How To Prepare – Dads, Raise Your Shield of Faith Before the Arrows Come

BeTheDads Small Group Session 23

Dads Who Raise Their Shields Before the Arrows Come

Watch the Sermon: Take Cover — Shield of Faith

Battle Ready Series Playlist: Watch the full series

1. (Fun) What’s the most creative “shield” you ever built as a kid — blanket fort, trash can lid, couch cushions? What were you defending against?
2. What’s a moment in your life when someone literally told you to “take cover”? What did that feel like in the moment?
3. (Bridge) When you think about protecting the people you love, what usually comes to mind first — physical danger, or something else?

This week continues the Battle Ready series out of Ephesians 6, and it zeroes in on one piece of armor: the shield of faith. Paul tells believers that above everything else, we need to hold up this shield to stop the fiery arrows the enemy throws at us. The Roman soldiers of Paul’s day carried a large shield — about four feet tall — that was soaked in water before battle so that when a flaming arrow struck it, the fire was extinguished on contact. Faith works the same way. It doesn’t stop the enemy from firing, but it keeps the arrow from igniting anything in your heart.

The sermon makes the point that this isn’t a hypothetical battle — it’s constant. The enemy doesn’t clock out. He fires arrows of fear, doubt, temptation, discouragement, shame, pride, and division, and his strategy hasn’t changed since the garden: get you to question whether God really said what He said. Once he can chip away at what you believe is true, he can chip away at how you live.

The second point is where the sermon gets practical: God’s promises are what put out the enemy’s lies. Every accusation the enemy throws has a direct answer in Scripture. “You’re alone” is met with “I will never leave you or forsake you.” “You’re condemned” is met with “There is now no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.” “He doesn’t care” is met with “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.” The shield gets bigger and stronger the more time you spend actually knowing what’s true — through Scripture, prayer, worship, and walking with other believers.

The sermon closes on a point that matters as much as the shield itself: this armor wasn’t designed for a soldier standing alone. The illustration is of shields interlocking — one soldier’s shield covering the exposed side of the man next to him. The devil’s favorite move is to isolate you, because a man alone is far easier to lie to than a man surrounded by people who know the truth and will remind him of it. Faith isn’t just personal; it’s meant to be shared.

1. You need the shield of faith because the attack is constant, not occasional.

Scripture: Genesis 3:1 (NLT) — “…Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”

Dad Application: As a dad, the arrows rarely look dramatic — they look like the quiet thought at 11pm that you’re failing your kids, or the comparison to another father who seems to have it more together, or the shame from a mistake you made years ago that still whispers you’re disqualified. Those thoughts don’t feel like an attack; they feel like your own voice. That’s exactly how the enemy prefers to work. Whether you’re married, co-parenting, or raising kids solo, the pressure to feel like “enough” as a father is one of the most consistent arrows you’ll face, and it rarely announces itself. Naming it as an attack — instead of just absorbing it as truth — is the first step toward putting up your shield instead of carrying the weight alone.

2. God’s promises are the answer to every lie you’re believing about yourself as a dad.

Scripture: Romans 8:1 (NLT) — “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.”

Dad Application: Every dad has a highlight reel of moments he wishes he could take back — the blow-up over something small, the promise he didn’t keep, the years he wasn’t as present as he wanted to be. The enemy will use that reel against you for the rest of your life if you let him, whispering that you’re disqualified from being the father your kids need. But that lie only has power if you don’t know the truth underneath it. Your faith grows the same way this shield grew — through actual time in Scripture, actual prayer, actual worship — not through good intentions. The dad who knows what God actually says about him is far harder to knock off course than the dad who’s just hoping he’s doing okay.

3. You weren’t built to hold the shield alone — other dads are part of your protection.

Scripture: Ephesians 6:13 (NLT) — “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.”

Dad Application: Fatherhood can be one of the most isolating roles a man carries, especially when things are hard — a strained marriage, a difficult kid, a co-parenting situation that never feels settled, or just the exhaustion of showing up every single day. The enemy loves a dad who processes everything alone, because a man alone will believe things he’d never accept if another man said them out loud to challenge them. This group exists for exactly that reason. The dad sitting next to you tonight isn’t just company — he’s part of your shield, and you’re part of his. Standing firm long-term was never meant to be a solo project.

Opening the Text

1. In Ephesians 6:16, Paul says the shield of faith stops the enemy’s arrows — it doesn’t say the arrows stop coming. What’s the difference between those two things, and why does that distinction matter?

Starting Thought: It’s tempting to think strong faith means fewer attacks. Paul’s point is the opposite — faith doesn’t stop the arrows, it stops them from doing damage.

2. Genesis 3 shows the enemy’s first move was to question what God actually said. Why do you think that’s still his go-to strategy today?

Starting Thought: If he can get you to doubt what’s true, everything downstream — your choices, your identity, your confidence — becomes shaky.

3. The sermon describes the historical shield as being soaked in water before battle so fire would go out on contact. What do you think represents “soaking” your faith before the day even starts?

Starting Thought: Think about what actually happens before a hard day hits — is your shield already wet, or are you grabbing it dry in the middle of the fire?

Dad Life Discussion

4. What’s an arrow — fear, shame, comparison, doubt — that’s been hitting you lately, specifically around being a dad?

Starting Thought: It might not be dramatic. Sometimes it’s just a quiet, recurring thought about not measuring up.

5. Is there a lie about yourself as a father that you’ve been carrying for a long time — maybe from a mistake, a season you’re not proud of, or something someone said to you once?

Starting Thought: These lies often trace back to a specific moment, even years ago, that’s still shaping how you see yourself today.

6. Who is currently part of your “shield formation” — the guys who know what’s really going on with you and speak truth into it? If the honest answer is “no one,” what’s kept you from letting anyone in?

Starting Thought: This isn’t about how many friends you have. It’s about whether anyone actually has permission to challenge what you’re believing about yourself.

7. What does it look like practically for you to “hold up your shield” on a hard day — with your kids, with your wife, or with an ex you’re co-parenting with?

Starting Thought: This is where faith stops being theoretical. A hard conversation, a short fuse, a tempting shortcut — where does the shield actually get used?

8. If your kids could see the arrows you fight every day, what would you want them to learn from watching how you respond to them?

Starting Thought: Your kids won’t remember that you never got hit by an arrow. They’ll remember whether you kept standing.

• Write down one specific “arrow” — a fear, a lie, a recurring discouraging thought — that’s been hitting you lately as a dad. Underneath it, write one true statement from Scripture that directly answers it.
• Have one honest conversation this week with your wife or co-parent about a pressure you’ve been carrying silently as a father. Don’t try to solve it in the conversation — just say it out loud.
• Pick one specific brother from this group and text him this week, not to check in generally, but to name one real thing you’re struggling with and ask him to follow up with you in a few days.
• With your kids, create a small, tangible moment of “taking cover” together — a short prayer before school, bedtime, or a hard moment — so they see you actively using faith, not just talking about it.
• Set a specific time this week to “soak your shield” — 10–15 minutes of Scripture or prayer before your day starts, rather than reaching for faith only once the fire has already started.

What it is: Once this week, at dinner or bedtime, tell your kids about a real “arrow” you faced that day — a fear, a frustration, a temptation to shortcut something — and tell them, out loud, what you did to respond to it.

Why it matters: Kids often assume dads don’t struggle — which either makes them think they’re the only ones who feel weak, or it sets an impossible standard they’ll quietly panic about never reaching. Naming your own battle, in an age-appropriate way, teaches them that faith isn’t the absence of a fight — it’s what you do in the middle of one.

Key themes to emphasize

• The attack is constant and often subtle — not just dramatic crisis moments.
• Faith grows through actual practice (Scripture, prayer, community), not passive hope.
• Isolation is dangerous specifically for dads; community is part of the armor, not an accessory to it.

What to watch for

• Question 5 (the long-carried lie) can surface real shame — past failures, addiction, an affair, a season of absence from kids. Let the room breathe; don’t rush past a heavy answer, but also don’t force anyone to go further than they’re ready to.
• Single, divorced, and co-parenting dads may feel exposed by marriage-normative language. Keep the framing relational (“your wife, ex, or co-parent”) rather than assuming an intact marriage.
• Watch for a dad who deflects with humor when a question lands close to home — that’s often a sign it hit something real, not that it missed.

Timing guide (60–75 minutes total)

• Icebreaker: 10 min
• Sermon Context + Key Points: 15–20 min
• Discussion Questions: 20–25 min
• Key Takeaways + Practical Applications: 10–15 min
• Dad Challenge + Closing Prayer: 5–10 min