DISCLAIMER: this is long, I challenge you to bear with me!
What is the full armor of God?
I thought I knew. Until I got to India.
The last I remember before I slipped into “my fog”, was speaking to my parents about this beautiful race that the Lord called me to! I was on top of the world, zealous for India, embracing the heat, smells, colors, people, and getting used to the frequent, immovable cows that were constantly in the middle of the road.. (like how did they even get there..?)
And then I woke up on day three, during village ministry in South India…except I didn’t wake up. That day was a wrestle, I got lost.. my drive, my personality, my appetite, my desire to learn and grow diminished into an apathetic version of myself. I confessed to my team that I just wasn’t “feelin’ it”, to which they prayed over me expecting that life would resume to normal. My quiet time that day consisted entirely just staring at a white wall– no thoughts, no prayers, no ambition.
I flashed back to training camp, “There will be days that you check out of ministry, that you don’t feel like engaging.. press against those thoughts and doubts.” I didn’t push back, I allowed the apathy and confusion to wash over me, pulling me deeper into this dream I just wanted to wake up from. Doubts pressed hard against the truths that I knew, making me question my effectiveness, my purpose, and yes, even Jesus himself.
I tried to push back, I went to ministry that day hoping that praying big prayers within these rural villages would restore the joy of my own salvation. But it didn’t.
One day slipped into two..slipped into a week..slipped into my month. Confused and dazed, I accepted that this was the new me. Maybe the honeymoon phase of the race was over, maybe this was a character shift, an attitude change, a passion zapped.
Week five of India we entered into the spiritual capital of the Eastern world, formerly known as Kashi. Spiritual darkness punched me in the face as soon as we entered. The Ganges river flows through that area, thought to be holy in the Hindu faith. People come to bathe and drink from its waters in hopes of breaking the reincarnation cycle and allowing them to pass from life to death straight into Nirvana. (If you want more deets on this area, message me! For the sake of this post, I’ll continue.)
There we discovered this underground church, if I can use those terms. Lemme tell you, this church WORSHIPPED. They knew how dark the area was, and when questioning the believers how they lived in such a dark area, they replied matter-of-factly, “Prayer and worship. This is how we start and finish all of our meetings. Without it we would be heavily influenced by the spiritual presence of Hinduism and Buddhism in this area.”
I pressed into that when we sat down with a couple from Australia after fellowship that day, “What spirits are brought on by Hindu and Buddhist influence?”
“We’ve noticed over the past 28 years, that these religions bring on emotions of apathy, confusion, doubt, isolation..” And as I listened, they called out every single emotion I had experienced over the previous four weeks. My mind was blown.. SO IT WASN’T MY PERSONALITY CHANGING. It was a spiritual war being waged in and around me.
Immediately, our team stopped and prayed over this; for protection, for restoring to us the joy of what we were doing, for passion, for zeal, for the armor of God to guard us more tangibly than we’ve ever felt.
And guess what? I WOKE UP. The night that preceded was full of life and laughter in a way that I thought I had lost. He restored my passion, my drive, my appetite.
India was a wrestle. And I still am questioning all that the Lord had to teach me through it. But I think He allowed such a wrestle to teach me more about His power, and what His armor truly is.
Guys, the armor of God isn’t simply a metaphor that Paul talked about to give people comfort; it’s more than spiritual. It affects the mental, and the physical. His armor is one that we pray for daily, that our belt of truth would be buckled tight, our breastplate of righteousness in place, with our feet fitted with readiness, with our shield of faith, our helmet of salvation, and sword of the Spirit, ready at any and all times. Ephesians 6:14-15
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. therefor put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground.” Ephesians 6:10-13
India taught me the importance of His armor, and my view prior was a pity version of the strength and protection that He truly brings. India changed my race, in fact, it changed the course of my life.
