JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Light Reflection is from Ephesians 6:17.

Take….the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God.

The sword of the Spirit is armor of light that helps us to go on offense in our spiritual battles. This sword is God’s Word.

Many of the weapons of righteousness are defensive in nature, designed to protect us from the attacks of the enemy in the heavenly realms. But the sword of the Spirit helps us to advance the Gospel by applying the word of God in our conversation and daily activity.

In order to apply God’s word, we need to know it. That is where we are blessed by opening our mind and heart to what God is saying to us in the Bible.

The word of God is effective for helping us to know God, overcoming temptation, preparing us for effective service, and for sharing good news with others.

This Light Reflection inspires us to stand firm in the faith with the sword of the Spirit in the Year to Shine.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

John Shirk-Today’s Good News Focus is on Ephesians 6:17.

“Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

God’s salvation is reliable to protect us from the threats of our enemies in the spiritual realm. Nothing in all creation can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus. There is another place in the New Testament that refers to the helmet of salvation. First Thessalonians 5:8 urges us to put on the hope of salvation as a helmet. When we live with the awareness that God protects our soul, we live with a sense of security that our lives are in God’s hands, and that our future is with Him forever.

The sword of the Spirit is the word of God, serving as a reliable offensive weapon against the forces of darkness in the heavenly realms. Darkness retreats in the presence of light. Satan retreats when we break out God’s Word and live by it.

Jesus is our Source of Good News, leading us to places of light, hope, and salvation in the Year of Vision.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com

JOHN SHIRK – I Peter 1:23 and 24 says, “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For, ‘all men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.’”

Generations have come and gone, but God’s Word is still with us and is still the best-seller. As surely as God exists, His word will endure with Him.

Some people might try to dismiss the Bible as an ancient book that is outdated and old-fashioned. However, through the prophet Jeremiah, we learn of the value of God’s word to our soul.

In Jeremiah 6:16, this is what the LORD says, “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.”

The endurance of God’s Word means that the Bible is still relevant for our lives today, and it will be tomorrow, and into eternity. It will never wear out.

The endurance of God’s Word is a lesson of faith worth remembering.

John Shirk

john@wjtl.com