By Shelby Boughman

Some of you may know the codes for using the fire extinguishers in the event of a fire. The acronym PASS means “Pull, Aim, Squeeze, and Spray.” Doing so will help you use the fire extinguisher properly so that you may fight whatever flames may be around you.

Yesterday, the Lord gave me a new idea for this. Have you ever thought about other ways we can use this code? In Ephesians 6:16, Paul talks about a vital piece to the Armor of God by saying, “In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.”

The enemy is constantly trying to throw fiery darts and battles at us Christians, but we must stand tall and strong, fighting back at Him with the faith that God is always with us and will fight those battles for us.

This being said, the Lord gave me a new set of words for the code PASS: Pray, Ask, Seek, and Stand.

As I thought about this, it occurred to me that this would work in just about any situation. We must always pray about any situation, whether we are praising and thanking Him for a blessing or praying about a serious situation that needs to change, or simply talking with Him during the day.

Pray:

Prayer is our closest and best communication with God, as it is a direct line (Jesus on the mainline, tell Him what you want!) between you and Him. He gave us the manner of prayer that covers all things that we know as “The Lord’s Prayer.”

If you really study the Lord’s Prayer, it covers everything you could face throughout a day. It is something that my family says every morning before we even leave the house. 1 Thessalonians says to “pray without ceasing.”

Ask:

That leads us into the next word which is to ask. According to James 1:6, he says “But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.” I have been here before. I have doubted Him on my journey more times than I can even begin to count. Jesus says that when we ask, or ask in faith, we shall receive. He can answer our prayers the way that He knows is best for us and in His due time.

A lot of Christians in this world have not learned and do not practice patience, and sometimes expect Jesus to become their Santa Claus, of sorts, or a genie. I heard someone once refer to Jesus answering prayer as a McDonald’s drive-through, where one can ask for something and have it granted to them instantly. Not so! My, how they were steered in the wrong direction! He will answer our prayers; it may just not be in the way or the timing that we expect it to be.

Seek:

Next we come to seek. My family just went through a period of a time without having a car; because of the urgency of the situation and the fact that we had doctor’s appointments and such to get to, we began looking for a car immediately. We called everyone we knew for prayer and to see if they knew someone with a car in our price range. My mother and I were on Craigslist all day every day for a week and a half, and we posted all over Facebook looking for prayers and/or a car before we were finally blessed with one that was perfect for us.

After we had the car for a day or two, the Lord pressed this upon my spirit: If we search that hard for a vehicle, lost car keys, misplaced wallet, or anything else we may lose, why can we then not apply to the same level of seeking into His word and building a relationship with Him?

This started me on my newfound walk. I want to seek and search for Him and His word just as hard as I did for a vehicle. Imagine, if I apply the same level of seeking to Him as I did to this car, how much stronger can my relationship with Him get? Awesome stuff!

Stand:

Last is the word stand. We have talked about praying, asking, and seeking so far. 1 Corinthians 16:13 says to “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.” God is our ever-present help and our light in the midst of the darkness. If we stand upon His word and trust in Him, we cannot go wrong. We will face trouble, but Jesus is the conqueror over all the evil in this world.

John 16:33, a favorite verse, says “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Some of us have heard this quoted before, but just as a reminder, Matthew 18:20 says, “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

If this is true, can you imagine what God can do if we band together as one body in Him, as one group of believers and pray for our nation and the condition that our world is in today? The things that could change in the lives of our families and those around us if we stand strong in His name as believer? My, what a mighty move God can make! My, how many mountains will move! If we truly stand in agreement one with another, God can change things.

Pray, ask, seek and stand

Are you ready for the battle? Are you ready to fight the fire? Are you ready to be diligent in service and give it to God? I know I’m ready to go! May God bless and keep each and every one of you; I love you and may He keep a hedge of protection about you at all times.

Shelby Boughman is 21 years and currently resides in Canton, Ohio. She is a proud godmother to two boys ages 6 and 5. Shelby and her oldest godson Elijah are both cancer survivors of a rare and aggressive form of childhood lung cancer known as Pleuropulmonary Blastoma (PPB).

In the midst of other health issues and short-term memory loss, Shelby has rededicated and surrendered her life back to God. She is currently in the process of writing her autobiography about the journey she has come through during her lifetime and is starting a singing and testimony ministry in the local churches and nursing homes. If you would like to keep updated on Shelby’s whereabouts and her walk in faith, please feel free to visit her website at http://travelingapostle.webs.com and follow her on Twitter @sbough90. She is always looking to meet new people and bless them in any way she can!

You can see more of her amazing story on this video.