The Heart's Armor: Breastplate of Righteousness

Summary

The breastplate of righteousness, as articulated in Ephesians 6:14, serves as both a profound symbol and a practical safeguard against the insidious attacks of the adversary on our hearts. In this enlightening discussion, Tamara K. Anderson, Tiffany Fletcher, and Karalee Anjewierden delve into the essence of this spiritual armor, emphasizing its critical role in protecting the most vulnerable aspects of our being—our emotions and our spiritual integrity. We share insights on how righteousness not only fortifies us against negativity but also cultivates a heart aligned with divine love and mercy. With a blend of warmth and wit, we explore practical strategies to embody righteousness in our daily lives, reminding ourselves that even amidst our imperfections, we can continually strive for growth and grace. As we navigate the complexities of our emotional landscapes, let us don this breastplate with intention and humility, ensuring that our hearts remain shielded from the adversary's deceptions.

Show Notes

The discourse unfolds with a profound exploration of the breastplate of righteousness as delineated in Ephesians 6:14, a crucial element of spiritual armor that serves to fortify one’s heart against the insidious attacks of the adversary. Tamara K. Anderson, Tiffany Fletcher, and Karalee Anjewierden engage in a thoughtful dialogue that unveils the significance of this metaphorical breastplate, emphasizing its role in safeguarding not just the heart, but also the essence of one’s emotional and spiritual well-being. With deft insights, Tiffany elucidates the symbolism inherent in the breastplate, noting its function as a protective barrier for the heart — the very seat of emotions, love, and vulnerability. She poignantly highlights how women, often characterized by their 'bleeding hearts', must be vigilant against the adversarial forces that seek to exploit emotional frailty.

As the conversation progresses, the trio deftly intertwines scriptural references with practical application, discussing how righteousness acts as a formidable shield. Tiffany’s analogy of the heart’s protective role resonates deeply, as she articulates that righteousness is not merely about adhering to moral codes, but rather about engendering a state of being that invites divine protection and guidance. The hosts further explore the dynamic interplay between righteousness and daily repentance, positing that each act of turning back to God replenishes the breastplate with the light necessary to fend off darkness. The episode invites listeners to reflect on their own lives, encouraging them to cultivate a righteous heart that is continually aligned with divine principles, thereby fostering resilience against spiritual adversities.

Takeaways

• The breastplate of righteousness serves as a vital shield, protecting the heart from the adversary's attacks, which often target our emotions and vulnerabilities.
• In our spiritual journey, we must engage in daily acts of righteousness that not only fortify our hearts but also illuminate our path, reflecting Christ's love.
• Righteousness is not merely a lofty ideal; it is a practical, protective measure that enables us to navigate life's challenges with grace and resilience.
• Our hearts, when aligned with righteousness, become vessels of love and mercy, allowing us to support and uplift others in their struggles and journeys.

Hosts & Guests

Tamara K. Anderson @tamarakanderson

Tamara, founder of Women Warriors of Light, is a dynamic speaker, award winning author, and a podcaster. She is driven by her Christian faith to inspire faith in Jesus Christ. Alongside her husband, Justin, she navigates the joys and challenges of parenting four children with autism, ADHD, and mental health hurdles. You can find out more about Tamara on her website: https://www.tamarakanderson.com/ 

Tiffany Fletcher @tiffnyfletcher

Tiffany is a member of our Women Warriors of Light advisory board. She is an author, wife, mother and an example of faith & courage. Through her life experiences she shares hope in coming from a place of darkness to light and love. You can find her on social media @tiffanyfletcher or on her blog: motherhadasecret.blogspot.com

Karalee Anjewierden @pocket.miracles

Karalee Anjewierden is an author, motivational speaker, and fulfilled mother of six. She has appeared on several podcasts and presented at various retreats and events. Karalee is an avid story seeker, passionate about connecting with people and places. She loves to travel and does so extensively, collecting new and wonderful stories, friends, and miracles she can share along the way. Find her online at www.pocketmiracles.com. She is also on Instagram and Facebook @karaleeanjewierden

Transcript

Tamara K Anderson

00:00:00.720 - 00:00:19.500

How do you guard your heart against the attacks of the adversary? It's a hard thing to do because it's a great place for him to attack.

Well, get ready because we are going to cover this today and give you some amazing tips and pointers and insights from the Bible. Stay tuned.

Host

00:00:21.360 - 00:00:57.676

Welcome to Bible Women in Bathrobes, the podcast where faith meets comfort.

Join us Tuesday morning as the gals from Women warriors of Light and their guests don bathrobes and dive into the inspiring stories of women in the Bible and the teachings of Jesus Christ. From Esther's bravery to the Sermon on the Mount, we explore it all with warmth, laughter, sisterhood and maybe even a few sleepy eyed moments.

Tune in live or at your leisure as we learn lessons from Scripture which empower women today.

Tamara K Anderson

00:01:03.100 - 00:01:17.540

Welcome to another episode of Bible Women and Bathrobes. I'm your host, Tamara K. Anderson. And joining me today are two of the amazing Women warriors of Light Advisory board.

We've got Tiffany Fletcher coming back. Tiffany, thanks for being here.

Tiffany Fletcher

00:01:17.660 - 00:01:19.920

Thanks for having me. Happy to be here.

Tamara K Anderson

00:01:20.460 - 00:01:25.280

And we also have Kari Anjewierden. Carrie, thanks for being here again.

Kari Anjewierden

00:01:25.740 - 00:01:29.040

Oh, thank you Tamara. I always love to be here.

Tamara K Anderson

00:01:30.460 - 00:02:24.380

And guys, the last couple of weeks we have been talking all about putting on the armor of light, casting out darkness, putting on the Lord Jesus Christ. And last week we talked about girding our loins with truth.

And today we get to follow up with the next piece of armor that Paul gives us in Ephesians chapter six. And it is if you want to follow along, we are in Ephesians 6, verse 14. He talks, starts off talking about girding our loins with truth.

And today he says and having on the breastplate of righteousness.

And so I thought I'd kick us off today by just saying, maybe inviting Tiffany to dive into a little bit of what does the breastplate protect and why is that important?

Tiffany Fletcher

00:02:26.680 - 00:03:18.130

I love the symbolism of the breastplate because I mean all of them are important, right? But this one is, it's the largest piece of armor that we have and it is covering our heart, right?

All of those vital, that vital part where the adversary is so keen on trying to get us, especially as women, because that is where we feel our love. That is where fear, frustration, anger, like our emotions are felt, like we have bleeding hearts as women.

We wear our hearts on our sleeves sometimes. And that that breastplate is shielding our hearts from the adversary, which I think is such a symbolic thing in, in today's world.

And it's something that, that we need to Be mindful of that. That's a place where he attacks us often as women. And so I'm excited to talk about more of it today and some things that we can do to combat it.

Tamara K Anderson

00:03:19.630 - 00:03:53.670

I love, I love that.

And I think symbolically, I mean, if you're going to maim someone, you'll probably go for an armor leg, but if you want to really do bad, bad damage or kill someone, you're going to go for the heart. Right.

And so I think this is such an important piece of armor to talk about, like, how we can truly protect ourselves, because Satan's going to attack wherever he can in whatever effective way, and so he's going to be attacking all over. But think, yeah, I think this is really, really important. Any insights into this as we dive in? Kari?

Kari Anjewierden

00:03:54.330 - 00:05:03.106

I mean, really, yes, it, it definitely protects the heart, but, but a lot of our vital organs are protected by that. So it, it, it really is the part of our body that needs the most protection.

And in today's world, when our battle is not a physical battle, but a spiritual battle, that's especially important to have that in place. And sometimes that's hard because we can't see what we're fighting.

In olden times, when they're fighting these battles, or even in, in today's times fighting battles, you kind of have an idea of what you're up against. And when you can't see your adversary, it's more difficult to know how to protect yourself.

So, yeah, this piece of armor is especially vital to get into place.

And, and that, for me, would be just making sure that every day I am doing those little things that, make sure that that stays solid and doesn't go anywhere.

Tamara K Anderson

00:05:03.298 - 00:05:35.016

Yeah, I love that. I love that. Now, it's interesting, he calls it the breastplate of righteousness, that righteousness is something that can protect us.

And I don't know about you, but I had never thought about righteousness being a protecting factor in my life. And so I'd like to kind of pause and just say, wow. Any thoughts there, Tiffany?

Tiffany Fletcher

00:05:35.208 - 00:08:42.260

Yeah, I, I, you know, in our previous podcast, we talk about light, like, the thoughts that we do, like, the things that we do, like how we bring light into our lives. Like, every righteous act that we do is just adding more light and increasing art. Like, it really is putting on the armor of God.

And, and the thing is, is that as we, and sometimes I think it's hard for us to, like, and be like, oh, I'm not righteous. I get angry. I do. You know, I yell at My children, I get upset with someone who cuts me off in traffic. Like, am not a righteous person, right?

Like, we get down on ourselves and we don't give ourselves enough grace and we don't recognize the value of repentance every single day. And because we live, the price of living in mortality is that we are going to have weaknesses and sins and it's going to happen.

And so we just have to, like, acknowledge it. We use the joy of repentance because that really is like putting on Christ every single day is repenting and turning around to Him.

And that's one of the things that I love. Like, so I homeschool my kids. And I was reading in a history book once, a geography book, and we were talking about the sun.

And it said, did you know that the sun never rises and the sun never sets? What happens is when this night comes, when the sun.

When the earth turns away from the sun and sunrise happens, when the earth turns back to the sun, and that's when you get the light. And I stopped for a moment. I had this wonderful, beautiful conversation with my children about. This is exactly what repentance.

Repentance does, right? Like it. When we turn back to the sun, then we are putting on. We are walking in the light. And that really is what it is.

Like our client, the deeds that we do, the good deeds, increase our light. Repentance gets rid of the old stuff that we're not doing, right? And then when we do those acts, it continues to increase our light.

And so it's this beautiful, beautiful cycle of really enduring to the end, right? Like. Like rinse, repeat, wash, rinse, repeat kind of thing. Like, like you, it's. It's a beautiful heart.

Righteousness is a beautiful part of the gospel because when we are doing those righteous acts, they're increasing our light and bringing us closer to the Savior and making us more like him, which I am so grateful for. And there's so many scriptures that talk about the importance of. Of walking in the light, right? Of. Of doing those deeds of.

I love the scripture found in Micah 6, 8. And this is what it says.

He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with thy God. To me, righteousness is just the Lord inviting us to walk with him, right? It's just us inviting the Lord to walk with him.

And then when we do, we walk in his light and we push back the darkness and we. We ask for Forgiveness and we repent and then we continue walking with Him. And I think it's a beautiful thing.

Like, it absolutely has everything to do with putting on our armor of light and protecting ourselves from the darkness.

Tamara K Anderson

00:08:43.640 - 00:08:46.180

Oh, so, so good, Kari.

Kari Anjewierden

00:08:46.600 - 00:10:59.832

Wow, that is so wonderful, Tiffany. Thank you. It's also when we are doing those things that turn us to God, when we are watching so that we can.

Looking for God to walk with him, we want to be doing those things, right, but we also need to be looking for, where is he? Where is he showing up? What's he doing? What, how is he showing up in my life so that I want to walk with Him?

But as I do that and I walk with him and I come to know him, then this heart of mine that I'm trying to get his protection for not only turns to him, but it turns to other people. And then you start to see this ripple effect of how powerful the heart is in our lives and what it can do for each of us in our lives.

Just, we need each other. We really need each other. We can be each other's angels, right? And as we are, are doing those things that turn us to God.

As we walk with God, then we can really walk with others and be, be that support for other people and truly love people the way he did. He's told us to love with charity. And how do we get to that space? We have to walk with God to get to that space.

And, and that path definitely gives us that protection because God is going to protect that at all cost. He wants, he wants us back with him.

So as we are able to support each other through fall, like through looking to him, it, it truly makes a huge difference. But first we have to be looking for Him. Where is he? Where is he showing up? What's he doing for me?

Tamara K Anderson

00:11:00.016 - 00:15:02.580

Yeah. I love what you both have said, you know, the power of, of God constantly changing our hearts.

I, I love that symbolism you said of the earth turning away from the sun and then coming back to it. Because I feel that is so parallel, that so parallels my life, you know, and, and I think God meant it to be that way.

I think he meant us to see that doesn't matter if you've turned away, you can come back. It doesn't matter if you've made this mistake or made it again or made it 365 days in a row.

You can still turn back to the sun and do the works of righteousness. And I think that is part of turning our hearts to God. It is a process it doesn't just take once.

It is a process of becoming and turning toward him again and again and consciously making that choice of I choose God. I love that verse in Joshua of choose you this day. It is a conscious choice. We each get to choose with each decision we make.

And sometimes we choose right, and sometimes we choose wrong. And not letting those lies that Satan says, oh, you've made it too many. You've made that mistake too many times. You're lost now.

You've done too many things. God can't possibly love you anymore. There's no hope for you. Whereas the invitation of Christ is come unto me, come. Doesn't matter where you've been.

I mean, he spent his days ministering to the brokenhearted, to those who are downtrodden, to those who felt marginalized. And we all feel that way sometimes. And so that should give us hope that we can turn to God, that we can do the works of righteousness.

No matter where we've been, we can turn to Him. I love that verse in Micah.

I think Tiffany brought this one up earlier in Micah chapter six, and I think I'm actually just going to turn there really quick and read it to you guys, because I think these are the works of righteousness. And it's Micah chapter six, verse eight.

And it says, he hath shewed the O man, what is good and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with thy God. So he's saying what? Basically saying, what are the works of righteousness? What does that look like for you? And he wants us to be just.

He wants us to love mercy. Pause and think about that. That applies to ourselves, which is so often hard to do.

Give ourselves the mercy we deserve because we are our own worst critic, but also give that mercy to others and to walk humbly. It's so interesting to me that in. In the Scriptures, we find people being called out for the hardness of their hearts.

You know, turning our hearts of stone into fleshy tables of the heart. You know, those are the symbols that we see kind of woven throughout the scriptures when we're talking about the heart.

And maybe that reflects our righteousness. How humble are we that walk with how humbly before God? How humble is our heart? Are we being prideful? Are we being humble? Are we submitting to God?

These are. These are all such hard questions that really make us pause. An example, how can I make my heart more like, more righteous?

I guess is it's the breastplate of Righteousness, right? So how can I make my heart more righteous? Because that is what is going to protect my soul.

That's what I'm going to protect, the most vital organs against these attacks of the adversary. So I thought I'd just open that up, carry any thoughts on the heart and being more righteous in that regard, being more soft and pliant and all that.

Kari Anjewierden

00:15:03.210 - 00:18:37.860

One of the things that was coming to my mind as you were talking is the parable of the virgins, right, as they are trying to wait for the bridegroom. And, and that is the ultimate joy, right, is to be able to be invited to this wedding, to go in and to celebrate in this wedding.

And they're, and they've been waiting for hours and they. But what are they doing during that time? You know, they're sleeping, but, but not, you know.

And as we get more into that story, we learn that there are some who had been preparing, like they spent their whole time preparing. There were others who were sleeping, and when the call came, only half were prepared.

And, and if those women represent us as followers of Christ, what were they doing to prepare? And you can't fully prepare for something last second. You just can't. You have to be preparing along the way.

And that's those daily drops of oil that are that goodness, that righteousness, that really truly loving God so much that we are seeking that all the time, even when we make those mistakes, we're turning immediately back to God. You know, that, that repentance is not, not a once a year thing. It's not a once a day thing. It's.

It's a continual, minute by minute thing that we're doing all day long as we recognize. Oh yeah, I didn't mean to talk to my kids like that. And I'm really sorry, sorry to my kids. Sorry I talked to you that way.

But turning to God and saying, I'm so sorry that my, my heart isn't changed enough yet, but I want to, but I want to.

And then putting, you know, finding ways to make that change through, it has to be through Christ's mercy, through his grace, through his help, but he'll help us to get there. And as we're continually doing that and putting those little drops of oil in, that's why they can't be shared.

Because they're those intentional moments with God where we really are, are living our lives to bring glory to him, not just to ourselves, but to Him. And wanting to shine that light as Tiffany was talking about with those around us, so that Then they want to do the same thing.

So then we can go as a group to this wedding. We can go together and be there together, celebrating. That's our ultimate goal. It's what we truly want. And.

And I think that's what God is trying to teach us is when your hearts are soft, when your hearts are looking to me, they automatically turn to those around you and wanting to share that light with others and teach them the things that you've learned.

Tamara K Anderson

00:18:38.200 - 00:18:54.500

Thank you so much. I. I love so much of what you said there. Thank you so much. I love that, especially how you applied it to the parable of the 10 virgins.

Because we are living in the last days. And that was very symbolic of us in our times. Because the bridegroom is coming, right? And we need those daily drops. Tiffany

Tiffany Fletcher

00:18:55.640 - 00:23:58.394

just.

It made me think about the parable of 10 virgins. Like, the whole purpose, like, of that of the 10 virgins is their job.

Those virgins was to light their lamps and come out and meet the bridegroom and then light the way for the bridegroom to come to the bride. And I think that that's so symbolic of our day, right? Because we are invited to come out and to meet him and to spend time with them.

I love how you said intentional moments with God. Like that is really key, right? What intentional moments are we creating with God that are going to help us in our time of need?

And I think sometimes we get so overwhelmed with all of the bad that we're doing that we. It gets us down. Like the adversary uses it to make us feel that we're not enough, that we're not worthy that.

I had a friend once who said, I don't pray to God because he's got so many other children that he has to worry about. I just don't think he has time for me.

And I thought, you know, those lies are the lies that Satan's giving us because, you know, we're not good enough. We're too busy. We don't have time. But we need to make those intentional moments with God.

And in those intentional moments, that's where we turn to him and we repent and we ask for forgiveness. And then I. I like to do two things. I like to ask him two questions. Like, one, what is something that I am doing that I should stop doing?

That is making. That is keeping me from coming to you, right? That is keeping me. That is barring away from me feeling your spirit.

And two, what am I not doing that I should start doing so that I can understand what I can work on in order to move forward.

And I love the scripture In Galatians, chapter 5, when it talks about the fruits of the Spirit, 5 verses 22 through 26, it says, but the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. Against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another and being one another. And I love that. But I don't know about you.

When I read that, I'm like, I do not feel like I am any of those. Like, I have so far to go. And, you know, the first time I read that, I was like, well, that is just very depressing because I don't have any.

That is not me, Heavenly Father. That's it. I am not walking in the Spirit. I am not getting into heaven, because I am just so far below what is expected of me.

But here's the beautiful thing about having the fruit of the Spirit and walking with the Spirit is the Spirit. Says Tiffany. You don't have to do all of these things all at once. And you don't have to be all of these things today.

You can choose one and you can work on it, or as long as you need to work on it.

And if you work on it for a week and come back next year and work on it again or next month or next week, because you still feel like you need to work on it. That is the beauty of line upon line and precept on precept here a little, there a little. And working the best that you can to.

To walk in the Spirit with our Heavenly Father. Perfection is not required because the Savior was perfect. So we don't have to be.

Yes, we're striving to be perfect like him, but we will never be perfect in this life. Our bodies will continue to decay. Believe me, I know this as I get older, that it's. I'm getting less perfect, then I am more perfect.

But at the same time, I am perfected in Christ. And when I put on him and when I spend those intentional moments with him and when I learn from him what I need to stop doing.

And just one of those things. Okay, Heavenly Father, what should I work on a day? Joy. Okay, I'm going to work on finding joyful moments in my day today.

Joyful moments with my kids, joyful moments with Myself looking at myself and finding joy in the body that he has given me, that has borne five children, that has hugged my friends, that is sat with my people that have been hurting. There are so many things that our body does that we as women don't recognize because we are. We are. Our hearts.

Satan tries to get us to feel like we are not enough, but in reality, how beautiful it is that we have these vital organs that can help us birth children, that can help us grieve with them, that can help us love them, that can help us give those gifts of the spirit to them as they are striving in their own lives to find the gifts of the spirit in their own lives. I just. I. I think. I. I think it's so important that beauty of grace and walking in the spirit and. And giving ourselves the understanding that.

That when we're walking in the spirit, having intentional moments, allowing ourselves to have those intentional moments, that's when the Savior can really speak to us and help us become the person that he needs to be and. And do the things that we need to do to feel that we are enough for Him.

Tamara K Anderson

00:23:58.562 - 00:23:59.098

Wow.

Kari Anjewierden

00:23:59.194 - 00:24:00.458

That is beautiful.

Tamara K Anderson

00:24:00.634 - 00:24:01.590

Love. Love.

Kari Anjewierden

00:24:02.530 - 00:25:05.508

Scripture that goes with that a little bit with what you were talking about, Tiffany, because that is so beautiful. It's in Isaiah 61:10, and it says, I will greatly rejoice in the Lord. My soul shall be joyful in my God.

For he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation. He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.

That's exactly what you're talking about, Tiffany, and how beautiful that we're talking about a breastplate. But here I love how Isaiah is saying, it's a robe of righteousness is a full covering. And it's not just for utility, but for joy.

It's for beauty and for joy. And He. He wants to give us so much that we can be joyful about those things. I love that. So thanks for sharing all of those things, Tiffany.

Tamara K Anderson

00:25:05.684 - 00:28:05.870

Yeah. So good. The thoughts that were coming to my mind as you both were talking about these qualities and. And getting.

We often are thinking with our minds like it's a tally. You know what I mean? Like, oh, I did these things good today. I did these things wrong. And.

And as I was pondering that, I'm like, I don't think that's how God sees us. And then the verse that popped into my brain was the one where Samuel is looking to anoint the new king of Israel.

And he goes to Jesse's house and he looks at all these strong, strappling boys and he's like, oh, this one for sure is the right one. And he kind of interviews all of Jesse's sons and. Do you have any more? No. Well, there is David, you know, and. And he's this young boy.

He's not even fully grown into manhood yet.

And the verse that is in 1st Samuel 16, Seven says, but the Lord said unto Samuel, look not on his countenance or on the height of his stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord seeth not as man seeth for the man. Look at on the outward appearance. But the Lord looketh on the heart.

And so he knew the heart of each of those brothers, and he also knows each of our hearts. And when I think about that, I also think it gives me the chance to look at myself with more mercy.

Because if the Lord knows my heart when I make a mistake, he knows how I feel. He knows how I'm probably beating myself up about it, right? And. And he knows my heart. He knows that my desires are good.

He knows that I'm doing my best, I'm trying my hardest to be righteous. He knows that is the desire of my heart. And he is granting me mercy because he knows my heart. And so I just need to remember that.

That he loves me and he will grant me mercy. And I need to grant myself mercy when I make those mistakes all the time, right? And remember that. I don't know.

That was just a thought that was popping into my brain. Now there was one other thing that kind of popped into my brain and.

And it's that verse that kind of repeats throughout Scripture from the Old Testament to the New. And that is that we need to love the Lord our God, that first and great commandment, with all of our heart, might, mind and strength.

And sometimes they mix those up and put a different word first. But it's interesting that heart is always used, right? It's that heart. And I just wanted to throw that out there for some comments really quick.

Let's see. Tiffany, let's start with you.

Tiffany Fletcher

00:28:06.170 - 00:31:46.398

I love the heart because I think it's about being intentional, right? I think sometimes we, like you said, in our mind, we have a checklist of things. Did I read my scriptures today? Did I say my prayers?

Did I do all of the things? But it's really not a checklist. It is being intentional. And sometimes being intentional is reading one verse of scripture and pondering it all day.

Long, right?

Like pondering how it applies to you and how you can come closer to Christ and change your natural man to align your heart to be more along the lines of what the Savior would have. And I feel like in a lot of ways too, it shows how important the heart is to our Heavenly Father and heart. He's always talking about love.

Like he, you know, it talks about God is love. Literally, the Bible says God is love, right?

And so if we want our hearts to be in a place where we can be like him, then we need to invite love into our lives in all areas. And that means. And that means letting go of contention, like, forgiving, like, and all those things.

I mean, they're natural men and they're going to come and. But the thing is, is that we get a choice, right?

We get a choice on whether or not we're going to follow down that vein and let it continue festering in our hearts and our mind, or if we are going to let go of it and let God's love fill that space and be able to move forward in love. And I'll be honest, sometimes there are people that I'm like, I just can't love them, Heavenly Father. Like, I just struggle to love them.

And sometimes it's my, you know, when my kids were little, sometimes I'm like, I just, I like you a lot. But right now I'm struggling. I'm struggling to have that love for you, right? Maybe I love you and I just don't like you right now.

I don't know how it works. Sometimes it's really hard. And that's when we, in our walk with God, we invite him, first of all, cast out the spirit of contention, right?

Because the Satan is the spirit of contention. He's the devil, you know, father of contention. And then we invite that love into our lives.

And so many times I said, heavenly Father, can you please help me see them the way you see them so that I can love them the way you want me to love them, right? And it's life changing when you do that, when you try to live in love. Now, I'm not perfect at it. There are still days when I struggle to love people.

But more and more, I am learning to give people the benefit of the doubt, show grace and mercies, even to myself, and be able to love the way God loves, especially ourselves. Because I think that sometimes as women, we can be really good about loving other people. Like, it's our. It's our superpower, right?

We can love, but loving ourselves, that's Way harder. And so sometimes we even need to say, God, can you help me love myself, right, so that I can.

Because we need to be able to have that love and walk in that love. And if we're not walking in love for ourselves, we're not living in righteousness.

We're not doing what God needs us to do to be able to fill his spirit. We're. We're blocking his spirit from us by not accepting ourselves as God's daughter and creation in the way that he would want us to.

So that's what I think about, you know, loving God, loving our neighbor, but also loving our neighbor as ourselves. Meaning loving ourselves as is part of the, of the deal, part of the package, right? We are his. His child. And.

But I, I do believe that when we love him first, it's easier to love ourselves.

Tamara K Anderson

00:31:46.574 - 00:31:49.182

Fully agree with that. Kari, any thoughts?

Kari Anjewierden

00:31:49.246 - 00:35:29.730

That is so beautiful. Yeah.

As you were talking, I kind of along those same lines, I was thinking, you know, the heart is the life force, our heart, if it stops beating, you are no more. Right. That truly is the life force. And it's continually moving things. So you were talking about, you know, moving things out, letting things go.

And I think.

I think the heart is such a beautiful symbol of that, that, that the old stuff moves away and the new stuff comes in to lighten and brighten and, and strengthen and. And that is a continual thing. And we do need that for ourselves first. Because just like that oxygen mask in the airplane, right?

You have to put it on yourself first because if you don't, you can't help somebody else. And I, I think that really is true.

If you're not loving yourself, it makes it 10 times harder to love other people or to truly see them in the way God sees them. If you cannot see yourself with that love that God sees you with, you're not going to have. Be able to have that full charity for someone else.

And so I really love that, that example. And, and they really do all work hand in hand, you know, turning to God, loving ourselves.

And, and I love especially that you were saying, Tiffany, that we need to ask him help me to see. Help me to see myself the way you see me. Help me to see my family or other people. And especially when it's difficult to love someone, right?

I mean, we, we've experienced how difficult it is to love ourselves in some moments. So we understand, we understand that. But what are we doing to love ourselves?

And then what are we doing to have God help us see others in that way that can help that life force keep moving, you know, old stories out and new stories in. Because we're all changing all the time, and we're not the same people we have always been.

And so we can give ourselves that grace and realize that maybe I'm not where I want to be on this particular thing today, but I can learn it and I can change it. And especially with God's help, I can move mountains, right? I can do all of those things. Nothing is impossible. I. I can keep. Keep at it every day.

Keep at it every day. In Isaiah 59, verse 17, it talks about he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing and was clad with zeal as a cloak.

And I love that word, zeal, because that's what God's asking us to do, right? Is to get that zeal for change, for learning, for coming to him and asking and. And for keeping that life force moving all the time.

And as we do that, that righteousness will continue to cloak us and to protect us and to cover us in those moments when, when we do falter, when we do struggle, when we are having a hard time, that that cloak is already there and we already know the source to go to, to lift ourselves again out of that space so that we can keep things moving.

Tamara K Anderson

00:35:30.070 - 00:36:04.960

Wow. We've had some amazing thoughts and. And discussion about what the heart symbolizes, what we can do to have our heart protected.

It's so interesting that words like love and mercy and repentance and humility have all kind of played into this discussion of it being a breastplate. Right? That these are the qualities that we develop over time. Quick takeaways and. And then we'll end the episode. Kari, let's start with you.

Kari Anjewierden

00:36:05.080 - 00:37:55.380

I just really am so grateful for God's love for me, for his heart that covers me, that covers those mistakes, that I can go to him time and time again and change and learn and grow and keep progressing to be the person that I know he knows I am, that I've always been. And maybe I don't know that person yet. Maybe I've forgotten who that person is.

But as I keep turning to him as he is, I keep seeking to know his heart. It softens mine.

And it brings me to that place where I truly am able to make those changes and become that person in my own space and then soften my heart enough then to turn to someone else who may be struggling, who may be having a hard time, and to be able to put my arm around them and to help then myself be part of that cloak.

Part of that protection, part of that space that someone may need for a moment when they're struggling to regather, regroup, and to enter for themselves how God sees them and that they are loved and, and so beautiful that God in his love for us has given us that ability to truly do that, not just for ourselves, but for others as well. I really love that.

Tamara K Anderson

00:37:56.400 - 00:38:01.448

Thank you. Thank you for sharing that. Tiffany. Quick takeaway for me.

Tiffany Fletcher

00:38:01.504 - 00:38:53.814

I really want to be more intentional, I think just more intentional with my prayers and I, and I feel like, what a great question every morning to be like, heavenly Father, what would you have me do today so that I can walk with you more fully in my discipleship with you?

Or maybe that may be helping a neighbor, that may be self care for yourself, that may be doing something, smiling, holding the door open for a stranger.

But there are so many different ways that he can allow us to be an instrument in his hands if we are willing to ask the question, how can I, what can I do today to walk with you and walk that path of righteousness and to come closer to you today and, and just really pondering that and, and asking him what to stop doing and what to start and, and I just think that that for me is, is such a game changer in my day to day life is, is doing that.

Tamara K Anderson

00:38:53.982 - 00:40:20.270

Oh, so beautiful. Thank you. I, I guess my final takeaway today is I love something that Carrie said.

Help me understand your heart, God, so that I can, you know, that I can then change my heart to be more like that or something. Like you said it much more beautifully than that.

But I think that that kind of blends together both what you were just saying there, Tiffany, about him helping us change our heart little by little, but having that soft heart, you know, praying, God, help me to have that soft heart. Help me to understand your love better so that I can be a vessel of your love to others.

But we can't do that unless our heart is humble and our heart is full of mercy and grace and all those things, qualities that God has in perfection. But I'm, I'm just an embryo right now. I'm just, I'm still a baby and learning how to be all those things.

And so I'm thankful that he looks on my heart and he knows it, he knows my desires and that he is along that path with me as I try to shield myself and protect myself from the attacks of the adversary. So thank you ladies for joining me today and God bless each of you on your journey towards righteousness.

On your journey towards protecting your heart and soul from the attacks of the adversary. It is possible with God's help.

Host

00:40:21.530 - 00:41:01.980

Thanks for tuning in to Bible Women and Bathrobes, hosted by Women warriors of Light. We've loved exploring the stories of remarkable women or the teachings of the Savior today with you.

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All opinions we share are entirely personal as we are trying to decipher, not apply Bible teachings just like you are. Until next time, stay faithful and may your journey be blessed and illuminated by God's love.