God's Armor

   Towards the end of Randy Allen's sermon (First Baptist Church of Lindsay) on Sunday, he was discussing the need all have for "God's Armor". At the very end of his explanation of why all of us have that need, he told a personal story of how God's Armor has protected him from Satan - and even prevented his demise. Randy told this story to his congregation, so I'm sure he won't mind if I re-tell it to others, even though I don't know many details.
   In order to make a point of how important "God's Armor" is to everyone, whether they know it or not, Randy told us a quick story of him, his wife Dawn, and a young daughter. In 1992, he faced what would be his greatest trial in testing his faith as a Christian. It's the same test my brother, Johnny faced in 1994. His young daughter, on a Friday in 1992, was stricken with a brain aneurysm, and passed away two days later on Monday. Only a few know the grief associated with losing a child, and many simply can't go on - as evidenced this past week when Debbie Reynolds died of a broken heart soon after her daughter Carrie Fisher died at a relatively young age. Christ also died of a "broken heart", not of a spear in the side, as many believe - so it is a physical affliction.
   I know for a fact that Randy and Dawn's hearts were broken, but I also know that they survived this personal trauma, and became stronger - because of God's Armor. Many people can only imagine the heartbreak associated with losing a child, and still others believe they just could not go on if they lost a child. I also believe that Christians such as Randy Allen and Johnny Beckham are testaments in the need for God's Armor, for without this faith, everything is lost.
   This is a very short column/blog, and some might even consider it a sermon, but it's not. It's simply another very personal story (of which I seem to be publishing a lot of lately), but it's my right - since it is my column...