I’d like to start a mini-series of posts today–about little words in the Bible.  I have quite a few circled in mine.  What started me noticing them–and their significance–was a meditation I read years ago by Amy Carmichael.  Here it is:

Eph 6.16 Above all taking the shield of faith, with which you can quench all the flaming darts of the evil one.

The word used for shield signifies a great oblong shield which covers the whole body, and the dart mentioned here is the kind which when it strikes a hard object catches fire.  The promise is that when the dart strikes the great shield of faith, though it is set on fire, it is quenched.  It cannot pierce the shield.  It cannot burn the one who is behind the shield.  The promise covers all manner of darts.  The kind of dart hurled against us makes no difference to the promise.  “All” means all.  Do we expect “all” to mean all?  Is there a secret fear in our hearts about a certain kind of temptation which perhaps we shall not be able to overcome?  Away with this fear!  It is of the devil.  The shield of faith is ready to be taken up and used.  If we take it up and use it, not a single dart of any sort will pierce it.  All means all.

Think about the power of that little word: “all”–and look for it in other places in Scripture.