our worth, our identity, our value, our inability to contribute to society, the list could go on. Next time you hear one of those lies, make sure your helmet of salvation is on to protect you from those lies. Remember your salvation. Remember the work that Jesus has already done to bring us freedom.

Every rider has a decision to make before getting on their bike. We can decide to protect ourselves by wearing a helmet or we can choose to risk it and let the wind blow through our hair. You have that same decision to make. You can choose to put the helmet of salvation on or you can choose to risk it and leave yourself unprotected. What will you choose today?

“But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” –1 Thessalonians 5:8-11, NLT

© July 31, 2013

By Josie Siler

I have a confession to make. I like war movies. Before you think I’m a horrible person and an even more horrible Christian for enjoying movies where people kill each other, let me explain. War movies are epic battles between good and evil, light and darkness. It’s no coincidence that in old cowboy movies the good guy always wore the white hat and the bad guy wore the black hat. It is thrilling to watch the battle play out, and in the end, have good conquer evil. These movies tug on our emotions because we all want to be free from something. We want to have victory and see justice win and evil put in its place of shame and defeat.

I think the reason I like war movies so much is because it reminds me of the spiritual battle that is raging in the heavenly realms. It reminds me that good ultimately will overtake evil once and for all in the end. It reminds me that I too have something to fight for. We all do. In Ephesians 6, we find everything we need for the battle at hand. We are given the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, and shoes to shod our feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace.

God has also given us the shield of faith. Ephesians 6:16 says, “In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one….” Flaming darts can also be translated as javelin, pointed weapon, arrow, or missile. This is some serious ammunition the Devil is throwing at us. However, we are protected by our shield of faith.

Faith can be difficult, especially when we are under attack. However, even a small amount of faith can do great things. Jesus tells His disciples in Matthew 17:20 “…For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.” Mustard seeds are incredibly small, yet they grow to good-sized trees. All we need is a little bit of faith to start with and God will make it grow.

When the Devil attacks, we hold up our shield of faith and his flaming arrows are extinguished. We do this by remembering who God is and why we love Him. We have faith not in ourselves, but in the God of all creation who sent His Son to be a ransom for our sins. It is this God in whom we have faith. It is this God we ask God to help us.  Lysa TerKeurst puts it well when she says…

Like any battle, victory sometimes comes in numbers. In times when our faith is small God gives us the faith of friends to help us through. Roman soldiers had this down to a science. Even their armor was designed to work as one.

When the Roman army went into battle they developed a strategy called, ’Testudo’ (it became known as the, ‘Tortoise’). The command, ‘As One’ was given and each soldier would stand with his shield overlapping the shield of the soldier next to him. Thus producing a near impregnable unit and a battle formation that crushed the front lines of the enemy forcing them to break rank; this unity of locking shields as one won many battles. -Peter Wilson¹

When you are being attacked by the Devil, you don’t have to fight alone. If Roman soldiers were “as one” how much more are those of us who are one in Christ? “And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:27-28).” In unity we will have victory. By faith we will extinguish every flaming missile the Devil sends our way.

If you are being attacked by the Devil, hold up your shield of faith. Ask God to protect and defend you. Call, email, or text a friend and let them know you need help fighting the good fight today. You are an overcomer. Victory is yours because victory is the Lord’s!

“For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.” -1 John 5:4

© July 17, 2013

¹http://peterwilsonministries.org/blog/?p=559

By Josie Siler

“One Size Fits All” is a label that I’ve learned to despise. It’s not true. It’s not even close to being true. Imagine this: you find the perfect hat. It’s your favorite color, a shape that looks good on you and it’s on sale for 75% off. Excitedly you try it on and quickly realize it’s much too big for you. You take it off, check the size and see those words, “One Size Fits All.” I have seen these words attached to hats, rings, bracelets, even shirts and slippers! I know I’m not the norm. I’m tiny. My ring finger is a 3½ …if it’s hot out and my fingers are swollen! I have been known to shop the kids section when I’m looking for those One Size Fits All items. However, recently I have made a discovery.

What would you say if I told you that I have found a pair of shoes, sandals really, that truly are One Size Fits All? These shoes fit anyone…men, women, kids…from little kids to Big and Tall, they’ll fit. These shoes are part of our spiritual armor that we put on every day. We read about this incredible piece of footwear in Ephesians 6:15 (ESV) “…as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.”

I have to admit that of all the pieces of our spiritual armor it is the shoes that I have been the most confused about. What does it mean to put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace? Over the years, I have thought it meant to be ready to share the gospel with others. Recently, I have learned that is so much more than that; it is something very encouraging to those of us who are chronically ill.

The New American Standard version of the Bible, even though very close to the English Standard Version, presents us with a more literal translation of this verse. It reads, “and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace.” The Greek word translated “shod” means to put on or bind on sandals, or more accurately, the military sandals that Paul was used to seeing while he was imprisoned.

That leaves us with the question, what do these military sandals we just put on represent? Ephesians 6:15 tells us that we shod our feet “with the preparation of the gospel of peace.” Jamieson and Fausset suggest this is a “preparedness to do and suffer all that God wills; readiness for march, as a Christian soldier. The ‘peace’ within forms a beautiful contrast to the raging of the outward conflict.”[1]

As a person who suffers from chronic illness, I am deeply encouraged by this piece of spiritual armor. I am willing to suffer for the sake of Christ. All good soldiers suffer physically. In this battle called life we get knocked down, we get hurt, and we suffer greatly. But like any good soldier, we don’t stay down. We get up to fight again.

We fight physical illness, but we also fight “against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12).” Outwardly our lives are a raging battle, but inside we have an incredible peace that comes from God Himself. We know that in the end we will experience victory because Jesus experienced victory when He overcame death and rose from the grave. He died for our sins and even though we have many things to fight against in this world, we are free in Christ and know that our victory is sure.

I am reminded of the hymn Eugene Bartlett wrote in 1939, “Victory in Jesus.” Eugene wrote this song two years before he died and it was the last hymn he wrote. He penned these words after a serious stroke that left him very ill, confined to one room and unable to talk. It took him almost a month to write this song, as he was slowly dying. In the midst of his pain and weakness he boldly proclaimed that he had victory in Christ. (History of the song found here: http://youtu.be/AISwG6fMWBk) 

You can listen to “Victory in Jesus” by watching the lyric video below. Remember, you have victory in Christ. Put on your One Size Fits All sandals and get ready to fight!

[1] Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Eph 6:15). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

© July 3, 2013

By Josie Siler

I’m a little OCD. I don’t have the disorder, but I do have obsessive compulsive tendencies. I prefer to call it my routine! When I was attending Seminary, I lived in a house with four other girls. One night as I was getting ready for bed, my roommate (who just so happened to be getting a clinical counseling degree) started to list off everything I was doing to get ready for bed one step before I did it. I hadn’t even realized I had a routine, but she had it down! She knew what each of my next steps were before I took them. Hmmm, I wonder what else she observed about me…I didn’t ask…sometimes it’s better not to know! Sickness has thrown a wrench in my routines, however there are certain things that I always do in a specific order.

Think about your morning routine. What do you do as soon as you wake up? Do you take your medication before you get out of bed and rest until they start kicking in? Maybe you take them as you eat breakfast. Do you get dressed right away or stay in your pj’s as long as possible? As you’re thinking about your morning routine, let me ask you this…

Have you put on your armor today? Is putting on your spiritual armor a part of your routine? We talked about putting on the belt of truth. We need this belt not only to hold everything in place, but to make sure that the voice we listen to is the voice of truth, the voice of God. In order to stand against the attacks of the evil one, which we will undoubtedly face today, we must put on not only the belt of truth, but the breastplate of righteousness. Ephesians 6:14 commands us to, “Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness.”

The breastplate of righteousness is an interesting piece of armor. The Bible tells us that we can’t achieve righteousness on our own. “As the Scriptures say, ‘No one is righteous—not even one (Romans 3:10, NLT).’”This may seem hopeless, but thankfully for us, God sent His very own Son, Jesus, to die on a cross as payment for our sins. “We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when He freed us from the penalty for our sins (Romans 3:22-24).”

When we put on the breastplate of righteousness, we are really putting on Jesus! It is through Him and Him alone that we can be found righteous. When we have Jesus protecting our heart, the very core of our body, we don’t need to be afraid of what may come at us in this life. Jesus is our protector, our vindicator, and our Savior. He is all we need, and we sure do need Him! 

When we associate something new with something that is already part of our routine, it makes it easier to remember. That being said, this week let’s try something. Every morning when we take our medications, let’s put on the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness and see what happens. Remember friends, there’s an epic battle raging and we’re a part of it. So tell me, have you put on Jesus today?

“Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” –Romans 5:3-6, ESV

© June 16, 2013

By Josie Siler

Belts are my friends. They have a very specific job to do and they do it well…most of them anyway. My favorite belt is a Harley Davidson leather belt that is black on one side and brown on the other. That’s right folks, a reversible belt! I wear it almost every day, and you can tell. It’s starting to fall apart, and I don’t know if I will ever find another belt as perfect as that one.

When I read the first part of Ephesians 6:14, “Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth…” I think of my perfect belt. I can stand confidently, knowing that my belt is going to hold my pants where they belong. After I finish laughing at myself, I move on to what Paul is really talking about. I wonder why the belt of truth is the first piece of spiritual armor mentioned. Is it mentioned first because it goes on first? Umm…I don’t think so!

By Josie Siler

Last week in the post “The Island of Misfit Toys,” Erin wrote about a struggle that many of us are facing with the new health care reform bill. This is something that will affect all of us to some degree. When doctors drop us or pharmacies refuse to give us the medications that we need, we get angry. We’re ready to fight, and our friends and family are ready to fight for us. But who should we fight against? Should we fight doctors, clinics, hospitals, pharmacies, insurance companies, or the government?

During my senior year of high school, my youth group met above a coffee shop. One of the songs that we loved to sing was Chris Tomlin’s “Romans 16:19.” If you’re not familiar with the song, it goes like this…