You're Strong Enough (3 page)

Therefore, our Heavenly Father made sure He made each of us strong enough to overcome anything we would ever face in our Earthly life, through our own mistakes or by Satan’s evil designs.
Our Heavenly Father told us He would provide everything we needed in order to return to Him and become the prince and princess He wants us to be.
His first suggestion was for us to pick from our friends those we would want to be in our Earthly family. These Heavenly friends would be our greatest strength on Earth. He knew these Heavenly friends would have more influence on us and our life than any other humans could. They would bring out the best in us, and test us. God further explained, if they are true to their course, they would be our best companions on our personal Earthly quest.

Our Heavenly Father helped us create our Earthly family because He knew we could not achieve our quest
alone.

After He advised us and warned us about choosing our family, He cautioned that some family members would lose their way. They would make poor choices that might hurt us. We would need to do whatever we could to strengthen ourselves and other members of the family to keep them and ourselves safe.
He reminded us that we would each bring unique talents and gifts to the table to encourage, uplift and strengthen the other members of our family.
He also explained there would be times when it will be hard to love our family. He told us not to give up on each other; for Satan will do everything he can to destroy the family unit.

God then tells us that, once we choose our family, then our parents and siblings will always be our parents and siblings. Our Heavenly Father reminded us that we chose each other to assist each other on Earth. Therefore, He told us to forgive them and love them with all our hearts for they, too, would be on a quest constantly fighting Satan, the dragon, while trying to stay true to their course. They too would be striving to receive all that Heavenly Father had promised them as a prince or princess in His Kingdom. As our Heavenly Father finished helping us create our family unit, He then expressed with a full tender heart to please help each other down on Earth for Satan is our enemy, NOT each other.

Parents

As we were creating this family, our Heavenly Father asked us to take special care in choosing our parents. Our parents would be sent first to Earth, to learn how to fight the dragon. They would be able to experience life first, with all the ups and downs in relationships, finances, health, sickness, joy, pain and love. They can teach us and give us guidance and advice on what would help or hinder our life while completing our quest. Ultimately, our parents would teach us what would make us happy and what would make us miserable.

Father encourages us during our quest to counsel with our parents, talk with them, listen to them and to trust them. As parents, their main job is to teach and to instruct us about good and evil.

God also wants us to remember that there are always consequences of poor choices and rewards for good choices. Our job, as kids, is to learn and grow while watching our parents as role models. He further tells us that some of our parents would lose their way. If that happens, we are to look to other good adult role models as examples.

Our Heavenly Father reminds us that when our parents are doing the best they can they will be our greatest assets on Earth. He asks us to remember, when we get angry at them that we chose them as parents. He urges us to be patient with them and forgive them when they make choices that are wrong or hurtful.

After discussing family and parents, our Heavenly Father gave us some gifts and talents to increase our chances of being successful on our quest.
Each quest is individually suited for our ultimate growth.
At times, we will be tested to the brink of our capacity. So, our Heavenly Father gave us everything we would need to conquer and overcome the dragon, Satan. He gave us talents to enjoy and enhance our journey, and gifts to overcome the obstacles. After bestowing upon us the gifts and talents we would need for the scratches and cuts we may encounter on our quest, our Heavenly Father then placed a set of armor in front of us that, if used, will ensure our success.

The Armor of God

The armor of God is the added protection we will need to defeat and endure the fiery dragon (Satan) that awaits us on Earth. This armor is spoken of in Eph. 6:11, “Put on the whole Armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”

Our Heavenly Father presents us with the sword of the spirit, the helmet of salvation, the shield of faith, the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth and the shoes of the Gospel. He explains that each piece combined will assist us on our quest through the obstacle course of our life.

Before explaining each piece, our Heavenly Father warns us that we will encounter temptation, anger, hurt, betrayal, divorce, depression and many other feelings of darkness that can thwart our success and happiness. Therefore, our Heavenly Father counsels us to use all the armor of God constantly throughout our lives because Satan wants us to be miserable and lose our eternal reward.

The Sword of the Spirit

The sword of the spirit is the Word of God, as mentioned in Heb. 4:12, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword…”

Just as a sword is a weapon used to strike or defend against an enemy, the Word of God has power to destroy the dragon that lies waiting to destroy us with its fiery darts of lies. Our Heavenly Father has sent others before us (prophets and Jesus Christ the Savior) to write the Word of God (the Scriptures). As we follow the Scriptures—which tell us what to do, how to avoid obstacles, what road leads us back to God, and what cliffs and dark forests to avoid (i.e. sin and temptation)—we will be led safely home.

Our Heavenly Father tells us if we want to be successful on this quest, then we must read the manual (scripture) from the one (Jesus Christ The Savior) who conquered His quest before us.
The Scriptures tell us everything we must do to defeat the dragon and conquer our quest successfully.

The Breastplate of Righteousness

A breastplate protects the most vital parts of our body, such as the heart and lungs. Similarly, righteous thoughts and deeds will protect us from the evil temptations of Satan. In 1 Cor. 15:34 it states, “Awake to righteousness, and sin not…” We must use the righteous example that comes from Jesus Christ and “sin not” to shield us from Satan.

Our Heavenly Father encourages us to keep our thoughts and minds clean from sin, lack of forgiveness, hate and revenge, so that we will be able to see the dangers on our path before they befall us.
He warns us that, when we do not make righteous choices, we will be letting Satan be the puppeteer in our lives. Similarly, as we act and make good and righteous decisions, we will become stronger and, as we become stronger, we will be able to scare off the dragon for fear we will conquer Him
again.

The Belt of Truth

The belt of truth defends us from Satan, the Father of Lies. If we are honest, as stated in John 8:32, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free,” we will be made free. Free to follow the course our Heavenly Father sees for us, not the one Satan wants us to follow.

Just as belts are used in battle to strengthen the uniform as a whole and protect some very vital parts of our bodies, truth will keep us strong and true to whom we really are and what we can accomplish. Learning and holding onto the truths taught in the Scriptures (that we are of royal birth sent on a quest to prove ourselves) will help protect us from Satan’s lies that we are worthless and not strong enough to endure. Holding onto truth and integrity will always set us free and keep us true to our course in our own life.
Being true to yourself will allow you to keep your eyes on the road and never have to look back to see if the lie you told is following you.
Truth will keep you from being distracted and falling off your path.

The Shoes of the Gospel