* IS YOUR HELMET ON? Part 1

Ephesians 6:11, 17 "Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God."



Before heading home we decided to do one more bike ride.  Our family spent a few days enjoying the breathtaking Sawtooth Mountains of Stanley, Idaho while soaking up the bike trails. 

On our way back to the cabin our boys rode in front of us and headed down the last precarious hill.  We were on a dirt road with lots of large rocks that partially stuck out.  We peddled faster to catch up to them.  

About this time, we heard the screams.  Not just any curdling pitch, but THE scream.  You parents know what I'm talking about.

Our youngest ran to us in hysterical sobs.  Blood was everywhere.  We jumped off our bikes and embraced him.  He kept repeating how much his head hurt.  We rushed back to the cabin.  Upon further inspection it was apparent he needed stitches in his chin.  His head appeared fine, though he continued to cry of how much it ached.

Our oldest proceeded to tell us the whole story. His front tire got jumbled on a rock causing his handlebars to tweak, which ensued the following face plant.  His head bounced off of a large rock half-way embedded in the road.  


I shudder to even consider the outcome of my son's story had his bike helmet not been on.  His head indeed bounced off the rock as his helmet disclosed a missing piece out of its side.  His head was shielded because of his helmet.


We too need to have our helmets on to be protected.  The enemy would like nothing more than to deliver crushing blows to our heads.  He wants to defeat us this side of heaven. Protection is vital because many battles in our daily lives are won and lost in our mind.  

Our mind has everything to do with our thoughts, which have everything to do with our hearts.  Sometimes our thoughts are negative, sinful, evil, and deceitful.  We don't have to be held in bondage to our thoughts.  We possess the power of the Holy Spirit to walk in victory and take captive our thoughts and make them obedient to Christ.

In Ephesians 6:10-18, Paul gives us the battle gear to defeat the onslaught of the devil's tactics in our lives.  Our battle is not against flesh and blood but against the powers of this dark world and the spiritual forces of evil.  We are instructed to put on the full armor of God.  Verse 17 tells us to "take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."

The sister passage to this is found in 1 Thessalonians 5:8 which says, "putting on the hope of salvation as a helmet."  Our hope of salvation is the confident expectation of eternal salvation. Our expectation of heaven gives us the assurance salvation brings each day. This should motivate and encourage us to press on because we know we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

We may know our future lies with God in heaven, but we live in the present.  We must understand how this helmet of salvation protects us between now and when we get to heaven.  This safeguard is crucial.

It's fair to say we've all been corrupted by the assault of evil, sinful and faith squashing thoughts.   As a mom I experience anxious thoughts over my children:  their health and safety, their very lives and their relationship with God.  Sometimes I allow my mind to go too far with the "what if's?" and I even catch myself playing out scenarios in my mind.  Periodically, doubts and insecurities as a wife, mom, speaker, writer and ministry leader also creep into my thought closet.

God makes it clear through His Word His desire for us to renew our mind to be like His.  He wants us to walk in victory and in Truth.  Romans 12:2 teaches us, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."  We are to renovate and change our thinking from the way the world thinks to the way God thinks.  "Metamorphoo" is the word used here for transformed; the same word we get for metamorphis.    

Our mind becomes transformed by His Word.  As we grow and mature in our faith we must intentionally regenerate our minds daily in the Word of God.  Getting His Truth in us is vital.  Our mind will never be adequately stable without being reinforced by knowing the all sustaining power of God's Word.  Only His Word holds the authority to destroy the fiery darts of our adversary.

Opportunities for mental attack await us each day.  We are inundated with lies delivered through media. Our minds are infiltrated with propaganda and deception from a culture steeped in hedonism (pleasure is the highest good), humanism (secularism) and pluralism (no absolute truth exists). The world pursues to brainwash and conform our mind.  The betrayer also seeks to strike our weaknesses to create discouragement and defeat.

It is time to take inventory of our thoughts.  Do they expose truth or deception?  Are they constructive or destructive?  Do they line up with Scripture or worldly philosophies?  By the power of the Holy Spirit we can clean out and sort the items in our thoughts that don't belong.  We need to be guarded from our assailant and keep our spiritual helmet in place.  

Do you have your helmet on?


Heart Work:
Share in the comments section a time when your helmet was on and God's Word delivered you from the onslaught of the deceiver.  Or, share a more vulnerable time when you weren't prepared and suffered the consequences.

Defeating Satan's lies is possible by refuting them with God's Truth.  What scripture can you memorize to defeat his attempts?  Check a concordance or go to BibleGateway.com and type in a key word to show related scriptures.

If you do not know what hedonism, pluralism and humanism are please make time to look them up and become familiar with them.  This trio surrounds us and impacts us in ways many may not even realize.


Heart Exam:
What battles currently rage in your mind?  What ungodly thoughts need to be thrown out?  

How and where are you allowing too much of the world in your mind?  What ways does the world pursue to conform your mind?

What devastating results await those who don't protect their minds with the helmet of salvation?


Heart Transforming Word:
2 Corinthians 11:3 "But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent's cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ."

Romans 12:2 "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."

Ephesians 6:13 "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."



Copyright 2010 by Hester Christensen.  Edited 2013.  All rights reserved.