Fighting the Good Fight 

We are able to fight the good fight with spiritual weapons such as those described in Ephesians 6:14-17: “[Put] on the belt of truth and the body armour of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.  In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.“ Some practical ways in which we can put on the full armour of God are:

1. Belt of Truth – Keep ourselves in the truth of God’s word by starting the day reading, memorising and meditating on His Word.
2. Body Armour of Righteousness – Our integrity and purity flow from our hearts. Let us fight to keep our thoughts and emotions pure.
3. Shoes of the Gospel of Peace – Be at peace with one another and be prepared to share the Gospel with whoever we meet.
4. Sword of the Spirit – Allow the Holy Spirit to take the word of God in us and make it come alive to us so that we can use it as an offensive weapon against the lies and attacks of the enemy.
5. Shield of Faith – Our faith helps us navigate our belief in God. When challenges come our way, feed our faith and starve our doubts. 
6. Helmet of Salvation – The most important thing is that we have an assurance of our salvation. Continually let Christ renew our mind so that we can be secure in Him and His salvation.

It is easy to be caught up in waves of emotions, struggles, and frustrations when we face difficult circumstances. But God has promised that we fight from a place of victory and no weapon formed against us shall prosper (Isaiah 54:17).

Reflection

Is there any area in our life that we constantly find ourselves struggling with? 

Which particular piece or pieces of the armour of God do we need to utilise more than the other pieces in our spiritual battle today?

Prayer

Dear God, I pray against the attacks of the enemy and stronghold that stops me  from stepping into the victory. I pray that You will strengthen me with boldness to fight for I know that You have already won this victory.

Fasting

17. **Preparing for Spiritual Feasts**: Fasting precedes spiritual feasts or celebrations, enhancing the significance of the occasion, as observed in preparation for Passover (Exodus 12

Bible verses

1 TIMOTHY 6

12Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

EPHESIANS 6

14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

ISAIAH 54

17no weapon forged against you will prevail,

and you will refute every tongue that accuses you.

This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,

and this is their vindication from me,”

declares the Lord.

JAMES 1

1James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,

To the twelve tribes scattered among the nations:

Greetings.

Trials and Temptations

2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 6 But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

9 Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. 10 But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower. 11 For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich will fade away even while they go about their business.

12 Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

13 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

16 Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. 17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. 18 He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.

Listening and Doing

19My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 21Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.

22Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.

26Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. 27Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.