The Shield Above All

And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. (Ephesians 6:15-16)

The armor of God includes the feet of  the “preparation of the gospel of peace.”  Preparation takes time. The gospel of peace isn’t a sprint; it’s a lifestyle of daily grounding ourselves in the Word of God. These shoes represent the shoes Roman soldiers would wear into battle. You don’t just “wing” warfare; you walk into it with readiness born from time in the Word. If your feet aren’t prepared, every attack will feel personal instead of positional.

Peace doesn’t mean passivity; it means presence. It’s the quiet confidence that no matter what erupts around you, your feet are planted in truth.

Paul wrote about one piece of armor that is to be “above all,” namely, the shield of faith, which goes in front of all the other pieces. The shield doesn’t hang behind you; it’s the first thing the enemy encounters. When the devil hurls lies, doubt, and fiery accusations, your shield is your declaration of what you believe. Faith is your announcement that you’ve already chosen your side. The Greek word pistis means trust, conviction, confidence. Faith doesn’t ignore the fiery darts of the enemy; it is the means to extinguish them. Every flame meant to burn you dies when you speak your declaration of faith. The first thing the enemy will see when he attacks a believer is whether your faith is being held up. You must declare God’s Word in the face of fear.

Practical Application

Begin your morning by reading the Word aloud. Don’t just let your eyes scan the page; instead, let the words come out of your mouth. This trains your spirit to speak before stress can tell it what to do.

1 John 5:5; Proverbs 18:10