Defective Clothing

 

 

“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

Ephesians 6:13 (NIV)

 

Hand-me-down clothes were the norm for me growing up in a family of five kids. And being the middle child guaranteed that I would always be the recipient of whatever my older sister outgrew like shoes, shorts, and shirts. I never really cared because we were the same size.

 

Until I grew more quickly and became taller and lankier than my sister. And I inherited her swimsuit that was two sizes too big for me. It didn’t matter if the swimsuit was too large when my sisters and I swam in our farm pond; but that all changed the day our parents took us to town to swim at the community swimming pool.

 

The too large swimsuit dilemma was real: did I opt out of swimming with my friends and tell them I was sick or did I take a chance and swim anyway? The beautiful clear water gave me my answer: swim! And I did.

 

Oh the fun! Swimming under water like a dolphin with my friends. Laughing as we splashed each other. Perfect warm day. Perfect cloudless sky. Perfect blue water. Everything was perfect. Until I drove into the pool and came up out of the water. And my swimsuit did not. Defective clothing that offered no protection – that’s what I wore that day.

 

 Ephesians 6:13 talks about a different kind of clothing. It talks about armor –the full armor of God. The protection it offers covers us, not just physically, but spiritually and mentally. Paul understood completely the spiritual battle believers face. Satan never rests as he tries to shake our belief in God by shooting at us with arrows of doubt and fear and anxiety. But when we are covered in the armor of God, we can stand strong against whatever is thrown our way.

 

As we continue reading in Ephesians 6, we are encouraged to clothe ourselves with the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness and feet fitted with readiness. And we must always put on the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation while we clinch the sword of the Spirit.

 

Where do we find all that armor? In the word of God, the Bible. Unlike my too big swimsuit, being clothed with God’s armor means that it will never be defective and fail. Dive into His word and come up clothed and ready for anything that comes your way!

 

Father, I want to be ready when Satan attacks my life. Please remind me every day to put on the full protective armor that only you can give. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

 

R.A.P. it up . . .

 

Reflect

• Have you ever faced a day when you felt like your “spiritual” clothing did not fit?
• If so, what could be some reasons you felt that way?

 

Apply

• Write Ephesians 6:13-17 on a note card and place it by your bathroom sink. Every morning as you get dressed for the day, “dress” your mind and heart with this Scripture.
• Praise the Lord for His power given to you through the Word.

 

Power

• Ephesians 6:13 (NIV)  “Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

 

• Ephesians 6:14-15 (NIV) “Stand firm, then, with the belt of truth, buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.”

 

• Ephesians 6:16-17 (NIV) “In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

 

I Apologize, Miley Cyrus

 

 

“But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a millstone hung around his neck and be thrown in the depths of the sea.”

Matthew 18:6 (NIV) 

 

There was a Hannah Montana doll at a garage sale the other day and it instantly reminded me of the shocking performance at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards by Miley Cyrus, who played Hannah Montana. When all the news outlets began talking about what she was doing on stage I decided that since I worked with teens at the time, I should Google the awards program and see what the commotion was all about. My heart was broken at what I saw.

 

I was stunned by two things: first, at her sexually explicit performance on stage in front of literally millions of people, including young girls who idolized her. As I watched her, it looked and sounded to me like one huge scream from a little girl drowning in the ocean: “Look at me! Please, somebody help me! I have nothing to hold on to, I have no safety net and I’m scared. I’m sinking under the water and no one cares . . . NO ONE!”

 

And second, where were her protectors, her body guards to keep her from harm? Well, her mother was on her feet, clapping thunderously with the audience as they gave her daughter a standing ovation. Her dad, who was not present for the “performance” said that she was still his little girl and he was still her dad “regardless how this circus we call show business plays out. I love her unconditionally and that will never change.”

 

We SHOULD love our children unconditionally but my question would be . . . if you knew it was a circus, why didn’t you pull her out of the tent when she was growing up? Did you share there were lions and tigers in that circus that would rip her to shreds? As we guide and direct our children, we owe them the courtesy of saying “Precious daughter, you are not going to dress provocatively. No, you are not dating at such a young age. Yes, I say no because I love you enough to be honest with you.”

 

 I know that when kids become adults, they make their own choices. But what happened to Destiny Hope Cyrus on that journey to adulthood? That’s what her parents named her when she was born. Destiny stands for “future” and Hope means “dream.” Somehow I cannot believe that those two parents wanted to see their daughter reach her future dream on stage in underwear nor can I believe that that is what Miley herself saw as her future.

 

And yet the very people in her life – the responsible guardians of this young woman’s heart – were cheering her on as she slid under the water of despair with not one life vest thrown to save her.  But there is another part of this story that also bothers me terribly.

 

 I saw the inappropriate acting out of this beautiful young woman when she was a young girl. I saw pictures of very questionable photo shoots . . . and yet I kept on buying from her clothing line for my little girls and allowing them to watch her movies. Shame on me because I, too, looked the other way as she began to drown and I did nothing. Oh, no, wait. I DID do something. I stood on MY feet and clapped thunderously with the audience, just like her mother. How, you might ask?  I supported her lifestyle with what I bought in the stores with her name on the tag. But not anymore.

 

I will no longer watch her movies or videos or buy her clothing. I will not purchase anything that she endorses. But I will pray for her because, more than anything, I want to let this young lady named Destiny Hope Cyrus know that she is valuable, priceless, and precious to the Lord without performing in a circus. That she was bought with a price by the King of Kings because He loves her deeply as His child.

  

I apologize, Miley, for not throwing a life jacket to you and for buying tickets to see you perform in the circus. Please forgive me.  

 

Father, please forgive me for turning a blind eye to this precious child when she was searching for you. Please give me courage and wisdom to speak. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

 

R.A.P. it up . . .

 

Reflect

• Have you ever ignored warning signs in the life of a young person who needed direction?
• What was your reason for not speaking up or trying to help?

Apply

• Before you buy certain items for your children or yourself, double check who backs them or what person has that line of clothing, music, etc.
• If their behaviors are questionable or go against your Christian principles, look for similar items that can replace them.

Power

• Matthew 18:6 (NIV)  “But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a millstone hung around his neck and be thrown in the depths of the sea.”

 

• Matthew 18:10 (NIV) “See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.”

 

• Psalm 139:13 (NIV) “For you created my inmost being, you knit me together in my mother’s womb.”

 

The Missing Puzzle Piece

 

“. . . He has also set eternity in the hearts of men . . .”

Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NIV)

 

 “What’s da matter with dis ting?” I heard the frustrated little voice ask. I turned around to see what “dis ting” was and bent down, face to face, with one of the 4 year old boys in my Joyful Noise Sunday school class.

 

He could not get a piece of his puzzle to fit where he thought it should go. He had repeatedly twisted the puzzle piece at every angle but while it was similar in shape, it was not the right one. He finally took his fist and began pounding on the puzzle piece, as if he could somehow beat it into the hole. And yet, it still did not match up.

 

I knelt down beside him and quietly shared “The reason that puzzle piece won’t fit in that space is because it isn’t the same shape. We need to look around and find one that is the very same and see if it will fit.” But he shook his head. “Nope. I think I just need to keep hittin’ it with my fist ‘til it goes in,” he responded.

 

I looked through the remaining pieces on the table and found the correct one. “Only one puzzle piece is exactly like that space. Why don’t we try this one and see if it will work?” I asked him. Grudgingly he took it from me but instantly smiled as it fit perfectly in the puzzle. “Thanks,” he told me, “but that other one would have fitted if I hit it a few more times with my fist.”

 

Sound familiar? That’s exactly us when it comes to life. We all have a void inside and nothing will fill it except Jesus. Oh, we can try to fill it with other things – and we do. We try money or a career or relationships. We may even try to put family in that spot and push and shove to make it fit.

 

That might result with the appearance of “fitting” and result in temporary happiness but it will never be the exact fit that will bring us joy and peace for all  eternity.

Solomon, the writer of Ecclesiastes 3:11, understood. He wrote that God “has also set eternity in the hearts of men.”

 

Solomon had it all: wisdom beyond compare, wealth with no equal, every pleasure that money could buy. And yet he knew that his heart was not complete – that the pieces of his life did not fit together – without God.

 

God has placed an empty spot for a puzzle piece in our hearts. What puzzle piece will you choose to fit in that space? I choose Jesus.

 

Father, thank you for giving me your son to fill the longing in my heart for a place in eternity with you. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

 

R.A.P. it up . . .

 

Reflect

• Have you ever felt a longing in your heart for more than just what the world offers?

 

• What worldly solutions have you tried to satisfy that longing? Did anything work?

 

 

Apply

• Journal those things in your life that are puzzle pieces you have used to try to fill the void in your heart.

 

• Read today’s Ecclesiastes 3:11 aloud, replacing the word “eternity.” with each of those things. Compare them with the gift of eternal life with Jesus.

 

Power

• Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NIV) “. . . He has also set eternity in the hearts of men . . .”

 

·  Psalm 63:1 (NIV) “O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

• Psalm 42:1 (NIV) “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.”

Judging By a Nose

 “Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment.”

John 7:24 (NIV)

A friend of mine remembers her first experiences as a licensed driver at age 16. Not because she had accidents or near-accidents (although I am sure there may have been some). But she remembers distinctly having to tilt her head up at an angle to see over the dashboard every time she drove. The reason? She was not very tall and their family car was huge. So the only way she could see clearly was to do a “nose in the air” pose.

 

One day at high school there were class changes and she found herself in a room with some girls she didn’t know. As they became acquainted, the girls chatted about clothes, music and getting their licenses and my friend shared her frustration at being so short that she had to constantly peek over the dashboard as she drove.

 

Only later did two of the girls tell her: “We always saw you driving with your nose up in the air and we thought you were a snob. You never looked at us or even waved. We want to apologize because we judged you on something silly without even knowing you or what was going on.”

I think we have all had that same thing happen at least once in our lives. Someone judged us unfairly and based their opinion on something totally wrong. But let’s take it one step further: have WE been the ones doing that judging? 

How about the time we saw two people together talking and we assumed and judged a relationship that was not there. Then we shared our assumption repeatedly until it became “fact.” Or the time we overheard one comment during a conversation and built a story in our minds that had no basis in fact at all. And we shared our opinions. And people were hurt.

 

In John 7:24, Jesus speaks very clearly concerning making assumptions and judging. He doesn’t say “If someone judges you, judge them back.” or “Only judge when you have the facts.” No, He leaves no doubt in what we should do when He says “Stop judging by mere appearance.” Stop it. Don’t do it. Period. 

Why not simply lift up that person in prayer and say “Father, I am not sure if there is something going on in her life but I AM sure that you know.” There is only one outcome for judging and jumping to conclusions: missing the target and landing face down in a heap of embarrassment and regret. God’s job is to judge. Our job is to pray. Even when it comes to a nose pose. 

Father, forgive me for those times when I have assumed and judged someone instead of praying. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

R.A.P. it up . . . 

Reflect

• Have you ever had a rumor told about you that was based on a completely wrong assumption?

• Have you ever judged someone because you made an incorrect assumption about a situation? 

Apply

• The next time you are tempted to assume and judge a situation by what you have seen, stop and put yourself in that person’s place immediately.

• Then lift them up to the Lord and thank Him for being in control of all things.

Power 

• John 7:24 (NIV) “Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment.” 

• James 5:9 (NIV) “Don’t grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!”

• Luke 6:31 (NIV) “Do to others as you would have them do to you.”