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<h3>10/4/2005</h3>

If you've ever been asked to write down a priority list in a small group, your list probably looked something this 

 1. God
 2. Wife/Family
 3. Church
 4. Work

Last night, I was thinking what does this really mean? to put God first? when have I put God first, over my wife? While there are a million ways you can put God first; obviously those of us here this morning have taken the first step on that journey, Showing up at 5:45 AM to pray.  So now in conjunction with Church and Small Group you are up to ~5 hours, that's almost 1/2 of a 10% tithe of time!

Yet, the real message I want to get to in terms of putting God as a priority ties deeply into Jim's email from this past week; the Full Armor of God. If God were really a priority, The our armor would be out, polished to spit shine, all ready to go; instead I fear to often is is rusting away in the mildew of our basements.

I want to tackle this issue head on; what does it mean to prepare for God, and show up in the whole armor of God? To do this, lets first talk about the reason its necessary!

Satan is like a Roaring Lion seeking to devour us(1 Peter 5:8). Everyday we are out there, battling him whether we are aware of it or not.  So what tools does Satan use to attack us? our past behavior, and current circumstances. Lets look at a typical scenario, You or I are watching TV, and an attractive lady comes on a commercial, seductively advertising... perfume. What is our reaction? What should or reaction be? If your breastplate of righteousness is firmly attached, you may not have really had the TV on, or you may have immediately turned away. You may have turned away, and pulled out your sword of the spirit, and told the Devil to leave, for the Lord our God has said "The marriage bed shall be kept pure" (Hebrews 13:4) Any of you who have experienced this, or seen real armed combat knows that one stroke isn't going to end anything, so the father of deception comes right back at you, he may even use Gods word, pointing out Mathew 5:28, But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. This is where the Shield of faith is essential, with the shield of faith, we know that  we are forgiven, and made clean by Christ, not anything of our own doing. The devil may again swing at us with past behavior, telling use how horrible we were to look at women in the past, and yet we can continue with the shield raised high blocking the blows of the evil one.  We might hopefully finish the encounter off with a remembrance of Revelation 20:10, "10 And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever."

So my question to you is, how sharp are your swords, how ready is your plate mail, how high are you holding your shield. I encourage each and everyone of you to make it a priority this week to look at your life and ask, where is Satan attacking, and what swords do you have ready to take him down with? If you are at all like me, you will be embarrassed by how shoddy your armory is, I challenge you to flip through your bibles, concordances etc and find some choice swords that you can use in your specific battles. I'd love to see what weapons you find, If you'd be so kind to share them with the email list! because, all sins are common to man, and I'm sure many of us are dealing with the same issues you may be. 

1 Corinthians 10:13
 No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it
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