“In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;” (Ephesians 6:16, ESV)

Dear Friend,

Did you know that God has equipped us with tools to help us live a victorious Christian life?

It's true! We don't have the time to discuss them all right now, but I'd like to pick one that has really helped me in my faith journey. That tool is the "shield of faith" which Paul describes in Ephesians 6. In fact, Paul refers to this as one piece in our spiritual armor, and when used correctly, we can transform in our walk as disciples of Christ.

When I began to understand the benefits of my faith, and that I could use my faith to my advantage, my Christian walk became much more simple and, dare I say, effortless.

Before this time, I was up and down with my emotions. One day I was up, one day I was down; one day I was bitter and angry, and one day I was high in the sky with joy. In my time with the Lord (on one of those days), the Lord highlighted this behavior in my heart. He revealed to me that I was the problem, not the people or the situations around me.

Once again, God poked my religious bubble, and showed me my heart. During this time, God spoke something to me that I'll never forget. He said, "Precious daughter, if you're mad, offended, or bitter, it's because you are the problem." Whenever God reveals something like this to me, I've learned that it's best to say, "Yes, Sir," and ask for a solution because God is always right.

So now, God and I came up with this solution: if I notice harmful emotions or behaviors arising in my heart and mind, I calmly go to the Lord, and say, "Father, show me my heart; show me my part in this." And He lovingly reveals to me the issue inside of me.

You see, Christ paid for everything when He went to the cross. He paid for the forgiveness of our sins, but He also paid for our peace, for love, for our emotions, and much more (Isa. 53:5). God's love towards us can keep us in perfect peace no matter what's happening around us.

How?

By keeping our hearts and minds fixed on Him and His goodness because we trust Him above all else.

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” (Isaiah 26:3, ESV)

Your faith and trust in God will help you to rise above every storm and situation that you encounter in life. This is called your shield of faith.

Let's be reminded today that your faith is powerful! Here's a quick refresher of some of the things that your faith accomplishes:

• Faith is how we bring the unseen, spiritual promises contained in God's Word into our natural lives (Hebrews 11:1)

• Faith is how we please God (Hebrews 11:6)

• Faith is how we resist the devil and submit to God (1 Peter 5:8-9, James 4:7)

• Whatever doesn't come from our faith is sin (Romans 14:23)

• Faith gives your physical life strength, healing, and soundness (Acts 3:16)

• Faith gives you courage (1 Corinthians 16:13)

• Resisting doubt and trusting God helps you to experience the blessings contained in God's Word and glorify God in your everyday life (Romans 4:20, Hebrews 11:11)

These are amazing promises from Scripture that we can build our life upon!

You might be asking, "Erin, how on earth can I be such a faith warrior?"

Trust me, I feel the same way. Just remember that we don't have to do this perfectly. Faith is a journey and it requires faith to trust God. It's going to get messy, uncomfortable, and we are going to mess up. God doesn't expect you to see what's coming at the end of the road when He asks you to trust Him. That's why its called "faith." All God wants is for you to keep running back to Him, your loving Father, with an open, willing heart towards Him and the people around you.

But I will tell you a key that's helped me to use my shield of faith, so that I can access some of those amazing promises on that list. This key has literally transformed my relationship with God, my marriage, my relationship with others, my career, and the results I'm seeing in my life.

Practice thankfulness.

Thanksgiving is the key that will transform your Christian life, and help you to have effective faith.

“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.” (Colossians 2:6-7, ESV)

The same way that you got saved (by faith), just keep believing, keep trusting, and stay thankful. You abound in your faith by being thankful and you become more and more established in Christian principles. In short, your walk as a Christian starts to make more sense; it becomes simpler (less confusing with fewer ups and downs), and you see more and more victory in your natural life.

Today, use your shield of faith by trusting God and giving Him thanks no matter what comes your way. You'll be amazed to discover how your emotions level out and circumstances turn around for the better as you allow Christ in you (the Holy Spirit) to lead your life to victory.

To learn more about your faith and how to use it effectively, check out my book, Hello, New You!

Also, if you enjoy these newsletters and the things we're doing for God's Kingdom, we'd like to ask you to pray about partnering with us.

Our mission at New You Ministries is to help people understand who they are in Christ so they are set free to fulfill God's destiny for their life. We do this through the practical application of God's Word in every area of your life. Which is why we've created several resources and a Fitness Membership. These tools were created to help people realize that we, the body of Christ, can bring God into every area, so we can see transformation in our lives and in the culture. The more we as individuals are transformed into God's image, the more God is glorified, and the more our cities and nations will thrive as God intended them to.

We need partners to help us continue this work, so we can do more for the Kingdom! *We are a 501(C)3 non-profit charity, with an esteemed Board of Directors, and all your donations are tax deductible.

Check out our website, and share it with your friends and family, because we have a lot to offer you and your loved ones to advance you in your Christian walk.

Please continue to pray for us, for our protection, and that we speak His Word with love, boldness, and courage.

We're praying for you and trusting that God's perfect will is being done in you and your family's lives. Thank you for letting us be a small part of your faith journey!

We love you and thank God for you!

In Awe of Him,
Erin