Joyce Meyer - Girl, Get Dressed

Ginger Stache: Hi everyone. We're so glad you're here. Come on in, this is Joyce Meyer's Talk It Out podcast where my friends and I like to say that with a flourish. My friends and I talk about the real stuff of life, Joyce teaches with her practical no-nonsense way, and we live it out. And when we need a little extra help, we call up miss Joyce and we ask her. I'm Ginger Stache with my friends Erin Cluley and Jai Williams. And you, are now, one of the girls, so consider yourself one of us and let's Talk It Out. Well, I love what we're talking about today. It's such a great topic.

Erin Cluley: Yeah.

Ginger Stache: Because this is maybe, the most important thing, I think, I've ever done for myself spiritually. I think this is probably, the one thing that, on a regular basis throughout many, many years, has impacted my life more than anything else I've done, I think. So, we're talking аbout: girl get dressed. It's how do you prepare for your day, how do you get ready, and what do you put on? And it all comes down to the full armor of God. But the first question is: "What"?!

Erin Cluley: "What do you mean, the full armor of God"?

Jai Williams: Yeah.

Ginger Stache: So, when we talk about preparing for the day, let's just talk about how our days go first thing in the morning.

Jai Williams: Yeah, you wanna go?

Erin Cluley: Yeah, they go really fast.

Erin Cluley: It's kind of like a circus show at the Cluley household in the mornings.

Ginger Stache: I bet it's exciting.

Erin Cluley: It's really fun. We could be reality television. Mike is gone, so I'm by myself. So, it really is, I get up first and I throw everything on, and my makeup, and my hair is fast as possible. I try and get my God time in then. Which is why I'm glad we're talking about this, it's been really helpful. And then, I throw on clothes for the kids and then I throw them in the car. So, it's just a lot of throwing things on, and throwing people, "Here".

Ginger Stache: A lot throwing.

Erin Cluley: And then Chucking them out the door.

Jai Williams: Yeah, well, mine is actually, a lot different than that, right now. I have actually, been very intentional with, I probably get going no later than 6 A.M. And I try to, I do my stretches, my yoga, but I pray like while I do it. I turn on my worship music and I really spend time with the Lord, you know? And really getting my mind, because typically, like, I try to go to bed and dump everything on God like, you know, "Hey, I'm casting it all on you, so I can sleep well". I have no problem sleeping, thank the Lord. But a lot of times I can wake up with those things still on my mind, you know? And even though it like, God is so gracious, he pushes pause for me while I sleep. So, I don't think about it through my sleep. But when I wake up, it somehow like, "Ugh". I have brand-new mercies, I know that, but then, in my mind, I can almost pick up where I left off. And so, I have to intentionally slow myself down in the morning, really focus, I have a great window in my apartment now, that I can just see, you know, the sunrise.

Ginger Stache: Yeah, you get the sunrise. I've seen your shots. That's awesome.

Jai Williams: Yeah, yeah, so, I get to see the sun rise, and I pray, and spend time with the Lord, and drink my tea. And I've been writing out scripture, like, because I need it to come alive to me. And just reading it alone, for me right now, isn't enough for me, right now. So, I've been literally, like picking a book of the Bible and writing it out. So, I really spend at least at least an hour, hour-and-a-half. Like, everybody doesn't have that luxury, but...

Ginger Stache: Ugh! Now, you're making us all look bad.

Erin Cluley: I maybe, like, got 10 minutes in this morning, so.

Jai Williams: I'm not...

Ginger Stache: I'm really... I'm really... I'm really happy for you.

Erin Cluley: "I'm so happy for you"!

Ginger Stache: I really am! I think it is fabulous. And I am not there, right now.

Jai Williams: But it's not like, "Oh, just kumbaya". It's like a necessity for me. For me not to fall into to the spiral of thinking about what I'm thinking about naturally. And so, it goes with this subject matter of literally, putting on the full armor and putting on, like, making time to do things when you know that you're in a position where you need, I need Jesus. Like, I need him, and I need him to show up, and I need him to heal me, you know? And so, I need to do my work to make it happen, so. That's my mornings.

Ginger Stache: See, I'm not a morning person. I'll just be so, so honest. And Joyce, of course, always talks about the importance of spending that time with God in the morning. And I've known that all my life, but my time with God has always been some other time during the day. I like to be more of a night owl, so I have that great time with the Lord in the evening. Or even, you know, if it's beautiful outside, time that I can be outside and all those times. I guess, I've learned to shift my time, but always make it a priority. Find the time, make it happen. But for me, I've found that the morning is not the best time, because I'm not good at it, you know? I'm like, cranky and half out of it, and just like, "Oh, God. Thank you for being here. But", you know?

Jai Williams: I love that, that you make it your own. You know, I think that's, I think, you know? Like even, my mom and my grandma like, they were all like, "First thing in the morning", you know? And so, that kind of got in my heart and my mind, and if I would miss it...

Ginger Stache: Which is the best way to do it.

Jai Williams: I would really feel bad about it sometimes. But then, I'm like, "Hey, if this is a relationship, you know how you wired me. Like, I'm gonna do what I do in the morning, but maybe my more intimate time is when I'm coherent," you know?

Ginger Stache: Yes!

Erin Cluley: Cuz, are you then just doing it to check it off your list?

Jai Williams: Yeah, is it a relationship thing or a check box thing?

Erin Cluley: It's not like we're tricking God.

Jai Williams: Yeah, I mean, I think, we all need to just at least, wake up in the morning with gratitude and give God thanks.

Ginger Stache: Absolutely. And that's what I've learned, is that before I even pick my head off the pillow, you know?

Jai Williams: "Pick my head off"?

Ginger Stache: Pick my head up off the pillow before I even pick my nose, I tell the Lord... Before I even lift my head, how about that? Off the pillow. Jai and

Erin Cluley: Yeah!

Ginger Stache: Thank you, so much better. No, I lay there and I say, "Good morning, Lord". Those are the first words out of my mouth, you know? "Good morning, father. Good morning, Holy Spirit take my day and make it yours. Give me out of your way". And I pray for the full armor of God to clothe me, and my husband, and my kids, and our parents, you know, like our family. Those are the two most important things I do in the morning is invite God in, give him everything, and ask him to dress me.

Jai Williams: Yeah.

Ginger Stache: And so, then, I do a lot of the other stuff later when I'm awake and I know what I'm saying.

Jai Williams: But I think that's great. But I think that's what a relationship is. Like, who wants to wake up to a family member or a spouse and not get a, "Good morning," you know? If it's a relationship, I think, we need to give ourselves permission to let it be that. Like, I don't wanna have a full-on conversation necessarily with anyone in the morning, like full-on, you know? So, I might wanna be like, "Hey, good morning. How's your day"? Like with my daughter, like, "How you doing? Are you good"? But then, as we wake up, and even at dinner time, we talk more or before we go to bed we talk.

Ginger Stache: And some people are great in the mornings. Most people are better in the mornings than I am, okay?

Erin Cluley: I love having meetings with you first thing in the morning.

Jai Williams: How are they?

Erin Cluley: They're some of my favorites.

Ginger Stache: I'm a little slaphappy, usually, a little weird.

Erin Cluley: I just know her so well. She's very professional. She does them well. But I know what's happening in her mind. She still wishes, she was in her bed.

Jai Williams: "We're doin' it".

Ginger Stache: Well, I love that we all are doing different things, because like you said, it is that individual relationship, but we're doing the key things. And that's why, whatever it is that you're doing, make it work for you and God, but don't leave God out of it. And that's why we're talking about putting on the full armor of God. You know, while I'm talking to all of our friends who are here with us today, too, we want to hear so much more from you on this podcast. In fact, we've got a survey going out to all of our friends so that you can help us pick the topics that we talk about and give us some input. And so, if you sign up for our friends' email list, then that survey will be going out very soon. And you also, get the free resource and the fun behind-the-scenes stuff. So, I just want to encourage everyone to sign up for that friends' list. And if you do it, let me find the date, let me find a date. If you do it before November 17th, cuz that's the deadline for this survey, you'll get to just say, "Hey, I would really like to talk about this with the girls and I wanna hear about this from Joyce". So, sign up and do that. We'd love to hear how you do your time with God too. But...

Erin Cluley: One thing that just keeps sticking in my mind as we're talking about this is, I have not always struggled, but during different seasons of my life struggled with the guilt of not doing it perfectly. So, I just have this feeling some of our friends, who are listening too, are thinking, "Yeah, an hour day? I can't even get five minutes in". And like, I get that. Some weeks, it's like a day-by-day thing, and I have my goal set to do this, but I've got two little kids and sometimes you just do the best you can. But it's never too late to start that habit. So, if it's not part of your morning routine now, or your nighttime, or whatever works best, it's not too late. And the stuff we're gonna talk about today, I've just started doing because of the two of you.

Ginger Stache: That's what we talk about, being in different phases of life, you know, we're in very different places: with your daughter being older and what you're going through in your own life, and we're empty-nesters and we just want to pray over our family and our grandchildren... Cuz I have another one now. Yeah, this is a fun couple of weeks, our baby grandson was born and he is...

Erin Cluley: Scrumptious.

Ginger Stache: The cutest, the cutest little guy.

Jai Williams: He got lots of snuggles. You're like a pro now. You've had a granddaughter and a grandson and you're kinda like, yeah...

Ginger Stache: I've got one of each, and they're very experimental. I'm learning what I'm doing, I know nothing of it. But I do know, that as I prepare for the day and I put on the full armor of God that he's given me, and I pray it over my whole family, I pray it over the kids, and my grandkids. And so, it's been so important to me because it covers every part of me. It covers my thoughts, and my words, and my emotions, it covers my prayer life, it covers what God wants me to go out and do and prepares me, it's the weapons that I need to protect me. So, you talk about getting ready for a day, there's no better way. So, let's start with Joyce, let her explain a little bit about what this whole full armor of God is. But before we do that, I want to encourage you to do this. I want you to get a Bible, get online, find it however you want, go to Ephesians chapter 6 verses 10-18, Ephesians chapter 6:10-18. Stop this right now, just pause it, we'll wait for you until you get back, read that and come back, because that will help so much as we talk about this. So, you do that, we'll all pause, everybody pause. Okay, so, I don't know how to keep talking now.

Jai Williams: Are we done pausing?

Erin Cluley: I feel super akward.

Ginger Stache: Do that first, and let's talk about it. And yeah, let's find out how Joyce tells us what the armor of God even is. Here she is.

Joyce Meyer: "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle", now listen, "Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but it is against the rulers, the authorities, the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms". You get that, right? Your battle is not with flesh and blood. Your battle is not with flesh and blood, it's not your boss, it's not your husband, it's not your neighbor, it's not your parents, it's not your circumstances. "Your battle is not with flesh and blood, but with the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on," everybody say, "Put on". You see, a lot of times God gives us things that we never use. And so, God has given us armor that if we wear it, it will protect us from the schemes and attacks of the enemy. We not only have armor, we also have weapons. "Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything," and I like what the Amplified says, "After you have done all the crisis demands". So, you see, there are things that we can do, we can pray, we can seek God. I don't know, if you're in debt, maybe you can get a extra part-time job. There are things that we can do, God's just not goonna run in and fix all of our problems while we sit around and do nothing. "After you've done all that the crisis demands, stand your ground. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth," everybody say, "truth". Which is the Word of God, "Buckled around your waist," the Amplified says, "Tightened around your waist". And I like that, because when you're having trouble, you've gotta hang on to the Word of God tighter than ever before, because that's when the devil's trying to steal it from ya. How many of you know, it's easy to tell somebody else to trust God when they're having trouble? Here's a little freebie, when you're in trouble, just do what you would tell somebody else to do, if they had your problem.

Ginger Stache: So, let's talk about how this works practically, cuz this is really practical. It sounds, when you're reading it, like it's all theoretical, but it's not.

Jai Williams: No.

Ginger Stache: It's so practical. So, Jai, how do you put on the armor of God?

Jai Williams: I literally, start every morning, even with me and Taylor, and I say like, I go through each piece. So, I'll just go through a couple, I'm like, "Father I ask that you just put on the helmet of salvation, which protect my thoughts," cuz that's where I really, you know, that Battlefield of the Mind. Like, I really just, that's where I start all the time, you know? Another one, for me, that's really strong for me is the breastplate of righteousness which protects my heart and my emotions.

Ginger Stache: Oh, that's good.

Jai Williams: And so, right now, like, those are the two that I really am like, I spend the most time, "Like, God, I need you to cover me". And also, like, be the shield of faith, also to block all the fiery darts of the enemy. Like, honestly, all of them, but I'll go through each one, and I ask. Like, I spend time on it now. Like, more than I probably ever have before. And I wanna clarify something. My time with God and in the increase in it, was one of those things like Joyce just talked about where there are some things that you haven't done all to stand. Like, I have literally, put myself in a position where I have this. Like, I stopped working, you know, like, I stopped, you know, I stopped doing the full-time ministry for a little bit because it was a lot for me.

Ginger Stache: Sure.

Jai Williams: In this season. Like, I've done it for 20 years, but for right now, it was a lot for me to keep pouring out when I was bleeding. And I didn't want to bleed on people. I needed to heal, and I needed to do what was best for me, and also, guard myself with the armor of God. So, I wanna clarify. Like, I was one of those people, just like you Erin, even though I didn't have toddlers, I haven't a toddler for at least 15 years. You know, I mean, like, she's older now, but I barely had time to spend time with God, and I was pouring out all the time. So, anybody that's watching that's in ministry, it's okay to take a pause if you need to spend that extra time with God. This is like me putting myself on a timeout, you know, with doing the work and receiving, you know, in this season. So, I have time now, to put, and I just think it's for a season. I don't think I'll have this much time, and it's picking up slowly now. I've been going through this now, you all are my friends, and you know, and you've been with me a lot of this journey. It's been like a year that I've been walking through this, and so it's starting to pick up, you know? And life's becoming, not normal, cuz that's, no, but it's becoming something that I'm used to, so yeah.

Ginger Stache: And becoming something beautiful.

Jai Williams: Definitely something beautiful.

Ginger Stache: I mean, something beautiful out of ashes definitely, but something beautiful, absolutely.

Jai Williams: I'm believing it. I have to. I have to believe in it. As long as I'm dressed in what God has given me, I'll always look my best.

Erin Cluley: So, I've known about the armor of God. It's something I've been taught before, and I could memorize, I memorized it so I could recite it to you. But I have never taken the time to put it on. So, exactly what we're talking about today. I've never, it's something really cool in the Bible to talk about. It's a great story. But I've never thought how I could apply it to my life.

Ginger Stache: Literally do it.

Erin Cluley: Yeah, exactly. Until a few weeks ago one of you brought it up. And so, I thought, "Wow, that's a really great idea". And I love the practicalness of it. When I was looking into this. I thought, I wanna, like, "What does a warrior do before they put on all their stuff? And what does it look like to go into battle and have your armor on you"? And so, I started googling. Google is very helpful. But like, Spartans came up and how the Spartans used to fight and what they would do to prepare for battle. And found it really interesting. And Joyce was just saying it, like, you have to take an action. It's not like you're on the defense and your armor's just like, thrown upon your body and landing in the right spot. They're preparing and it takes time to put your armor on, and you have to step into it. I have to put on the shield of faith and put on my breastplate of righteousness. It doesn't just land upon me. And so, I love that, you're taking active steps to do it.

Jai Williams: And it's not like light. It's not like something you could just throw on. Like the armor isn't like a duster. You know, it's not like something really light. And I think of like, the cartoon, I don't know if I can say, but, "Mulan," like, I really like it. And how she went into battle, even though it was all men, she still had to wear the same armor, you know, to protect her. And so, like, you have to be intentional with putting that armor on. You have to be okay with it. "Okay, this feels a little heavy but it's got me. It's gonna cover me, it's gonna protect me". So yeah, you have to be intentional with arming yourself.

Ginger Stache: And then, she let her hair down and it flew, and she was mulan, and she was this beautiful princess warrior.

Jai Williams: And she was stronger.

Ginger Stache: Exactly! So, you can be who you are. You can be that strong woman and have the armor of God, and be a fighter and a warrior.

Jai Williams: Yeah, yeah.

Erin Cluley: You tied that together so nicely, right there.

Jai Williams: It's almost like we planned it.

Ginger Stache: I just wanted to flip my hair around.

Jai Williams: Beautiful flip. But, honestly, she did. She ended up being able to be fully who she was. She didn't have, that's what the armor of God really does. It frees you to be exactly who you're supposed to be, and it takes the pressure off of you feeling like you have to fight.

Ginger Stache: Exactly.

Jai Williams: Like, honestly, the armor does the war for you. It fights for you. And so, that's the beauty of it that I think is amazing, is that the armor does the work. And you get to just be you.

Ginger Stache: Well, let's jump back into what Joyce is saying about it and finish up, and learn some more about those other pieces that God gives us, and then we'll come back.

Joyce Meyer: "The belt of truth tightened around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place," say, "Righteousness". "And with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace". Whoo, everybody say, "Peace". That's just a pretty word, isn't it? "In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith," or some translations say, "Lift up the shield of faith". So, we have faith, but we have to release our faith. Faith is not to lie dormant in your heart, it's to be released and I like to say, that we release our faith through praying, through saying, and through taking God-inspired action. You get that? Praying, saying, agreeing with God with your mouth, and through God-inspired action. Being obedient to do whatever it is, that God shows you to do. "With which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation," that means, think like a Christian. Ya get that? We think differently than other people think. We don't think according to the way things are we, we think according to the way we know they can be. And so, let me say what I said at the very beginning last night, the mind is the battlefield, and if you wanna win the war against the devil, then you have to pay attention to what you're thinking. You have to think about what you're thinking, and learn that you don't have to meditate on everything that falls in your head. If what is in your head doesn't agree with the Word of God, you can cast down that thought or imagination, and you can choose your own thoughts, and think things on purpose. Matter of fact, I will challenge you to do what I like to do sometimes. Take five or ten minutes, and sit down and just have a good ole Holy Ghost think session. Just sit down and think, "God loves me. God is on my side. I am the head and not the tail, I am above and not beneath. I have favor with God. I am one of his favorites, he's quite fond of me". And "Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit, which is the Word of God. And pray in the spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people". And Paul said, "And pray also for me".

Ginger Stache: So, there you have the full armor: head to toe, everything that we need. And we have a free resource for you too. And when we say free, don't overlook that. Cuz there are no strings attached. This is just because we want you to know how important this is. But we have a free resource. It's an audio download that you can get called, "Be prepared and armor up". So, you can get prepared and get your armor on everyday. Go to joycemeyer.Org/talkitout and you can get that. But I also, loved what she said about thinking the way God wants us to. God is very fond of me. How is any of us need to stay that, you know? "God is very fond of me". It's not just like the cursory, "He loves me". Love is so big that we brush it off. But he's fond of us, like, he delights in us. And it's beautiful.

Jai Williams: It's so beautiful because it's easy to think when you're having a tough time, especially, to doubt if God loves you.

Ginger Stache: Absolutely, yeah.

Jai Williams: And so, it's important to even change those words of, "Fond of me, loves me, I'm his favorite," you know? Just making, for me, and you all know I'm more like a practical person. I like to like make a list. I have to because sometimes when my mind starts to scatter and I start thinking about life, and reality, and future, it's like, you know? And a lot of times I would always be like, "What is a practical step to make me stop going crazy with my thoughts," you know? And number one was putting on the helmet of salvation, because that helmet of salvation doesn't stop me from thinking it, it just triggers me to think about what I need to think. Cuz those thoughts are gonna come. It is not like a magical hat that you can put on and it's like, "Oh, it's all gone. I never think", no, you're gonna...

Ginger Stache: No bad thought ever come.

Jai Williams: You're gonna think bad thoughts, but you have to discipline yourself to remember, thinking on these things, "Whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are of good report, think on these things". And for me, for season, it was literally writing it down. Like, I literally, I'll put post-it notes sometimes on my mirror just to force me to think on what I need to think about.

Ginger Stache: I love that because this is a very spiritual thing that we're talking about. So, this helmet that we're talking about is not something we can see with our eyes, but is just as real. And as you said, it doesn't make the problems go away, but it's like the Holy Spirit covering your thoughts, and you asking for him to do that for you everyday. And my helmet, you know, I've upgraded over the years, and so, I also, you know, I have this eye shield so I can see more what God wants me to see and not miss the stuff. I wanna hear the way that God wants me to hear, and not hear things that I hear, that are things like, you know, "Oh, they don't like me," cuz of how I took what they said. Instead of, maybe, I hear hurt in their voice and I think about what they need, you know? And then, the other thing mine has is a great big, ole mouth guard because I want to speak the Word of God and not all of the junk that could pour out of my mouth on my own. And I see the importance of it, in the way of looking at it like, I'm gonna put sunscreen on, right? I can't see it, when I put it on, it disappears into my skin, but it's going to protect my skin from the sun. And for me, you know, it's burning, and breaking out, and sun poisoning, and all kinds of nasty little aging factors that I just don't want, so. And the same like, when I go hiking. I put on my hiking boots to protect my feet, or after all that walking, you know, my feet are gonna feel terrible, but they're just cozy and cloud-like in my hiking boots. So, I think about that with the full armor of God. It's the amazing fact that my God thought to include shoes for me.

Jai Williams: He's so kind.

Ginger Stache: He's so wonderful. He knows me so well, he knows how much I love great shoes, and he included them in the full armor. And the readiness to spread the gospel of peace. It's like, what could be better than shoes of peace?

Erin Cluley: Yeah, another practical thing I did. I was googling lots, this day when I was studying. So, I Googled the definition of all those different pieces that you put on. And that's a really great thing to do, just like a word study. I love a good word study. And I can't remember which one it was, and I'm trying to find it in here, but one of the things, one of these... Oh, no, it was part of my spartan study. But they talked about how the armor and shield were buffed to a brilliant shine and glinted in the sun.

Ginger Stache: Did you see her face?

Erin Cluley: I know, I know!

Ginger Stache: It's so cute. Erin's face just lit up!

Erin Cluley: In the sun... But like, I had this visual image of the fact that, you know, they're getting all their stuff ready and it's shiny. But like, that's the whole point is for our armor to glint in the sun. Like, that's what the point is, is that we're reflecting God in all we do, and we cannot reflect him if we aren't putting on what he's given us.

Ginger Stache: Let's say, we don't put on the full armor of God. That's when I often feel very unprotected, you know, very vulnerable in a bad way, almost naked before everything that's out there, because I'm trying to do it on my own, right? I didn't take the time to invite God in, to ask him to get me ready for the day, to protect me and prepare me, which means I'm so prideful that I don't need any of that, I'm going to do it all on my own. And that is where my toes get stepped on, and my heart gets broken, and I'm thinking all the wrong things. And if we don't want to feel that nakedness that we all feel so often, this is a great way to combat that, to counteract it.

Jai Williams: truth moment. I did not arm myself yesterday. I did not, I got busy. Early in the morning, I got busy. And I even though I had my plan, I started, I did some of my things but I did not pause to actually put all of my armor on. And throughout the day, it just slipped my mind. But, like you said, I felt so incomplete. And those fiery darts of the enemy, they were piercing in different ways. And like, had I done that... Now, you can't live in regret but had I done that, I probably, I was hit with some more blows like, this year will not stop with blows, you know? And so, this is why I say it's a necessity for me now. Like, I have to put it on because if I don't, I don't know what blow I'm gonna get day-to-day. And so, like, that's not gonna stop the enemy from attacking but me being prepared and ready is a necessity for me. And I wasn't. And so, I didn't pass every test yesterday, like, I didn't because my emotions were on high cuz I was hit with some really heavy things. I'm like, "Ugh, I thought I was just about to come over the hump". But you know, you gotta stay ready. Like, you have to stay ready. So, I encourage you, it's a necessity.

Ginger Stache: Erin, I'm just real curious since this is something that you've known for a long time, but have really just kind of started. So, is there anything that you've seen in these days that have been a little different, or anything that you've felt you've been more protected from, or prepared for?

Erin Cluley: Sure, yes. That would be a "Yes". Absolutely. Would you like more?

Ginger Stache: The follow-up question is, what are those things?

Erin Cluley: It's so neat to see what happens when, like, when you give your focus to God and you're admitting this is how I'm going to survive this circumstance because I'm going to put on your shield of faith that you've given me, and all these things. It's like, Joyce said, "I'mma think not according to the way things are, I'm gonna think to how they can be". So, me putting on his armor is saying, "I see and accept what is happening today, but also, I will rise to the occasion because you've given me what I need, and you equipped me to go forward". So, yeah, I have seen God move. And it's been cool to not only dress myself in that, but then, now, I'm going into my kids rooms at night, while they're sleeping, and I'm dressing them in it. And I wanna get to the point where our mornings aren't absolute chaos, where I can dress them, like we do it together. We'll get there one day. But yeah, I think mostly it's been a mental transition that, absolutely, and it's only been a couple weeks, so, doesn't take long.

Ginger Stache: We don't know the things that this armor's protecting us from. There's so many things that we will never know that God shielded us from, and so many things that we face that are going far better than they could have because God is walking through it with us.

Jai Williams: And this is such as gift that God gave us that, he's like, "No, I've given you the authority to dress yourself, you know"?

Ginger Stache: Yeah, it's not a legalistic thing, like, if you do this something, if you don't do this, something bad is going to happen. It's not that.

Jai Williams: You know, like, I've watched you when Peyton dresses herself, or you know, is proud of something. As a mama, you're like, "Look at her". The outfit could be awful.

Erin Cluley: Terrible.

Jai Williams: "You did that". Those frozen panties are backwards, but, "You did it".

Erin Cluley: But, they're on.

Jai Williams: They're on, but I'm saying, like, God has given us that ability to dress ourselves, because he loves us so much. He's like, "Hey daughter, hey son, you can dress yourself. And this is the outfit I picked out for you. And it's the best outfit and it'll protect you". So, I think it's cool. There's a confidence that comes with knowing that you've dressed yourself in something that'll protect you.

Ginger Stache: Well, Joyce has just one little added umph, for us as we continue to talk about this topic and we'll start winding things down. But I think this will help give us that little extra push that we need to understand the huge difference that this could make in our lives.

Joyce Meyer: Now, I wanna to tell you a story. That's found in Joshua, and in particular, Joshua chapter 5. The Israelites, they came out of Egypt, about 6 million or so. God didn't take 'em the easy route, right to the Promised Land, and the reason the Bible says that he didn't, is because they weren't ready for war. Well, what sense does that make? God wasn't taking 'em to war. No, he was taking 'em to the Promised Land, but I said this morning, to possess the land, which he says, "It's time to go in and possess the land". What that word means, is you have to first dispossess the current occupants. And so, out of the millions of people that came out, and this just amazes me, only two, everybody say, "Two". Only two of the original group that came out, crossed the Jordan and went into the Promised Land, and that was Joshua and Caleb. Everybody else that originally came out, died in the wilderness. Now, there were people born in the wilderness, and they went with Joshua and Caleb into the Promised Land, but it took these people 40 years to make an 11-day journey. Anybody relate? "Well, I've been saved 20 years, I should be further along than this". But you're not, because you just keep going around, and around, and around the same mountain. Quit asking God to get rid of your mountain, and just decide you're gonna go through the dumb thing. The only way out, in God's economy, is through. Come on, you can't have power over something running from it, you gotta face it, go through it, and then you have the experience of having conquered it, and it makes you stronger for the next thing you come up against. So, they had to cross the Jordan in order to go into the first town, which was gonna be Jericho. And the Jordan didn't part, 'til they put their foot in it. And I love that whole thought, that many times, you don't know what sea God's gonna part for you, 'til you put your foot in it. And a lot of people, you know, they don't wanna put their foot in it, they wanna wait and make sure it's gonna be good before they do. Hey, when I quit my job, and told God I wanted to be in full-time ministry, we didn't even have enough money to pay our bills every month, but I really felt like I was following God. And you know what? He never failed us. And when I look back now, then, those were some of the hardest years of my life. But when I look back now, they were some of the most precious years in my life, because that's where I learned that God was faithful, and how to trust him. You notice, David was anointed to be king, but he had to conquer Goliath before he ever wore the crown. God anointed him 20 years before he wore the crown. You may definitely feel that you're anointed for something, but yet, you have not yet, been willing to face Goliath.

Ginger Stache: So, maybe, our friends are waiting, you know, not sure what the next step is, or maybe, they have a Goliath that they're facing and they don't know how to get through that, or you know, maybe, it's that anxiousness of putting your foot in the water not knowing if it's going to part for you or not. The wonderful thing about putting on the full armor of God, is no matter what comes, we're not fighting it on our own. We're ready to face Goliath. We're ready to step into that water. We're asking God to prepare us from head to toe and protect us and we don't have that naked, unprepared feeling in the same way. Are there things that, I can look at both of you and know the answer to this, but this is my job, okay?

Erin Cluley: Go for it.

Ginger Stache: This is my job to ask you these questions.

Jai Williams: Ask us the question.

Ginger Stache: Are there Goliaths in your life? Are there things that you're waiting on that you know you need this armor to help you to attack cuz you can't do it on your own.

Erin Cluley: Yes.

Ginger Stache: There she is again. Thank you so much.

Ginger Stache: Follow-up question...

Erin Cluley: That would be a "Yes".

Jai Williams: A 100%. I mean, I feel like I'm surrounded by giants, right now. And it's just, like, I always say this, even when Joyce is in the studio, it's like, I'm so blessed and encouraged by her story and her testimony because it seems very similar to what I'm dealing with, you know, in a lot of ways. And I'm like, it's encouraging to see, the after, you know? That's why it's important to share your testimony. Like people even ask me, like, "Why are you sharing your testimony so much on the podcast"? Well, because honestly, I don't want this to take 40 years.

Ginger Stache: Wow.

Jai Williams: I need it to take the time God has allowed. Like, I don't want an 11-day journey to be 40 years. No, if that means I have to talk through it, if that means I have to cry through it, if that means I have to be transparent through it, if it feels like I have to carry this armor on me and like, keep plowing through and like, tapping my feet in water, and not knowing if stopping working at a church for a long time, for a while is gonna, I have no idea what I'm doing right now. I'm just kind of like, I am trusting God with everything I have, and I'm doing it definitely afraid, but I know that I am covered. There is something that makes me get up in the morning and put that on, and that is the Holy Spirit in me. Like, even, when I war with it, and I have issues where I'm like, "God, are you with me? I don't feel it". But Holy Spirit keeps remind, he encourages, he lets me have those moments, but he says, "Put it on. Put it on". And even, the days that I don't put it on, I'm still like, I crawl through. I made a post today, I'm like, "I'm crawling". You know, I'm still moving forward. But even though I'm crawling, but like, yeah, it's important to share that testimony. It's important to look those Goliaths right in the face and just keep going towards it. You know, like, "Hey, I gotta defend", like, God is with me and I know that he has a plan for me. I don't know what it looks like, and I don't even, all the way believe it all the time because... You know, it's not really Christiany to say that but I don't all the time cuz I'm nervous.

Ginger Stache: Cuz we're all human, yeah.

Jai Williams: It's scary and it's hard to see the other side of the mountain when the mountain seems so big. And so, that mustard seed of faith, I'm believing in that, and I'm putting on my armor, and I'm gonna keep plowing through. So yes, like Erin said, "Yes".

Erin Cluley: One thing, I think too, that I keep trying to remember through this, and she said it in one of her earlier clips from today was that we do what we can do. So, I put on the armor, and I'm doing the steps I need to take in my situation. The things that I can control and effect, that's what I can do. The rest has gotta be God's to do, and I can't do it. So, a lot of it's gonna have to be a heart thing that has to change in me, or just all these different things, I can't control them. I've done the steps that I can take. So, every morning, I'm gonna put on the armor of God, I'm gonna do the things I can and the rest he has to fight on our behalf. And that's all we can do.

Jai Williams: He has to.

Ginger Stache: Yeah, and that's why he gave us what he did. He knows how much we need his help, right? That's why Jesus said, "I leave you, but I give you something greater. I give you the Holy Spirit to be with you". And that's why this Holy Spirit garb that we're putting on from head-to-toe is such a beautiful, wonderful thing that we cannot comprehend, that we can't understand. But what I can understand, without a doubt, is that I'm a little teeny, tiny thing that doesn't know what I'm doing on my own, right? So, I would not have made it this far. And I wouldn't have seen so many of the victories that I've seen, if it weren't for these weapons that God has given me, and I think, the passion to keep fighting through because I know he's doing it for me, and it's not me waiting for the next failure, you know? It's me waiting to see God's next victory. I just really pray that you've been encouraged in what God wants to do in, and through, and for you, with whatever you're Goliath is, whatever your mountain is, that he is giving you everything that you need to be prepared. Put that sunscreen on, right? So, make sure that you do everything that you possibly can. And like, Erin said, God will do the rest. And again, that resource is available for you because the more you study, the more you understand. That's hugely important. It's a free resource called, "Be prepared and armor up," and you can get it at joycemeyer.Org/talkitout. And I also want to ask you again, to join our friends list. We love having all of us together, talking about this stuff. And we would love to hear more about what you would like us to talk about, what you would like to hear from Joyce on, and so, you can do that by signing up at that same address: joycemeyer.Org/talkitout. And please, subscribe to the podcast, and let your friends know too, because the more the merrier, it's just more fun.

Erin Cluley: We can all be friends together.

Jai Williams: We can. Make sure you're hashtagging it, talkitoutgirls, too.

Ginger Stache: Thank you!

Jai Williams: When you make posts, we wanna see those posts: #talkitoutgirls. Let us know what your doin'.

Ginger Stache: Yeah, so much fun. So, tomorrow morning, we are all gonna get dressed and it's gonna look really good. And we're gonna be strong like mulan and...

Jai Williams: And shake our head.

Erin Cluley: I'm totally gonna do that in the morning when I get dressed.

Jai Williams: Shake our earrings.

Ginger Stache: Shake our earrings.

Jai Williams: Yes.

Ginger Stache: And you'll be prepared for the day. Thanks for joining us so much. We'll see you next time.

Jai Williams: Peace.

Erin Cluley: Bye!