10 AUG 2017 · Temptation and discouragement do not have to stop us in our tracks. Our shield of faith can protect against any spiritual arrow the enemy wants to shoot at us.   Paul knew that the Roman soldiers were equipped for success in battle. The fact that he used their armor as an illustration says a great deal about what he believed our chances for victory are in spiritual battle. Today, we are looking at the fourth kind of spiritual armor from Ephesians 6. In Today's episode: What does a spiritual arrow from the enemy look like? How can we 'Take up the Shield of Faith' like Paul says to do? Why would the enemy want to target us? How our response to his attacks can be the preparation we need to go forward and do great things for God in the future. Hear missionaries talk about their strategic plans to take the Gospel to another land. Ephesians 6:16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one. Illustration of the Roman soldier used by Paul in chapter 6 Paul spent lots of time around the Roman soldiers of his day. One time he had as many as 470 with him while he was being moved from one location to another (Acts 23:23) Roman soldiers were very successful agains their enemies… 3 Reasons for Success Equipment Physical Training Mindset Equipment ~ Shield -size of a small door (2 ft by 4ft) -thin strips of wood glued together and covered in canvas and leather -in middle, a round knob made of iron; used to knock down the enemy -shield weighed almost 22 pounds Physical Training -Endurance exercises including marching—have to travel about 20 miles in 5 hours, with all equipment on! -Fighting exercises including practicing strategic ways to use shields/different formation 1 More item necessary for survival… Mindset! Soldiers on the battlefield, closing in on the enemy, approaching enemy fortress… Critical moment that reveals whether the soldier has an attitude of trust in his leader. Their leader decides what formation to use Soldier could just try to protect himself…OR obey his leader and move into formation If there is going to be success, soldiers have to completely trust their leader Not only must he trust the ability of the leader to make good decisions, but also the leader’s character! -Trust that the leader was there to help, not secretly planning to hurt -Trust that the leader has best intentions and planning for the army’s success. Having this mindset of trusting the leader would have been critical, because if you really trusted him, you would naturally obey. You would take your shield, and move into the correct formation that the leader has decided to use. Recognizing the Spiritual Arrows There are spiritual attacks by our enemy, meant to target us in a particular way…keeping us from standing strong in the Lord. Understanding about these arrows will help us know how to use the shield of faith. 4 Main Parts of an Arrow Analogy The Nock: Reminds me of the timing of the shot. Enemy waits for just the right timing. The Fletching: Reminds me of the topic or subject area Satan will use to keep arrow on target. The Shaft: Reminds me of the actual deception; the goal of the enemy getting us to believe a lie about God. The Arrowhead: There are different types of arrowheads for different situations. The arrowhead is what this weapon is all about. The other 3 parts work together to accomplish 1 goal: getting the arrowhead on target. The arrowhead reminds me about: the kind of wound Satan wants us to have. And the best way to explain it is to show you what it looks like in action. First, we have to take a close look at the day Satan shot his first arrow at humans, in Genesis 3 Satan waits for the perfect timing (the nock). Eve seems to be near the tree with the forbidden fruit and it appears that God is not talking with them right now, like in the past. Satan waits for just the right time. The topic Satan uses to keep the deception on track (the fletching) is about whether or not the fruit will really hurt them. The lie (the shaft) —Satan told them that they would be like God. Eve begins too believe that God is not telling the truth The wound (the arrowhead) - ‘Satan wants her to believe that she cannot trust God”. He wants her to think that God is not protecting her from something bad, but instead, God is keeping her from something good!” Satan wants to wound her trust in God. God knew the effects and nature of evil. This infection of evil was what God wanted to protect Adam and Eve from. What Satan told Eve was partially true—she would know evil. But she would not know evil the way God did, without the contamination of evil. She would know evil by experience, and be infected by it for life. Satan wanted her to think God kept something good from her, but actually God was protecting her from something bad! This is what the arrow is all about. The intention is to wound our trust in Who God is. God had seen evil in action. He knew what it could do. He saw evil consume the angel Lucifer. He saw it change the angels that followed Lucifer to rebellion. God wanted to protect Adam and Eve from this. Satan puts a new idea into her head “I can’t really trust God?” “God is keeping me from something good." This was the kind of wound Satan brought, a wound to Eve’s attitude of trust in Who God is. When she believes God cannot be trusted, she looks at the tree in a different way. The arrow has worked: now, Eve thought the serpent was right… that God was not who she thought He was. He cannot be trusted. Adam and Eve eat the fruit Now, it become obvious that Satan’s arrow is a flaming arrow: And, just like fire, the flame spreads fast! Back to Ephesians 6 If a Roman solider was hit by a flaming arrow, there would not only just be the initial wound of the arrow, but the fire would bring more damage that spreads. The damage spread in Genesis 3, also. The physical intimacy between the first couple has changed (now they are wearing fig leaves) The relationship with God changed (now Adam is afraid and hiding from his Creator and Friend) The emotional intimacy between Adam and Eve has broken down (Adam blames his wife) Pain in childbearing Eve’s desire to rule over Adam Ground is cursed Work becomes harder Death comes Garden of Eden is no longer home But perhaps the greatest demonstration of the fire spreading is this…in Genesis 4:8. Cain rises up to kill his own brother. Just like fire spreads and does a great deal of damage—the enemy intends to do a lot of damage in our lives with his fiery arrows. - damage to our relationships, damage to our integrity and purity, damage to our testimony for God. It all began with Satan’s plan to deceive Eve about whether or not she could really trust God. This is at the heart of the deception. This is the kind of arrowhead that Satan uses to inflict wounds on God’s children. He wants to wound our trust in who God is. Why? Because Satan knows if we choose not to trust God, we will also not want to obey what God says. And the whole idea of standing strong in the Lord and having a consistent life of victory over temptation and discouragement: Satan knows it will all be an unattainable dream, and never a reality—if only he can convince us to NOT trust God. So, what could Eve have done and what can you and I do? Learning from the example of the soldier and the shield The soldier would need to trust in the ability and the character of his leader. He would need to trust that his leader is truly planning for victory. Evidence that the soldier would trust in his leader would be: 1- he would go and get into formation 2- he would march forward in the formation Eventally the group of soldiers would find themselves on the other side of the heat of the battle. Then they would be given orders to spread out again. In the spiritual battle that we face, success will be found in trusting in Who God is - trusting in His character and His love, believing the best about Him and not the worst. Examples of arrows and trusting: 2 types of arrows that our spiritual enemy shoots towards us: 1. An arrow of temptation This arrowhead is about convincing me that God is not protecting me from something bad, but instead, He is keeping me from something good. Satan wants me to be convinced that I cannot really trust God. The shield of faith is simple. Believe in WHO God is. That He truly is protecting you, that He truly has your best interest in mind. Trusting in Who God is will help you and I to take the immediate action of turning away from the temptation - like the soldier had to take the immediate action to go where his leader said to go and get in the correct formation. When the arrows were spotted in the sky, the leader would call out the formation to go and get into. Like the soldier, trust your leader and immediately do what you know that He would want you to do. 2. An arrow of discouragement, with the intention of getting us to become bitter against God. Trust in Who God is - that He is our loving Father and He has promised to never leave us or forsake us - that He is working behind the scenes on our behalf, working all things out for good. Trusting in His character will help you and I to immediately move away from the temptation to become bitter against God and move to a place of contentment and resting in God. The Formation If the Testudo formation was called out, the soldiers would get in formation and, at their leader's command, begin marching forward. The arrows would be hitting their shields from above and they would continue forward. Eventually, they would find themselves on the otherside of the difficult part of the battle. The shield formation for the soldiers can be compared to a Bible passage for us. After we take the immediate action of moving away from the temptation to sin, and moving away from the temptation to become bitter against God - we need to move to a Bible passage. Ask God to give you some Bible passages that you can go to during these time

17 OCT 2016 · Welcome to a special episode of the Word Outreach Podcast. Today, I'm speaking specifically to Christians who are American citizens. Our election is less than one month away. Today's topic is about the Sovereignty of God as it relates to the election choices that we have been given this year. In fact, there are three things about the Sovereignty of God that we will look at as we think about voting for our next President and Vice President. 

17 OCT 2016 · Welcome to a special episode of the Word Outreach Podcast. Today, I'm speaking specifically to Christians who are American citizens.  Our election is less than one month away. Today's topic is The Sovereignty of God in the Election Choices that we have been given this year.  In fact, there are three things about the Sovereignty of God that we should know about as we consider our vote for the President and Vice President.

13 MAY 2016 · Wearing the right kind of shoes was critical for the Roman soldier, and the Gospel of Peace shoes are important for us, as well. It's our third kind of spiritual armor from Ephesians 6. In Today's episode: What are the Gospel of Peace shoes? How can we wear them? 2 Tricks of the enemy, and how these shoes can help us to stand strong against these tricks How wearing these shoes can be a help to us in putting on the rest of the armor Hear missionaries from Niger, West Africa In Ephesians 6, the next piece of spiritual armor Paul wants Christians to wear is a pair of the right kind of shoes. Verse 15 “…And, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.” What is the Gospel of Peace? 4 chapters before Paul talks about having our feet prepared with the Gospel of Peace, there is a passage where Paul mentions “Peace” four times in Ephesians 2:13-19. In this section, the Author of peach is mentioned, as well as 2 groups that were once fighting and now have peace. The 2 groups: Those who were “far off” in verse 13, (the Gentiles), and those who were “near” in verse 17 (the Jews). Why was one group considered far off from God and the other considered near? Gentiles were anyone who was not a Jew. God’s laws didn’t come to them, and they didn’t perform the Old Testament sacrifices. The Jews, however, were near to God. They were His people, and they had received God’s laws and did the sacrifices. There was huge hostility between these 2 groups, and many Jews had great pride in being God’s “chosen people”. Christ is our peace in that Christians have been brought near to God through his death, and also in that He establishes unity among people by His death. So keeping the law is no longer a requirement for having peace with God. Jesus is our peace. 4 important questions about the unity that Jesus creates. 1. Why would Jesus do all this? So that He may present a unified body of believers to the Father. 2. Why would He want to present the unified body to the Father? (John 17:11 “…that they may be one, even as we are one.” Here, Jesus expresses to the Father that he wants those who believe in Him to be one. Also verses 11, 21-23.) The unified believers would serve as evidence to others that Jesus was truly from God. 3. How is this evidence that Jesus is from God? This is evidence, because nobody else could bring together people who have such bad feelings toward each other…and help them consider one another as family! Only one sent from God could do this. 4. How did this unity happen? It came about through the cross of Christ! Ephesians 2:16. And this last important fact is what Satan does not want people to know: that true and lasting peace only comes through Jesus, and what he did for us on the cross. Jesus wanted to take groups that were fighting, break down the barriers, and bring them as one body into a relationship with God. (Ephesians 2) A reason that Jesus wanted his followers to be unified is so the world would believe that He was sent from God. (John 17) This would be amazing evidence! And it would only happen by the cross. Through his act of sacrificing himself, he has brought the message of peace. And it is a message that the enemy wants to hide, and even use Christians to hide it. Which brings us to the two schemes of the devil. Ephesians 6:11 “Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.” The first trick that Satan uses to hide the message (that peace comes through Christ and His cross) is that he wants us to think that what unifies Christians the most -our greatest bond- is something other than the cross. We all come to God the same way, by the blood of Jesus, and so there is no room for pride. No one is less deserving of God’s judgment for sin than the other. Of course, we all have various views on different things… -traditions in the church -interpretation of passages in Scripture -Bible translations -Denominations -Politics And Satan would want us to think that these kinds of things are what unite us the most! The result? Each one of our “groups” are united, but the body of Christ is not. And the message of peace becomes hidden to those who are not in the family of God because they do not see this unity. They see division. As Christians, if we have made other things a test for unity, one of the best things we can do is go to our brother/sister in Christ and ask them to forgive us. Because when you and I hold to views that treat our family in Christ as though they are not, we are in fact being used by the enemy to hide the important message of peace through the cross alone. The second scheme of the Devil has to do with what we say. Our enemy would want us to think that if we tell someone they can only have peace with God through the cross, then that conversation itself will always lead to something other than peace. It’s a conversation that will just bring conflict! But this is not true. There is a way to have a conversation about the Gospel without people getting upset and seeing a relationship ruined. Speak with humility, explaining how you’ve rebelled against God and deserve His judgment. In Acts 26:9-11, Paul communicates to his audience that if anyone was an enemy of God, it was definitely himself! If anyone deserved God's judgment, it was Paul! The apostle showed humility. In verses 30-32 of that same chapter, Paul has talked about his encounter with Christ, and at the end the king was inclined to let him go free. Paul has not made a new enemy here. The kind of thinking that believes sharing our message of peace cannot be done without hurting a friendship or making enemies - is a trick from the devil. 2 important things about wearing the Gospel of peace shoes- -How we can wear them -Why I believe that wearing these shoes are critical for us in standing strong against our spiritual enemy. #1 How to wear them ~ Accept the mission that Jesus has given us. (Acts 1:8) We are witnesses of Christ and His message of peace. Think of this like a shoe for the left foot and the right. Left foot: keep unity in the body of Christ, not create division; and determine that our strongest bond is Jesus and His cross. Right foot: share with others how we deserved God’s judgment, but we found peace with God through Christ’s sacrifice. #2 Why is it so critical that we accept this mission of promoting His peace? So we will be able to make a difference for the glory of God. The Roman soldier’s sandals had spikes, or nails that gave him a firm footing, and no slipping. If he fell, of course, he would not be able to fight well! The right kind of shoes were critical to him having the victory in battle. How can wearing our Gospel of peace shoes help us effectively use other pieces of armor? Because when we accept this mission of promoting peace, it gives us purpose and focus in life. And that motivates us to want to stand strong in our faith. We will find ourselves wanting to say “NO” to sin in our life, because that sin interferes with the mission of our life. If you have found yourself struggling with saying no to sin, one of the things that will help you, is saying “Yes!” to the life mission of sharing the Gospel of peace. This is our purpose and mission in life. When you and I embrace this as our mission, we will want to stand strong. We will want to walk in victory, because we have already said 'yes' to being His witnesses of the message of peace. And when the schemes of Satan interfere with us staying on mission, we will want to stand up and say “No!” to the enemy.

12 APR 2016 · In Today's episode we are going to be learning about how we can have protection for the way we think, our heart's desires, and our emotions.  We are looking at the 2nd piece of spiritual armor from Ephesians 6. More show notes to come later! 

13 MAR 2016 · Protecting our respect for the Truth of God’s Word is the first line of defense against the attack from our spiritual enemy.   The battle is real. The enemy is serious. But our God is much more powerful! Living with His armor is the key to living in victory. Don’t go through life without wearing the armor. Today, learn how to live with the Belt of Truth on. In today’s episode: 2 Important facts you should know about our spiritual enemyThe Devil’s background, strategy, limitation and future4 steps for living with God’s protection: the Belt of TruthInterview about short-term missions with Wayne and Nancy Reigel 1st Fact about our enemy: He is serious about doing damage  We know our enemy is serious about doing damage because: He takes the time to come up with schemes; he is tricky and crafty.Genesis 3:1 – Satan questioned God’s Word.2 Corinthians 11:14 – Appears as an angel of lightWe know our enemy is serious about doing damage because:  We see the results of his very effective system that plays on our weakness.Ephesians 6: 12 – He has a large, well-organized group of fallen angels that work for him. This organization has brought him a lot of success. Examples: Satan has had success with … those who were dedicated to God from birth (Samson’s story in Judges 13-16) those who had a parent involved in ministry (the priest Eli and his sons, 1 Samuel 2-3)even the wisest man who ever lived! (Solomon, 1 Kings 11) Even his heart was turned away from God.No one is immune to being targeted by the enemy. 2nd Fact about our enemy: He is not in total control  Ephesians 6:13 With God it is possible to stand firm! Reminders for us that Satan is not in total control: He was cast out of heaven by God (Ezekiel 28:12-13, Isaiah 14:12-15, Luke 10:18)He has to submit to God’s limitations on how far he can go in hurting people (Job 1)We see Jesus casting out demons, and others who cast them out in Jesus’s name (New Testament)One day, God will put Satan away forever! (Revelation 20:10)The first area of attack is against our respect for the truth of God’s Word, so the armor we need is the Belt of Truth (Ephesians 6:14)  Steps for living with the Belt of Truth: Example from King Josiah  Allow it to command our attention (2 Kings 22:10) Allow it to move us emotionally (2 Kings 22: 11-19) Seek God (2 Kings 22: 13) Find out how this truth applies to our life and circumstances. Allow God’s truth to move us to action (2 Kings 23:1-25)  King Josiah dedicated himself to following God and then led his people to do the same. He made major changes in the land. Because Josiah decided that the truth of God’s Word would command his highest respect, he was able to have good judgment to make the right choices. And that is what the Belt of Truth can do for us in life!  

7 FEB 2016 · As we submit to God's work in our lives not only will we begin to change, but we will have the help of God to make a difference in many situations that we find ourselves in. Why? Because now we will be bringing God's perspective to the scene. In today's episode: 7 Characteristics of 7 people who made a difference -King Josiah, Moses, John the Baptist, Caleb, Joshua, Paul, Nehemiah.Why these particular qualities are the ones we need today,Short-term missions: interview with Wayne and Nancy Reigel.

10 JAN 2016 · There are two very different paths that Christians can walk down in life. We can either be on, what I'll call, "The Path of Christian Fulfillment" (it's a path we can see in Romans 12). Or we can be on, what I call, "The Path of Regret". This is a path we get on when we choose to ignore our Christian character. Today, I'll be talking about both of these paths. And I'm particularly excited about sharing with you about the habit God has used to change my life. In today's episode: What the path of fulfillment looks like How to get off the path of regret Staying on the path of fulfillment: the habit God has used to change my life Short-term missions: interview with Wayne and Nancy Reigel

14 DEC 2015 · On today's episode: - Living Without Regret - 2 Great benefits that can come from strong Christian character - Protecting our ministry effectiveness - 2 areas of our character that we should not ignore   - 4 Steps for strengthening our Christian Character   

26 OCT 2015 · Do you enjoy serving God? Today, we are thinking about finding fulfilment in being one of God's servants.  Learn about: -2 Things that will help us to find fulfillment in serving God-2 Ways God has equipped us so that we can be effective servants for Him-What spiritual gifts are and what 'the measure of faith is from Romans 12:3-Why it's worth the time to discover and use your spiritual gift-3 Steps for discovering our spiritual gifts-Evaluating our service for God: Asking the SERVE questions.    Our Scripture is Romans 12:2-8