"Put on the whole armour of God,
that ye may be able to stand 
against the wiles of the devil."
- Ephesians 6:11

My mom loves to tell this story.

One morning, when I was about eleven or twelve years old, my mother came running excitedly to where I was at in the living room.  With a flustered look on her face, a hint of fear in her eyes and the sound of terror in her voice, she shrieked...

..."There's a snake in the bathroom!"

Being the "man of the house" with my dad away at work, I knew it was up to me to take on the snake.  I quickly gathered my gear to do battle.

Now, here's where my mom likes to take over and tell the story.  You see, my battle gear consisted of a pair of slippers for my feet (there wasn't enough time to search for my own shoes!), a quilt that I wrapped around myself like a coat (for protection, of course!) and a plastic baseball bat.  (Look out, snake!  I'm stepping up to the plate!)

My mom loves to tell about me, with a quilt draped around my shoulders, with her shoes on my feet and armed with a plastic bat...tiptoeing up to the edge of the bathroom, where I peeped 
around the corner ever so slowly before taking a step inside the room.

The mighty warrior was ready to attack!

I'm not really sure if the snake was intimidated by a twelve year old dressed in pink slippers with a wiffle ball bat, or if it was amused at such a spectacle and rushed off to get a camera, but for whatever reason, before I even took my first swing...the snake slithered away.

It wasn't exactly a game winning homerun...but it got the job done!

Christian, you and I, likewise, must prepare to do battle with a snake.  That's right, the serpent.  You know, lucifer...the devil, satan.   Granted, our gear is a little more reliable and powerful than house shoes and quilts, but, well, you get the idea.

Oh, we don't have pink slippers for our feet...but the Bible does tell us to have our "feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace."  And it's not a quilt wrapped around us that protects us from the enemy, but rather we are instructed to have "your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness, above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked."  Finally, it's not a plastic bat that is our weapon, instead we have "the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God."

Today, my friend, expect to find the enemy lurking near.  Don't be surprised to hear the spiritual equivalent of "there's a snake in the bathroom."  He's gunning for you.  He's relentless, he hates you, and ,according to John 10:10, he wants to "steal, kill and destroy."

There's only one thing you can do.  Be ready.  Get your gear out.  Seek God's face in prayer and Bible study.  Only a fool would do battle unarmed and unprotected.  That's why, right now, before you head into your day...

..."Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." - Ephesians 6:11