I think today’s reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is a good one for us to hear. Think about it – how often are we beset by all the frustrations of the world, and all of the sadness that our own lives can sometimes bring? I’m not saying that every day is horrible, but we all go through times when it seems like it’s too much, like one more phone call with bad news and we’ll explode.
And to all of that today, St. Paul advises us to “put on the armor of God.” You see, when things go wrong, we really have two choices. We can go to pieces, wondering where is God when we really need him, getting angry with God, ourselves, and others, and lashing out at anyone and everyone in our lives. Or, we can realize that what God allows isn’t always his will for us. In those times, we can join ourselves to him, and draw our strength and courage from the Lord himself, knowing that he walks with us in good times and in bad.
And I am sure we all know which choice the devil himself would make for us, right? That evil one wants to use the trying times of our lives – trying times that every one of us has at one time or another – to drive a wedge between God and us. We absolutely need the strength of God to guard against that “evil day.” And so, St. Paul tells us, “In all circumstances, hold faith as a shield, to quench all the flaming arrows of the Evil One.” And that shield, he says, is prayer: He writes, “With all prayer and supplication, pray at every opportunity in the Spirit.” Prayer and faith are the armor we need to get through the trying times of life without falling victim to the evil one.
Sometimes life can feel like a war, but as the Psalmist says today, “Blessed be the LORD, my rock, who trains my hands for battle, my fingers for war.” Our stronghold is that whatever life throws at us, we are never alone. Never.