The Helmet of Salvation..what is that??

The Whole Armor of God

10 A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 12 For we[a] are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. 15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.[b] 16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.[c]17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. (Ephesians 6:10-18 NLT)

What a great passage written by Paul. How are you with putting on this armor everyday? It is so vital to be conscious of this. I felt the Lord telling me to expound on the helmet of salvation today, so that's what I'm going to focus on. But if you want to go into an in-depth study on the armor of God then you have to do the one by Priscilla Shirer. God gave her so much wisdom about it and she teaches it in such a way that it is easy to understand and very relatable to life today. Check it out here.

As for the helmet of salvation, God has made it so real to me that I had to share it with you. 

You see, when life throws us a curve ball (or maybe several) and we feel that anxiety settling in, we tend to turn inward. We worry more, try to figure it out, and unfortunately become self-focused. This is what the enemy wants. He wants you focused on the problem, and not just the problem, your problem. Yours. Not the homeless man on the street corner's problem, but YOUR problem. 
So #1 he gets you focused on yourself and your problem.
#2 he starts whispering lies into your mind: "look at what God let happen to you," or "look at what your spouse did to you, they don't love you, you deserve better.." 
Do you see that? SELF focused and LIES.  This is how the enemy works, so the Holy Spirit gave us some instructions on how to stand firm against these strategies of the devil. (And how to deflect those curveballs with a helmet.)

The helmet of salvation is an invisible helmet that we put on our head to protect our mind from the voice of the enemy. The reason why it is called the helmet of salvation is because when our mind is covered with salvation, the enemy cannot get through. 

When you think of your salvation, what comes to mind? 
For me, I am so thankful for God's salvation and mercy on me that I cannot think about it without getting overcome. To imagine Jesus on the cross bleeding, suffering and being covered in MY SIN, makes me want to cry and fall on my face.  I can't believe He saw me worthy enough to die for. I can't believe He wanted to take my sins upon himself and pay the death penalty for them. For ME. It just blows my mind. That love and sacrifice is beyond what anyone else would ever do for me. So when I put on the helmet of salvation I am putting on a mindset of humility, thankfulness and victory all at once. I am putting on salvation.  If even the faintest evil whisper tries to enter in saying "God doesn't love you, look what He allowed to happen.." then it gets SLAMMED down so hard that it keeps going right on back to hell where it came from because my mind is at the cross! My mind is on Jesus, the One who died for me, the one who gave Himself up for me so that I might LIVE and give Him the glory for my eternal salvation.  

When that helmet is not on your head it leaves your mind completely vulnerable and susceptible to the devil's deception. I spent 10 years of my marriage without putting on that helmet, and the devil had me believing in such a web of lies and deception that I couldn't see what was truth and what was not. I was lost in sin. It wasn't until I came back to God, like a prodigal daughter, that I was able to view my salvation how I described it above.

If you call yourself a Believer, but the cross does not stir something deep in your soul, then you need to go TO the cross and remember what Jesus did for you. One way I suggest you do that is read the Gospel accounts of the Crucifixion. Another way to reconnect yourself to the gift of your salvation is to put on "At the Cross" by Chris Tomlin and get on your knees and praise God. Remember what He did for you. Give Him the glory and praise He deserves and put on that helmet! Guard your mind from the evil one!

The way you keep that helmet on everyday is to stay Christ-focused. How you do that is by staying in the Word. 
It's simple, if I wanted to think about Twilight all day long I would read the book all the time, watch the movie every weekend and listen to the soundtrack everyday in my car. (I think that's what I was doing most of 2007) So it's not rocket-science, whatever you spend most of your time, thought and energy on is what enslaves you. Why not put it on Christ and His Word so that you are actually living out your calling and protecting yourself from the evil one while doing it? It makes sense friends, you just have to do it.

Pray with me:
"Thank you Lord for your gift of salvation. Thank you Jesus that you were willing to die in my place for MY sins that didn't even commit. You loved me so much that you stepped into my grave and took the punishment. I am not worthy Lord, but I am so grateful. All I can give you in return is my life. Please forgive me of my sins and wash them away, making me pure and clean in Your sight. Help me to put You first everyday by reading my Bible and soaking in Your words. Keep my helmet of salvation strong as I remember what You did for me and cover my mind with it everyday. Thank you Lord for everything you do for me, I love you. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen"