Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
Colossians 3:2-3, NASB
Renewing our minds and deflecting the enemy’s advances to control them is not for the faint of heart. It requires vigilance. Aggressive, proactive attention.
I know one woman who has taken the concept of wearing her helmet very seriously. She is an extremely busy homeschool mom of five kids. As if that weren’t enough, she helps run the women’s ministry at our local church. I don’t know if I’ve ever met a woman whose schedule is more packed than hers. She’s like the Energizer Bunny—she keeps going and going and going … Which is why I was intrigued one day when I got in her car and noticed a small clip attached to her dashboard. Tucked inside it was a 3 x 5 card on which she’d written a Scripture verse. Just one.
When I commented on it, she explained to me that since she spent so much time running errands and getting kids from one place to the next, she’d decided to keep one verse on her dashboard for seven days. That way, all day long, whenever her eyes happened to land on it, she’d be reminded of its truth and encouraged to implement it in her life.
But wait, it gets better. Because by the end of that week, she was able to share with me how she’d not only memorized the verse, but could also relate several instances where that verse had “come to life” for her—informing her decisions, renewing her mind, changing her perspective, redirecting her responses and actions, allowing her to hear God’s guidance for specific situations that unfolded during her week. She explained that when thoughts contrary to the truth in that verse would seek to infiltrate her mind, she’d zero in on that 3 x 5 card and quote it out loud. She didn’t use her busy schedule as an excuse for being lax in putting on her helmet. She wanted to ensure that she was on guard and prepared for the enemy’s attempts to target her.
The fact is, when you are in a war, you don’t relax your resolve or disengage from active warfare. You don’t take a vacation. Not from this. You do whatever you need to do to keep that helmet on and in position throughout your day, every day. You “talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates” (Deut. 6:7-9). Or even on the dashboard of your car.
This is an excerpt from Priscilla Shirer’s new study, The Armor of God. Grab a copy at your local Lifeway store or order one online here.
