Gear Up

“Use every piece of God’s armor…” As I sat with the Lord early one morning and read these words I had no idea that He was about to give me a deeper understanding of what it meant to put on and use every piece of His armor.

It all began with a prayer. “Lord”, I prayed, “please provide opportunities for Marc and I to spend more time together. Give us time alone to grow our relationship deeper and continue to give us joy in being in each other’s company. Keep our marriage strong. Help us to guard it as it is a precious gift from You.” Our marriage was already good but I wanted to spend more time together. And so I prayed. I prayed this for months. Now,
in my mind whatever the Lord chose to have my husband and I do to grow closer would be something I loved to do already and that I was comfortable with. So when Marc suggested I begin riding dirt bikes with him you can imagine my response. I knew this was not God’s answer so I quickly said “NO!”

I kept praying and my husband kept asking me to go riding with him and I kept saying no. One morning as the Lord and I sat together at the well of His Word and I asked Him again to give Marc and I time together He took my heart in His hands, you know the ones with the deep scars in the centers, and He said, “I already answered you. I want you to go dirt bike riding with Marc.” I can tell you that I immediately dug in my spiritual heels. But as I sat with He who loves me there in the stillness I knew I needed to say yes. “Okay, Lord,” I whispered, “this isn’t what I had in mind and I am scared but I’ll do it. I’ll do it scared.” With my knees shaking I left my quiet time and went to tell my husband that I wanted - “gulp” to go dirt bike riding.

My husband announced one morning after breakfast that he wanted to take me shopping. Ah, words every woman likes to hear. After breakfast we headed out for a morning of shopping. Instead of trying on sandals and cute outfits I was trying on heavy boots with steel toes and elbow guards and helmets that messed up my hair. What in the world was I getting myself into, I wondered as we left the store with our packages.

My friend, I can tell you I am so very thankful that I finally said yes to the Lord in what may seem to you a very strange and silly thing. The Lord has taught me many powerful lessons through dirt bike riding but I will always hold as such a treasure the first heart lesson He taught me. Grab some water and a helmet and come along.

It was May and Marc and I planned our first dirt bike adventure together. We were going to Big Bear for a few days. I was still very new to the sport and just beginning to shift into gears other than first. Since we would be trail riding and I had never been trail riding Marc brought home a DVD about it; which I dutifully watched. The DVD featured a happy family of four riding wide smooth trails through forests and past streams of flowing water. Oh, I could do this, I thought to myself.

We left on a Sunday afternoon right after church. We had borrowed a friend’s trailer to load our bikes and gear on and boy we looked good as we traveled down the road! We checked into a beautiful bed and breakfast tucked into the woods above the lake in Big Bear. We had a lovely dinner and took an evening stroll under a starry sky – it was perfect. Monday morning came and we got up early, went to Starbucks and headed for the trails. It was beautiful! The air was chilly, the sky bright blue, sun shining, birds singing. My husband and I were together sharing an adventure! We unloaded the bikes – and began putting on our gear.

First we put on long sleeved shirts and long pants made specifically for riding. Next, a kidney belt – I think to help hold things in when you are over 40 and riding a dirt bike. Then there is the chest protector. This fits over the entire upper body to protect both front and back. Next, boots. These are important to protect your feet and legs from rocks, branches or the ground when you fall. There are gloves to guard your hands. Next is the helmet which is very important to protect your head from serious injury. The goggles fit over the helmet and protect your eyes from dirt, bugs and rocks plus they help keep your vision clear. It’s important to see where you are going and they just look cool. Last the all important camelback. This holds water which you definitely need as you ride. It also is a great place to put your Bible, journal and other quiet time supplies. Putting on the gear takes time and effort. It also has to be put on properly – forgetting something could mean serious injury.

Gear in place we were ready to ride! Well it didn’t take long for me to begin wondering where all the beautiful wide, smooth trails were. To say it was rocky is an understatement. It was all rock – big rocks, small rocks, jagged, sticking up waiting to swallow me whole rocks. This was not at all like the DVD!! I was scared. At one point I began to cry and fogged up my goggles and had to quickly gain control of my emotions since I had to see. There were also many hills. I had zero experience in hill climbing let alone climbing hills of rock. I fell a lot!!

After we had been riding for about an hour and a half, Marc said, in his most patient and kind voice, “Honey, if you would just go a little faster it would be easier for you. The speed will carry you over the rocks instead of into them.” We turned to head back the other way and I began to do what he instructed and go a bit faster even though everything in me said it was a bad idea. But to my surprise it was true. As I went faster, I was no longer falling but skimming along and I no longer felt jarred by the rocky path. Then we came to a huge hill. I stopped at the top and peered down. I tried to swallow but found I couldn’t as my heart was in my throat. I wondered if a helicopter would have to air lift my body out of this place before this ride was done. I took a deep breath and rode down the hill. I did it!! My husband high fived me and I felt pretty proud. I had this trail riding thing down now.

We continued riding and I was beginning to relax a bit and take in some of the beautiful scenery. There were in addition to the rocks, beautiful trees and flowering shrubs and wild flowers, squirrels and many birds. Suddenly my rear tire hit something – probably some kind of rock – and I veered to the left. I quickly corrected to the right but hit something else and then I bounced back over to the left and caught a tree branch and then careened into an embankment at which point I left my bike – not by my choosing. I somersaulted and then hit the ground tumbling first and then sliding on my head (thankful for the helmet) and then did one more flip before stopping in a pile of bushes and rocks. Ouch!! I lay there for a moment taking in what had just happened and then I began to cry; I mean sobbing uncontrollably. My husband came running over and knelt down to assess if I was injured. I wasn’t – just scared out of my wits. We sat for several minutes and then like any sane person would do, I got back on the bike and continued riding for another 2 hours. I was stiff and sore for days but I gained a new appreciation for every piece of riding gear I wore.

That night as I lay in bed talking with the Lord about the day I thanked Him for watching over me and then I thanked Him for each piece of protective gear I’d worn and as I named each piece He brought to mind another kind of protective gear listed in Ephesians 6. As I realized that He was teaching me something wonderful I became so excited that I grabbed my Bible and hurried; well more like hobbled to the well and sat down at His feet.

As He spoke to me through His Word I made a list of the gear He wanted me to wear:
Belt of truth
Body armor of God’s righteousness
Shoes of peace that comes from the Good News
Shield of faith
Helmet of Salvation
Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God

We sat quietly as night sounds of the forest drifted in through the window and I recalled how each piece of riding gear had protected me that afternoon and then I thought of the full armor of God and how it would protect me as I rode life’s trails and how there would be rocks from time-to-time. “Lord”, I whispered. “Yes”, He who loves me said. “Thank you for the gear you provided for me. Please help me to be mindful of putting on each piece every day.” Later as I drifted off to sleep I realized the incredible answer to my prayer that I had lived out that day. My husband and I had shared a grand adventure on the trails that day and I thought about us in our riding gear flying down hills and over rocks. Then I thought about the grandest adventure of all that we shared; that of knowing God and as my eyes grew heavy my mind entered the land of dreams where I rode off into more adventures and I heard the voice of He who loves me thunder through the heavens as He said, “Daughter, gear up.”



Dear one, are you being jarred by the rocks of life? Are you sitting at the top of a terrifying hill? Let me ask you a question, do you have your gear on? You can’t buy this gear in a store. There’s only One who can provide it to you. Why don’t you stop now and have a conversation with the Lord about it.

Ephesians 6:10-17 (NLT)
A final word: Be strong with the Lord’s mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil. For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms. Use every piece of God’s armor to resist the enemy in the time of evil, so that after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground putting on the sturdy belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News, so that you will be fully prepared. In every battle you will need faith as your shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.