452 The Whole Armor of God, A Guided Christian Meditation on Ephesians 6:14-17 with the Recenter With Christ app

I'm Chaplain Jared and I work as a hospice chaplain and an ICU chaplain. My purpose in making this podcast is to help you find more peace in your life and to be more open for your heart to be changed by the Spirit of God. By using centuries old form of Christian Meditation named Lectio Divina:

Outline: Relaxation, Reading, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation and Visualization.

Get into a place where you can sit comfortably and uninterrupted for about 20 minutes.You should hopefully not be driving or anything tensing or unrelaxing. If you feel comfortable to do so, I invite you to close your eyes. Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation: Breathe and direct your thoughts to connecting with God. Let your stomach be a balloon inflate, deflate.

Bible verses for Meditation:

Ephesians 6

KJV 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

NIV 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Meditation:

In ancient times when men wore tunics, when they needed to move swiftly they would secure their tunic by grabbing the fabric between their knees and tying it to their belt. This would help them maintain their personal privacy as they moved quickly. It would help them guard their most sacred parts. This was called girding your loins. The truth is what protects the most hidden parts of who we are. If we are truthful we do not need to worry about being exposed.

Feet represent movement and action. Blessed are the feet of those who bring the good news of the gospel. As we learn to trust in Christ, we become prepared to take action in life with a right understanding of our needs before him. May we always be ready to perform the actions of the Lord

The shield is what protected the warrior from distant and nearby threats. Arrows could be deflected, and in closer combat, the shield made a frontal attack very difficult. So is our faith. As we maintain strong faith in Christ, it is extremely hard for the enemy to attack us, even from angles we don't currently see. Flaming darts from afar or swinging swords of those close by. Faith shields us against attacks to our trust in God.

The helmet protects our intellect and understanding. Our mind must be surrounded by understanding of the ways of God. Imagine a bike helmet that only covered one side of the head. Salvation covers us entirely. It protects us from all that we think, all that we are. God's salvation protects the most vital parts of our identity.

The only offensive weapon in the armor is the Spirit. We are not meant to be offensive in Christ's name but to speak truth, to live in meekness, and to ally with the Spirit which is what will be our only weapon to bring others to Christ.

May we put on the whole armor of God.

Meditation of Prayer:

Pray as directed by the Spirit.

Dedicate these moments to the patient waiting, when you feel ready ask God for understanding you desire from Him.

Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm:

I invite you to sit in silence feeling patient for your own faults and trials.

Summarize what insights you have gained during this meditation and meditate and visualize positive change in your life:

This is a listener funded podcast at patreon.com/christianmeditationpodcast

Updates:

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Final Question: What role does the Word have in your life?

This week I performed a funeral for a family from Africa. The amount of family that was physically present was not that large but there were many friends who were just as close as family in some ways and their presence and comfort was amazing.

Final Thought:

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