Tuesday; July 28

          If you have ever worn a uniform in service to your community or your nation, you understand that it is more about the clothes – it is about the commitment.  Whether your uniform was in the military service or public service it symbolized a promise you made to protect and serve a system of values greater than yourself and the people in your care.  Your uniform served as protection, but it also made a point.  It was more than style, it was substance and it represented something about who you were. 
          As I got to thinking about uniforms, I was reminded of a passage in the New Testament in which Paul described what he would call the armor of God by noting, “Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:14-17).  While it goes without saying that these components prepare us for a spiritual battle, displaying them also makes a statement about our commitment to God and one another.  Just like wearing a uniform is more than cool, putting on the armor of God is more than socially fashionable, it is a declaration of our service to God.
          What does the world see us wearing – the comfortable attire of complacency or the loyal armor of God?
          Think About It!

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