| January 13, 2010
St. Hilary Dear Family of Mary! "Dear Children! Today I call you especially now to advance against Satan by means of prayer. Satan wants to work still more now that you know he is at work. Dear children, put on the armor for battle and with the Rosary in your hand defeat him! Thank you for having responded to my call." (August 8, 1985) The Armor of God has always been a bit of a fuzzy idea for me. It sounds nice, but what does it mean in practice? I want to try to tie each part of the armor (according to St. Paul) to the messages of Our Lady. I think it may help us to really understand how to put on the Armor of God. "Stand therefore, having girded your loins with truth..." (Eph 6: 14). I always think of the loins as what exercise buffs would call "the core". It's that part of the body that is the center, the part that seems a bit vulnerable and soft, but holds the whole body together and provides stability, the "abs!" To gird the loins would be like cinching up the mid-section to add strength to the muscles. I know that if your core is weak you can't move with agility, all your other movements will be less powerful. The core ties it all together. Translating this idea to the spiritual realities, it would seem that our spiritual center or core would be where our person resides. It would be where we hold our self together, the core of our being. In that core we need the truth, the truth about ourselves, about God, about life, about our purpose for living, etc. If we have half truths or lies about our self or about God in our core we will be weakened in battle. We will be vulnerable and less able to hold it together in a fight. Our Lady once said: "Little children, decide for conversion, that your life may be true before God, so that in the truth of your life you witness the beauty God gave you. Little children, I invite you again to decide for prayer because through prayer, you will be able to live the conversion. Each one of you shall become in the simplicity, similar to a child which is open to the love of the Father." (July 25, 1996) Our Lady calls us to understand the truth of our lives! This is the truth that will strengthen our core and make us strong in God. And the process through which we receive this truth is conversion. When we encounter Jesus in prayer, when we turn towards Jesus with our whole being and gaze upon Him, we encounter the truth. We encounter the truth about all that is good (especially about how much Jesus loves us and the truth that we are children of God), and we see ourselves in that light. In that conversion process, we become aware of our faults and failings, and we can turn them over to Jesus. Then the enemy will have no hold over us, we will not be vulnerable in our core. We will be strong in our center because we will be operating out of the truth. Our Lady also has told us: "Dear children! I invite you to open the door of your heart to Jesus as the flower opens itself to the sun. Jesus desires to fill your hearts with peace and joy. You cannot, little children, realize peace if you are not at peace with Jesus. Therefore, I invite you to confession so Jesus may be your truth and peace. So, little children, pray to have the strength to realize what I am telling you. I am with your and I love you. Thank you for having responded to my call." (January 25, 1995) A major part of the conversion process is the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Through Confession we come face to face with Jesus, the Truth, and we see the truth about ourselves. We receive His forgiveness and are healed of the wounds of our sins. In that way we can become integrated in our core, in our center, and become strong and ready for battle. We will have no illusions about ourselves. We will know from whence our righteousness comes and we will rely on Him in every situation. We will have very strong spiritual "abs"!!! 
So, girding our loins with truth includes daily conversion through prayer (Decide for conversion, that your life may be true before God...) and frequent Confession (I invite you to confession so Jesus may be your truth and peace...)!! I'm feeling stronger already! In Jesus and Mary!
Cathy Nolan
www.marytv.tv
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