ROOTED RENEGADE

When you see a picture of fire many things come to mind. A house on fire. A car on fire. The Hunger Games book, “Catching Fire”, etc. None of these are what I am referencing when I say, “Catch Fire”! Far too often, those of us who have survived various forms of trauma, still walk around very broken. So much so, that we carry tattered gear with us every day. We put on the Armor of God every morning, or maybe after we start our days, in an attempt to protect ourselves from the enemy that fights so hard against us, but our protective gear is so frayed and damaged that it is in great need of repair. The Armor of God is not flawed by any means, so please do not mistake what I am trying to say. It is our gear that is damaged. The grave clothes we still carry from our trauma.

When a soldier goes into battle there are several things he wears before he suits up in his armor. He has to first put on some clothes! You are probably thinking right now, WELL DUH! I already knew that! I am sure you did. But did you really think about the condition the clothing has to be in before he places his armor on his body? Stop just for a minute and contemplate whether or not each piece has any frays or tears. Any holes. Are any of the seams coming apart at all? One loose thread? Forgive me if I am wrong, but do they not have to make sure their uniforms are in good condition before they put on their battle armor? What would happen if a soldiers pants started to rip open while on the battlefield? One would think that would cause a distraction, would it not?

It honestly was not until I decided to write this and seriously consider how I was putting on the Armor of God every day that I realized I was still wearing grave clothes. Figuratively speaking of course. Unlike a soldier, I was wearing tattered clothing from my trauma that I didn’t realize I still had on. While I fought the enemy every day with the Armor of God, the enemy found the holes in my gear. Notice I said “my gear”. Not God’s gear, but mine. All too often we put on God’s gear but operate in our own. We wear old clothes like they serve us with some purpose. We walk in past hurts, past mistakes, past traumas and don’t realize they are doing us a great disservice until the flood gates are opened after the enemy penetrates our armor. While our armor should be of God’s strong material, it should be fierce, it should be solid, it should be able to withstand attacks of the enemy as it states in Ephesians 6:10-19. We must shed the grave clothes first and foremost and operate in the power of Jesus Christ and not ourselves.

When Jesus rose from the grave on the third day and came to Mary, he was NOT WEARING HIS GRAVE CLOTHES! He was not wearing anything left behind from his death. Nothing but HIS SCARS! This is so profound to me. What does this mean for you and me?

CATCH FIRE! CATCH THE FIRE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT LIVING INSIDE OF US! COMPLETELY! GET RID OF THE GRAVE CLOTHES! PUT ON THE TOTAL ARMOR OF GOD! OPERATE IN THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT!

Do not operate as the world does! That serves no purpose at all. It provides no comfort. Just as a soldier, wear the right armor every day on top of clothes that are not from past hurts, wounds, traumas, etc. Just as Jesus, get rid of the grave clothes! Beautiful, beautiful warriors!!! Scars we will have, grave clothes we shall shed! Let Yahweh speak to those broken places and bind up the wounds! Let Him set your soul on fire!!!

Day 5 – Off the Grid!

If you want to join me in the “Off the Grid” Challenge you can always text OTG to 513-268-0756 Church on Fire (Harrison, Ohio) and you can visit their blog at http://www.mycfm.org/blog/