Redefine the Win

- Pastor DJ Oquist

“Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.” - Ephesians 6:11 (NIV)

I remember learning about the armor of God in Sunday school when I was a kid. There was a song for it and everything. There would even be a soldier all dressed up with every part of the armor to give us a visual representation. I knew we needed to be righteous, know God’s word, have faith, peace, salvation, and the sword of the spirit. I understood it as things we should have at the time, but I was unsure why.

Reflecting on it as I got older, I realized that the reason we put on all the armor is to STAND against the devil’s schemes—simply that, to stand. The eight verses of the armor of God say STAND four times: “Stand against,” “Stand your ground,” “to stand,” and “Stand firm.”

In our world, how often have you heard people define the win as “Standing”? Never! If you're standing, you aren’t even moving. There’s no hustle! You’re not conquering anything. So why, then, would this passage emphasize standing? Because for some of us, the fact that we are still standing is a miracle.

Most of us have been through challenging situations, and you’re still standing. You’ve had a tough marriage season, but you're still standing. You’ve had a tough school year, but you’re still standing. You’ve been through a lot, but you're still standing.

Maybe you are missing the win because you need to redefine it. Not giving up is a miracle. One of the goals of our relationship with God is to stay standing.

Make a Difference:

Take a moment today and think of all the times you could have fallen or given up, but instead, you stayed standing. Take time to reflect on that miracle.

As You Read:

This week, we are starting the book of Joshua. We see that the battle belongs to the Lord, not to Joshua. Regardless of the enemy, the nation of Israel had to stand on His promises, waiting for His direction.