INTO THE BATTLE—YOU DON’T PUT ON THE ARMOR OF GOD TO AVOID SATANIC ATTACK
The Holy Spirit showed me this truth. You do not put on the armor of God and surround yourself with the Shield of Faith in order to avoid an encounter with Satan. Rather, you put on the armor of God and take up the Shield of Faith so you can fight the battle and come out victorious. You need to develop confidence. You need to go into every upcoming comflict with a faith that has been battle-tested and proven to be victorious.
You never wear the armor of God to avoid the battle. You wear it because you know are going to enter a combat zone. If God intends for you to avoid a fight, there wouldn't be a need for you to wear armor at all. Think about that.
God isn’t going to shield you from dealing with the devil. He is going to equip you to fight and win the conflict. That's where mighty warriors are developed. Those who don't enter the conflict are called traitors, cowards, and deserters.
If you don't experience victory in the midst of war, you will never develop the skills you need. You will be sheltered and soft. There are several things about David and his conflict with Goliath that you need to remember. David said he knew he could defeat Goliath because he had ALREADY killed a lion and a bear. You need to experience battles so that you know going into the next one, you can be victorious.
In addition, even though David fought the battle through the power of God, he still fought the battle. He still developed his skill with a slingshot. He still gathered the smooth stones. He still aimed accurately. Obviously, God was the one who delivered the miraculous victory, but David still fought. And although David was NOT wearing the armor of Saul, he WAS wearing the armor of God. David didn't ask God to keep him from facing Goliath. He asked God to allow him to face Goliath.
When you are armored up, you don't need to be afraid of the devil. The devil needs to be afraid of you. It's going to be a fight. You may collect some scars, but they will be scars you'll be able to look at with pride and scars that will give you confidence in the future.
