Hang with me here, while I speak some life. Real, raw, and genuine life. This is my life, my soul, and my journey. But it is one I know others are on as well. And for you, I hope that you will read this and find support, because you are not alone.
I heard a lesson this past week on the “Armor of God” and I just had to share some thoughts that came to me about that glorious “Shield of Faith” that is a part of it.
For those who know me personally, and those who have followed me for a while, you know I have had to pick up this shield of faith for myself and my musketeers, many times and for a while now!
It hasn’t been easy.
But faith never is.
Think about it…
It seems easy, and it’s good to have faith in people, in God, in life and all that. But when do we most often reach out for that faith? Exactly.
When things aren’t going so great.
The past three years of my life have been some that I have had to live almost exclusively on faith. Believing that one day it will get better. One day I’ll be able to believe people when they speak to me. One day I might find love, true love. One day, maybe, my dreams to be a published and successful writer, author, speaker will come true. Maybe one day, I won’t have to live in a broken house, driving a broken car, and no more wondering if the bills will all be paid on time.
Do you know how heavy that is?
Yes, you do. I feel you! You get this! You’ve either been there, or are there with me now.
Faith is far from the glorious depiction given it by the poets and artists. Take for instance the shield of faith described in the Armor of God:
The man giving the lesson last week spoke of his excitement at building an armor for visual aid for kids, when they do lessons on the Armor of God. The shield could be this gorgeous thing, with emblems and decorations all over the front of it, as many shields have. And that got me thinking…
That’s a great thought. A glorious, beautiful shield! But it would only be pretty for a short while… until it’s being used.
When do we use our shield?
In battle.
During the fight of our lives, for our families, our sanity, our very souls! Sure, the shield can start out as a glorious work of art, but when it being used it’s weighing on the arm, heavy. It’s bloodied, sometimes broken, and battered by the time the battle is over.
This is faith.
“Now faith is the evidence of things HOPED for, and the evidence of things NOT seen.”
Faith and Hope are two, very different things. Hope is exciting. When we have hope, we have a positive feeling about the outcome.
Faith is what we lean on when the hope is gone.
That has been the story of my life for the past few years. Empty hopes, lost dreams, failure after failure in one part of my life or another. Feeling useless at anything, including (for a time) my role as a mother. All hope was sucked right out of my spirit, and all that was left was a tiny shred of faith.
Here’s the good news, though! That tiny shred? That’s all you need!
How is it described? Oh, yes. Faith… tiny as a grain of mustard seed.
Faith that even in my darkest of days there would be a light shining on my world, eventually.
Faith that there would be hope again for me and my little family.
Faith that the bills would be paid.
Faith that the car won’t fall apart the next time I drive it.
Faith that the floor won’t fall in when I cross the hallway.
Faith that the kitchen sink won’t fall into the hole it doesn’t fit properly into in the countertop.
Faith that the roof won’t leak when it rains anymore.
Faith that the kids will always have what they need, and eventually have the things they WANT.
Faith that I can pay my darling Grandparents back for ALL they have done for me (and that will be a huge payback!).
And Faith… that one day I will look back on today and remember what it was like, because I WILL be blessed enough to bless others!
And with each statement of faith, I am in battle for these things. My shield gets smacked hard with bills, jumper cables for the car, the slip of the sink into that hole, the drop of water that hits me on the head inside my house on a rainy day, my children asking me if/when I get paid, the propane tank running low again, and the list goes on.
My shield is ugly.
It’s heavy.
Faith isn’t easy.
But it’s amazing! Because with Faith, we can move mountains.
Faith renews a little hope within us. Believing in your dreams, believing in the possibilities, and believing in YOURSELF is just the start!
Take your Faith, honey, and hit those things back that are coming at you! Can’t pay that whole bill? Pay half of it! Make an arrangement before the due date, and they’ll work with you! (most of the time lol) Faith just smacked back!
Can’t buy that toy for your child? Set a dollar aside in a jar! Smack!
Eventually your child will feel that faith too! Maybe not with the first dollar, or even the second. But as they build up, so will their hope that the reward is coming. Again… smack!
Car dead again? Jump that baby one more time! Smack!
And with every small victory, because they ARE victories, take a deep breath, hold it, and then let it out with even half a smile. Because honey, your faith just got a little bigger, and a little stronger.
Feel that? Faith just became Hope.
And you just felt a spark, however tiny it was, it was there!
Lately, Faith is all I’ve had. But recently, I’ve built up a little Hope as well!
In my world, right now, the ONLY way to go is up! And by golly… I’m going!
And you are invited to go with me!
