Ephesians 6

Open Dialogue

Posted on by Betsy

In its best form, prayer is simply an ongoing communication with a heavenly parent who simply adores you and can’t wait to talk to you about every little thing. Somehow we have twisted prayer into a set of rubrics (“Do the A.C.T.S. of Prayer!”), a florid flood of flowery, flowing words (“I don’t pray out loud because I can’t pray like the preacher does every Sunday”), or rote repetition (when was the last time you really, truly thought about the words of the Lord’s Prayer?) It’s just not that complicated, people. Prayer is just talking.

I am a big advocate of the open dialogue that runs between God and his people when we set aside our preconceptions about prayer and just talk. When you practice open dialogue, it’s like you have your earbuds in, your speaker button on, and you just yak away. Talking to God like this throughout the day is a wonderful way to be in his presence. You can dialogue through your morning coffee and share your anticipations and concerns about the day. As you go about your work, dialogue about the traffic, your co-workers, assignments that are due, tasks you are worried about…you get the idea.

I practice this form of open dialogue prayer. I am sure I look like a mad woman driving down the road with my mouth flapping. About ten times a day I ask Jesus to take the wheel, and not just on the bypass. And if you pass me while I am running, you are likely to hear my constant prayer: “Lord, get me up this hill!”

Take a look at this wonderful nugget from the book of Ephesians. See how many times the words “all” and “always” are used:

Ephesians 6:18

“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 

Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.”

All occasions. All kinds of prayers. Al-ways keep on praying. All the Lord’s people.

Kinda makes you think that we should be praying all the time, always!

I love that Paul adds a personal prayer request at the end. Yes, Paul! He is showing us that we should feel free to ask other people to pray for us. His prayer request for fearlessness in sharing the gospel is a request we all can make. Lord, make us fearless when we talk about you! Make us fearless when we come to you! Make us fearless when we pray!

So open the dialogue and start talking. God is so ready to hear from his kids. You can tell him anything you want, and he will listen.

And he will always get you up that hill.

The Hill He Got Me Up

Screen Saver

Posted on by Betsy

Everyone knows what a projector is. A projector is an electronic device that can take images from a source and display them on a screen. Movie theaters use projectors at the rear of the theater to cast moving images on a giant wall screen in the front.

And then there is another type of projecting. This is when someone has a grudge, grievance, anger issue, or mental instability, and projects that onto another person. Projecting is a defense mechanism for coping with undesirable feelings and emotions. People project negative feelings onto others rather than admitting or dealing with the unwanted feelings. A husband constantly accusing his wife of cheating may be projecting his secret behavior onto her. A teenager, frustrated with his lack of accomplishment, may taunt and pick on a younger sibling rather than face his own feelings of inadequacy.

Bullying is a form of projecting. A middle school teacher and I were chatting last week and she talked about how much bullying takes place in school. She is working very hard to have kids understand their own emotions so that they can take ownership of what they are processing internally rather than project those feelings of anger and shame onto others through bullying. Sadly, some of them will grow up to be adult bullies and continue to project their unresolved issues onto others.

Bullies will probably always project. But that doesn’t mean you have to be their screen.

Luke 17 English Standard Version (ESV)

Temptations to Sin

17 And he said to his disciples, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin.

3 Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him.

If your brother or sister sins, rebuke them. Jesus never called us to be doormats. We can stand strong in the full armor of God and stand up for ourselves in his might. When the money lenders were defiling the temple, Jesus didn’t capitulate. He threw them out.

Ephesians 6:10-20 (The Message)

A Fight to the Finish

10-12 God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.

13-18 Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. 

God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. 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.

If you have someone who continues to project their misery onto you, walk away. Bury yourself deep in God’s word, and pray for strength. Put on the full armor against evil, and stand up for yourself. Projectors need screens, so as soon as you stop being one, the show will be over and you’ll still be on your feet. God has come to be your screen saver! HE is strong, and he wants you to be strong. Take every weapon he supplies, cover yourself in prayer, and STAND FIRM. God’s got you.

Thanks be to God.

Keep Your Eyes Open by Michelle Robertson

Stand Firm

Posted on by Betsy

The images coming out of Afghanistan over the last several days are horrific. Twenty years in the making, this shockingly violent and swift take-over of the country by the Taliban is beyond imagination. Our hearts are broken and our fears are multiplied to see how quickly a country can topple to evil once the good has been removed.

This is not a political statement, but a spiritual one. It is no coincidence that today’s lectionary passage teaches us how to gird ourselves in the war against the Evil one. It comes to us on a day when we need to be reminded that when we walk in the armor of God, no tricks of the devil can harm us. Surely we have all experienced the forces of cosmic darkness at some point in our lives. Whether that has come at you in a full attack from someone doing the devil’s bidding, or more subtly in the form of temptation that works in your weakness, the spiritual forces of evil are alive and living in the hearts of humanity.

What can we do? How can we fight back?

Paul dealt with this issue when the church in Ephesus came under attack. The spiritual warfare that he fought involved a campaign of disunity between new Gentile converts and Jewish Christians. Satan brought his power to bear upon the new church when it was in its infancy state in an effort to stop it.

The fact that we are here demonstrates the power God has over ALL of his creation.

Paul counsels us to engage in a two-part plan. The first part is to be strengthened by the Lord:

Ephesians 6 (Common English Bible)

10 Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and his powerful strength. 

This is an invitation to join a spiritual boot camp where your faith muscles will be made stronger with every workout. You can’t put great armor on a weak body and hope to have military success. So first, we are to come into God’s presence daily and draw our strength from him.

Next, we are encouraged to suit up for the battle:

11 Put on God’s armor so that you can make a stand against the tricks of the devil. 12 We aren’t fighting against human enemies but against rulers, authorities, forces of cosmic darkness, and spiritual powers of evil in the heavens. 

Paul reminds us that we aren’t fighting against flesh, but rather against the spiritual forces of wickedness. So we must protect and grow our own spirit in order to fight back. God provides both the strength and armor:

13 Therefore, pick up the full armor of God so that you can stand your ground on the evil day and after you have done everything possible to still stand. 14 So stand with the belt of truth around your waist, justice as your breastplate, 15 and put shoes on your feet so that you are ready to spread the good news of peace. 16 Above all, carry the shield of faith so that you can extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is God’s word.

The belt of TRUTH.

The breastplate of JUSTICE.

The shoes of PEACE.

The shield of FAITH.

The helmet of SALVATION.

The sword of GOD’S WORD.

As you prepare to go into battle today, look over this list. Do you see a weak spot? Do you need to readjust your armor? Do you need more time in God’s presence?

Stand your ground, and after you have done everything possible, STILL STAND.

May God be with us in our fight.

God’s Powerful Strength by Karen Warlitner

Projectors

Posted on by Betsy

A projector is an output device that can take images from a source and show them on a screen. Movie theaters use projectors at the rear of the theater to cast moving images on a giant wall screen in the front. Projectors are found in schools, businesses, training centers, etc.

And then there is another type of projecting. This is when someone has a grudge, grievance, anger issue, or mental instability, and projects that onto another person. It is a defense mechanism for coping with undesirable feelings and emotions. People project negative feelings onto others rather than admitting or dealing with the unwanted feelings. A husband constantly accusing his wife of cheating may be projecting his secret behavior onto her. A teenager, frustrated with his lack of accomplishment, may taunt and pick on a younger sibling rather than face his own feelings of inadequacy.

Bullying is a form of projecting. A middle school teacher and I were chatting last week and she talked about how much bullying takes place in school. She is working very hard and deliberately to have kids understand their own emotions and to take ownership of what they are processing internally, rather than project those feelings of anger and shame onto others by bullying. Sadly, many of them will grow up to be adult bullies and continue to project their unresolved issues onto others.

Bullies will probably always project. But that doesn’t mean you have to be their screen.

Luke 17 English Standard Version (ESV)

Temptations to Sin

17 And he said to his disciples, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin.

3 Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him.

If your brother or sister sins, rebuke them. Jesus never called us to be doormats. We can stand strong in the full armor of God and stand up for ourselves in his might. When the money lenders were defiling the temple, Jesus didn’t capitulate. He threw them out. Turning the other cheek here doesn’t mean offering a bully a second chance to strike…it means turning your cheek away as you walk out the door, closing it behind you on the bully.

Ephesians 6:10-20 The Message (MSG)

A Fight to the Finish

10-12 God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.

13-18 Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life.

God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. 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.

If you have someone who continues to project their misery onto you, walk away. Bury yourself deep in God’s word, and pray for strength. Put on the full armor against evil, and stand up for yourself. Projectors need screens, so as soon as you stop being one, the show will be over and you’ll still be on your feet. God is strong, and he wants you to be strong. Take every weapon he supplies, cover yourself in prayer, and STAND FIRM. You’ve got this, because God’s got you. Thanks be to God.

Peaceful Waters by Kathy Schumacher