Living as Mothers Who Are Fighting an Unseen Battle

As moms, we fight a spiritual battle everyday on behalf of our children. We need to be prepared for that war. How can you be diligent and disciplined to fight this war?

The startling sound of the alarm clock filled the room. Rolling over and turning it off, I slowly pulled myself out of bed. In the span of an hour, I showered and dressed for work, let the dog out, made coffee, woke my children, and prepared breakfast. It was like every other weekday. I was going about my normal routine... but I was forgetting that I was in a war. That probably sounds silly. We mothers don't typically view ourselves as soldiers (more like referees, chefs, and chauffeurs!). But if you belong to Christ, you have been drafted into a holy war and it's a war we must be diligent and disciplined to fight.

Prepare for Battle

Sometime between 60-62 AD, the apostle Paul penned the book of Ephesians. In chapter six, beginning in verse ten, he said:

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.

I learned that passage when I was twelve years old. Today, some twenty years later, I can still find myself forgetful and unaware of the war I am in. Ashamedly, many times I slip into the same age-old pattern of spiritual laziness. I wake up and go about my daily routine, mothering and domesticating, but not wielding my sword, lifting my shield, buckling my belt... you get the idea. I forget that while I'm scrambling eggs at the kitchen stove, the rulers of the darkness of this world are already hard at work aiming arrows of poison toward my mind.

When I am folding a hundred pairs of little girl shirts or scrubbing dirt stains out of my son's school shorts, the forces of evil are screeching out battle cries to my children, attempting to malign the truth of the gospel and expose them to every wicked thing imaginable. When I should be watching and praying, I'm too often guilty of prayerlessness and easily distracted by the cares of the world, mundane chores, or the latest episode of my favorite show.

When the apostle Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus and encouraged them to be dressed in the full armor of God, he wasn't just talking to the men of the church. He was talking to the women too. God's Word commands all believers - men and women alike - to fight the good fight (1 Timothy 6:12), to resist the sinful desires of our flesh (1 Peter 2:11), to stand firm in the face of persecution and even death (2 Timothy 2:3-4), and to be armed with the same mind as Christ (1 Peter 4:1-2).

This means that we should wake every day ready to fight against all that is unholy. Evil is after our children, anxious to devour their innocence and lead them to destruction. As mothers, we have, not only the honor but the divine command to buckle the belt of truth around our waist as we talk to our children. To lift the shield of faith up high as we counsel their hearts, to wear our breastplate of righteousness securely as we cook and clean and serve our family, and to have our shoes of peace tied tight as we bring them to school, to church, to playdates and ball games. God tells us to stand in opposition against sin and cast down every lofty thing that dares to exalt itself above Christ.

As mothers, when our alarm clock goes off each morning, the fight begins. If we love our children, we will be mothers of war who do not hesitate to draw our swords.