Whole Armor of God: Feet and Shield

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Close your eyes and make sure your body feels relaxed and supported. Let go of any tension in your face, jaw, neck, and shoulders. 

Take a few deep breaths. Inhale peace, calm, humility, and openness. Exhale tension, negativity, pride, and stress from your body and mind.

In this state of calm receptiveness, say a quick prayer that you will be open to any revelation the Lord has for you as you ponder.

As your breathing returns to normal, turn your thoughts and attention to the metaphor of putting on the whole armor of God. Allow your heart or mind to notice anything that feels personal, timely, or meaningful. Don’t worry about focusing on every quote or question I share. 

Feet

Moving on to the feet, Paul says they should be “shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;” (Ephesians 6:15.) Harold B. Lee interpreted this to mean that “our objectives, the goal we set out to achieve in life [should] be in harmony with the gospel of peace;” (Harold B. Lee, “Powers of the Gospel,” October 1949 General Conference.)

What are you walking toward in your life? If you were a character in a classic novel, what would a literary critic describe as your character arc? What would readers understand as being your goals and motivations? Consider asking someone who knows you well what they view as your main objectives in life. See if any adjustments are needed.

Paul instructs us to shoe our feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace. What is the significance of Paul calling the gospel a “Gospel of Peace” in a metaphor of a soldier putting on armor? What does peace have to do with how we prepare to stay strong in the Lord and withstand the adversary’s attacks?

In a 1978 talk entitled “Bind on Thy Sandals,” then-Elder Howard W. Hunter told a story of a fourth-string high school quarterback who never got a second of playing time. On the last game of the season, this young man took his shoes off, wrapped himself in a blanket, and settled in to watch his teammates play. Partway through the game, though, his coach yelled at him to get in the game. The young man panicked and ran onto the field in his white stockings. His panic about his lack of footwear distracted him from remembering what play he called, and he ended up running the wrong direction after the snap. He was then tackled by a pile of lineman. He later said: “No one expected me to make a touchdown. Even running the wrong way was understandable. But there was no excuse for a quarterback without shoes.” (Elder Howard W. Hunter, “Bind on Thy Sandals,” General Conference, April 1978 (Quoting Improvement Era, Sept. 1969, p. 44.)).

I’m sure you can see the parallels with shoeing your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace here. Take a few moments to ask yourself, “are there any ways in which I am, or am at risk of being, a quarterback without shoes?” 

Elder Hunter then urged those listening to “keep their gospel shoes on, to believe in the opportunities that lie ahead. I am reminded of what Abraham Lincoln said when he sat on the sidelines for a long time, losing election after election and struggling to make a professional contribution. He said simply, ‘I will prepare, and perhaps my chance will come.’ He lived long enough to learn what everyone learns—that chance always favors the prepared life.” 

Elder Hunter concluded with this message to the youth of the church in 1978: “prepare, believe, be ready, have faith. Do not say or do or be that which would limit your service or render you ineffective in the kingdom of God. Be ready when your call comes, for surely it will come. Keep your gospel shoes on, or as Paul wrote to the Ephesians, ‘Stand therefore, having … your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.’ (Eph. 6:14–15.) The Lord would say to you tonight what the angel said long ago to Simon Peter: ‘Arise. … Bind on thy sandals. … Follow me.’ (Acts 12:7–8.).” (Elder Howard W. Hunter, “Bind on Thy Sandals,” General Conference, April 1978.)

Do you feel prepared to answer any call that the Lord has for you? If not, what is standing in your way? How can you bind on your sandals and follow Christ? How do you shoe your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace? 

Shield

Next, and as Paul says, “above all,” we need a “shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.” Ephesians 6:16.

In his millennial warning mentioned in the introduction of this series, President Faust promised that in increasingly complicated and evil-filled times, “faith will be the sanctuary for our souls.” (James E. Faust, “The Shield of Faith,” April 2000 General Conference (citing Discourses of Brigham Young, sel. John A. Widtsoe (1954), 72.)).

He explained that “To sustain faith, each of us must be humble and compassionate, kind and generous to the poor and the needy. Faith is further sustained by daily doses of spirituality that come to us as we kneel in prayer. It begins with us as individuals and extends to our families, who need to be solidified in righteousness. Honesty, decency, integrity, and morality are all necessary ingredients of our faith and will provide sanctuary for our souls.

Simple faith in God the Father; His Son, Jesus Christ; and the Holy Ghost is like a supercharger operating in our lives.”

“Righteousness is a companion to faith. Strong faith is earned by keeping the commandments.”

What does it mean to “have faith”? What do kindness, generosity, compassion, honesty, decency, integrity, and morality have to do with faith? Does your faith feel like a shield to you? How can you increase your faith?

President Faust also declared that “There are for this people some absolutes upon which our faith must rest. They are basic, eternal truths. They are that:

1. Jesus, the Son of the Father, is the Christ and the Savior and Redeemer of the world.

2. Joseph Smith was the instrument through which the gospel was restored in its fulness and completeness in our time.

3. The Book of Mormon is the word of God and, as the Prophet Joseph Smith said, is the keystone of our religion and another testament of Jesus as the Christ and the Redeemer of all mankind.

4. [Our current prophet] holds, as all of the preceding Presidents of the Church did, all of the keys and authority restored by the Prophet Joseph Smith.”

How are you doing with these absolutes? Does your faith rest on them? Are there any you could use more clarity on? Write down any questions you have about these basic eternal truths and make them the subject of your scripture study, fasting, and prayer. 

When you are ready, take a deep breath and slowly turn your awareness back to your body. As you open your eyes and return to your surroundings, jot down any thoughts, promptings, or questions that came to mind while you were pondering. Stay tuned for the rest of this series on the Whole Armor of God. If you’d like to study in between segments, read Ephesians chapter 6 and Doctrine and Covenants 27. Also, if you enjoy this podcast, please leave a review and let me know I should keep making it. Thank you!