Talk of Battle

I have just become aware again of how important armor is when you're in the middle of a battle. And by battle I mean every day life. And by armor...I'm not sure what I mean because I don't understand it exactly; I don't know what it tangibly looks like or exactly how it works, but I do know that it consists of a belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, shoes fitted with readiness to share the gospel of peace, a helmet of salvation, a shield of faith, and the sword of the spirit. And what I also know is that it works - but maybe more importantly: you need it.
It almost seems ridiculous or sci-fi to me that we, as humans, are in a war every day of our lives, whether we are awake or sleeping, able to see it or not, or even if we're aware of it or not. Most people aren't. Most people would say that the things that you can see with your eyes are what's real; I'm almost tempted to say that the things you can't see with your eyes are what's real. And these things that you can't see are constantly waged in a battle for your soul, either driven by the God of Love or the Lord of Hate.
In the real world, or the world that we can presently see with our physical eyes, you would be a fool to step onto the battlefield without any sort of weapon or protection; you'd get seriously injured or killed instantly. But often that's what we do as both Christians and non-Christians. The only difference between those that know God and those that don't, on this level, is that we've been told about this war. But the thing that I don't understand is that if we've been given the heads up, why do we numbly read it and go on to the next page, why do we numbly hear it and go on like the way we've been living? We have this advantage but we don't do anything about it.
God told us about this war and he told us about the armor he gives us, the armor that makes it impossible for the enemy to penetrate when we're wearing it. And if God told us obviously it's important. But why don't we listen? It would seem to me that if someone knew of a battle they would do something, anything, to protect themselves and their family. And if it meant putting on armor and fighting, most people would do it.
Even if you're a Christian you're not invincible. Your heart may be saved by God and inhabited by the Holy Spirit at it's very core, but satan is very clever at getting that core to be so enbalmed with sin and darkness to a point that it almost becomes ineffective. That's his goal for our lives, to make us ineffective Christians. And making us ignorant about the spiritual battle and the armor of God is one way he does it, paralyzing our soft heart of flesh with coating upon coating of fear or any other sin is another. We as Christians are not invincible; we need to call out to God for help all the time. Better yet, we need to live every minute of our day with God, covered in the armor he gives, and let him stand there and fight for us whenever we approach anything harmful.
Satan hates us. He hates that we are Christians, and he hates that God loves us. He's doing his best day and night to pull us away from this love and make us unresponsive to it. So of course you're going to have battles and feel the effects of them. It's like riding in a motorboat; when you're moving the boat bounces up and down on the waves as you drive over them. Reversely, if you're not moving at all in the boat, you don't bounce. It's like our lives as Christians; if we're feeling the waves and being bounced up at down it's a good thing - that means we're moving. But if we are not feeling anything, whether it be growth in our relationship with God or opposition from the devil, that's no good; it means we're not going anywhere in our faith and satan is succeeding. When you start to become an effective Christian, loving everyone in your path and sharing God's joy with everyone you see, satan will start to fight you back. He'll fight you back and you better be wearing your armor. Good thing it's free and good thing it's 100% effective. Put it on every day, if not only for the great deal that it is.
But what are you going to do, keep sitting there numbly, or put on your armor and fight?