...having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace... (Ephesians 6:15)
I lead a Bible study at my humble apartment and last Sunday we talked about the armor of God as Paul presents at the end of his letter to the Ephesians. The whole passage reads:
Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints... (Ephesians 6:14-18).
We talked about all these elements and the applications. This passage is so rich that we could easily spend a month talking about each element of the armor of God that Paul describes. The part that I had the hardest time wrapping my head around was the part about having to shod your feet with preparation. What was all that about? Luckily, some in our bible study use the NIV translation, which in this case I find easier to understand:
...and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace...
And just for fun I will also provide the ESV translation:
...and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace...
It was not until I went on a run through the woods yesterday that I got a glimpse into what it means to fit your feet with readiness. I had spent the weekend sitting at a swim meet and my body felt icky, it needed a workout. For some reason I feel a need to stay in great physical shape. It's not that I am training for anything in particular, I just feel a sense of calling in preparing my body to be ready for whatever might be thrown my way. If my body is a tool to be used for God's purposes, why would I let it go?
This has been a difficult period of my life. Those couple hours per day while I am on deck coaching are fun. I love being involved in children's lives and being of influence. But the rest of my time, I feel lost. What am I supposed to be doing? Little things I have been involved in since returning from Guatemala involve preparing and giving presentations about my trip, helping a tiny bit with communications for W.I.N.D., editing a yearbook for the children at HOREB, and preparing for a swim event to help bring clean water to a community in Haiti. Most of that has now ended and it is in this lull that I feel the implications of this verse as I run the hills.
Am I ready?
If God intended to use me, right now, at this moment, for His kingdom purposes, am I ready? Have I used the good news of His peace to prepare myself? Am I spiritually disciplined enough to handle tests and temptations that might come my way? Am I living my life in His spirit even in the dull times in my life? Have I given my body over to him, disciplining it, presenting my body as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is my reasonable service? (Romans 12:1)
When our lives feel boring and comfortable, it is at this time when it becomes of the utmost importance to fit our spiritual feet with readiness. We must prepare because God may choose to use us at any time. Our minds and our bodies must be given over to Him and we must be ready at any moment.
At the end of Paul's life, as he was facing his death in a Roman dungeon, he wrote to his disciple Timothy,
Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season... (2 Timothy 4:2)
We must be ready at all times. Let not the lulls of life lead us away from the Lord. We must not drift. We must stay ready, no matter the season of our life.
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