I'm Mad

If truth be known today I'm mad. Almost didn't write this post. Our daughter has been in her new city for 8 days. She has been in treatment 36 days. The utter sadness still waxes and wanes. But I'm now experiencing a new unfamiliar emotion. One that doesn't seem appropriate for the situation. I'm mad. No, let's be honest, I am ticked off. And when we get mad? Emotions most definitely never make sense. They cause chaos.

All morning I've been asking God to show me, specifically, what it is that I am mad about. Have you ever done that? It's hard! There are so many feelings stirred up out of no where! So emotion by emotion I've tried to weed thru them. All the while trying to find compatible scripture. I'm doing this because I know I can not rely on my own feelings.

I'm mad at my side of the family. And my husbands side of the family. Mad that we have genetic dispositions that are hereditary. It's not fair (note the puckered out bottom lip and whine that I achieve when I say that). I'm mad because my grown daughters know our family tree. Yet playing Russian Roulette seemed reasonable? I'm mad that I can't control it. And I can't fix it. I'm mad that this has hijacked our family. I'm mad that it's my child and not me. Some days I'm mad at my daughter. I just want to shake her and scream "What is wrong with you!" or "You have broken my heart!!" Then other days it's agony knowing I can't wrap my arms around her, rub her back, and tell her how proud I am of her. How much I love her.

The bible actually has quite a lot to say about anger. Here are a few scriptures I've found this morning.

"Cease from anger and forsake wrath; Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing"-Psalm 37:8
"A quick-tempered man acts foolishly, And a man of evil devices is hated"-Proverbs 14:17
"He who is slow to anger has great understanding, But he who is quick-tempered exalts folly"-Prov. 14:29
"A soft answer turns away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger."- Proverbs 15:1
"Do not be eager in your heart to be angry, For anger resides in the bosom of fools"-Ecclesiastes  7:9
"BE ANGRY, AND yet DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger"-Ephesians 4:26

Ephesians 4 caught my attention. The Lord is telling us righteous  anger is okay as long as you don't stay in it. As long as you grow from it and move on. Don't go to bed still furious about something 5 years ago. Okay, so that made me feel a little bit better. What I'm feeling is pretty normal. Ecclesiastes 7:9 got me thinking. "Be not hasty in your spirit to be angry: for anger rests in the bosom of fools". The word "fool" stood out so I looked it up. In Latin it literally means "to putter aimlessly; waste time". So obviously God is telling us being angry, for too long, is literally a waste of time.

Next I tackled "control". I have an issue with it. I can't control what is happening to my kid. I, some days, feel like I can't control my emotions. What does the bible say about control? This is the very first verse I found:

"For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control."-2 Timothy 1:7 

Hmmm, so if I'm reading this right my not being able to control this is literally just fear? Bingo! I am scared to death that my child will not recover. I am scared to death my child won't have a normal life. I am scared to death my child will choose to walk away from treatment. I'm scared to death I will loose my daughter to this disease.

The next verse I stumbled upon was:

"Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring
lion, seeking someone to devour"-1 Peter 5:8 

If I remain angry? Try to control the uncontrollable? Fearful that the unthinkable will happen? The enemy is waiting to jump all over me. We know as Christians we are sealed. But the enemy has his demons stationed all around you. Your spoken words of insecurity are all he needs to attack. Before you know it you will be experiencing anxiety and fear in all areas of your life. That's how satan rolls.

Don't you love how God speaks to us through scripture?! Every single time I need to problem solve I can open my bible and find God's answer to my earthly problem. So what did I learn? My fears are legitimate ones. If I do not move past them I am literally just wasting time. There will be no resolve. And worse than that? My continual discussing of the fear will allow satan to attack. He will take my insecurities and turn them into anxiety in order to paralyze me with fear.

So what do I do to avoid this? I pray the blood of Jesus over my family. I pray for a hedge of protection to surround my daughter. I pray for the Lord's angels and arc angels to keep watch over all of us. I tell the enemy that I am covered in the blood of Jesus Christ and he must flee. He has no dominion over my family. Amen.

"Do not be afraid of sudden fear Nor of the onslaught of the wicked when it comes; For the LORD will be your confidence And will keep your foot from being caught"-Proverbs 3:25-26

Sorostitutes

I went to the closest neighboring city yesterday to run errands. On the way home I treated myself to a manicure. For 45 minutes I listened to six college sorority sisters, sitting near me, carry on a conversation that I just had assumed stay in the sorority house.

The conversation ranged from "Oh my gosh can you believe she wore that?! What a skank!".  "What a sorostitute!"  To "Dude, he's HOT!  Def would do him".  To "Did you see how wasted she was?".  And finally "I  f?$&ing can't stand her. Have you noticed what a fat a?! she has become?".

I'd like to tell you that these girls were all from the same sorority. At least I could have said "bad apples" or "bad news" in that particular house.  I'd like to tell you these girls were trashy. But I can't. Three different sororities represented. Three different sorority greek letters proudly displayed on their clothing. All absolutely beautiful  girls. I started to say something. But I stopped myself. My daughters voices ringing in my head "Oh my Lawd, Mama! Please don't !"

I feel absolutely confident that at some point during my collegiate career I gossiped. And if I had to guess I probably dropped a cuss word a time or two. Most likely while smoking a cigarette on back campus of my all girls college (the "nice" girls did not smoke on front campus in plain sight of passerbys). Honestly, I doubt I cussed in a public place. Let alone within ear shot of adults who definitely looked like alumni greek sisters. Or someone's Mama. Call it good manners or guilt but I had a definite fear of the Lord and my elders. And it was a healthy fear. A respectful fear.

As of late I've almost become immune to being shocked by the antics of college females. This disturbed me though. Even my own daughters, in their worst behavior, have impeccable manners in the presence of adults.  So what is it? Are we missing something in the upbringing of our daughters (and sons)? Because I can tell you, first hand, that a "good upbringing" doesn't always guarantee choice behavior.

So just for my own amusement (and to take my mind off the girls I wanted to strangle) I used my Blue Letter Bible App  to look up what God says about our daughters. Not what they say about each other in the public arena. But who God says they are.

I am God’s workmanship, created in Christ unto good works (Ephesians 2:10)
I am a joint-heir with Christ (Romans 8:17)
I am fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14)
God has chosen me and set me aside for a special purpose ( John 15:16)
I am an ambassador for Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20)
I am the apple of His eye (Deuteronomy 7:6)
God's power works through me (Ephesians 3:7)
I am a citizen of heaven  (Philippians  3:20)
I am His treasured possession ( Philippians  4:8)
I am a dwelling place for the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 2:22)
I am a holy temple (1 Colossians 3:19)

God clearly treasures us! The question is why don't our teens and college students believe this? Most of us were raised in church. And I'd be willing to bet our daughters were fairly active in youth group and or Young Life while in high school. And if they were not I would hazard to guess they attended, at some point, with a friend. Or they were involved in a team sport or drama performance in which the coach or director had high moral expectations for their students. So what makes gorgeous and educated young women throw their standards out the window when they leave for college? Become spiritually disengaged?

There is always the obvious: freedom of choice. Free will. Finding their voice. Learning to think on their own. But for some reason, I believe it is much more complex than that. Our kids are growing up in a time in history where everything  is available instantaneously. Because they don't have to wait for anything they have developed zero tolerance for boredom. They have to be stimulated every single second of every single  day. If I had to guess?  They became "bored" with youth group or Young Life by their senior year of high school. They thought they weren't being taught anything. They were just being entertained. After awhile the entertainment, without meaning that is permeating,  became boring.

So then you have to ask what separates those of us raised in the 60's, 70's and 80's from today's youth? My personal opinion would be the fear of the Lord. Back then the fear of the Lord meant something. Our society was still deeply rooted in biblical principles. Our Sunday school classes, youth group, and Young Life actually spoke of and taught the consequences of disobedience of God. Schools said the pledge of allegiance. Court houses and school buildings across the nation hung the ten commandments on the wall in plain sight. Our nation still believed there were consequences for our actions. We still revered a Majestic Maker who knew better than we. Am I resonating with anyone?

So if you are a teen in your senior year of high school attending Young Life, church camp, Sunday school and are accustomed to being entertained what happens to your foundation when you become bored with the entertainment? Well, there is no foundation to begin with. You are not vested in a relationship with God. A personal, intimate relationship with the Lord. It hasn't been taught. Demonstrated. You've been taught "love" "tolerance" "generosity". All of those are extraordinary traits of the saints. But as the saying, which is applicable for marriage, goes "One can not survive on love alone". That is true of our relationship with Christ as well.

A biblical foundation has to be set. The teen has to understand the sacrifices Jesus made for us. The crucifixion needs to be viewed in all of its gruesome detail. Our youth need to understand that someone loved them so much that He gave his life for them! That their life means something. That God has a plan for them. That there are eternal consequences for their lack of belief.

The bible tells us that our words are a direct reflection of who we are inside. “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” (Matthew 12:34) Our youth need to understand that there is no life in partnership with this world. The Lord makes it very clear that what is truly in your heart will be reflected in your words. “Their throats are open graves” (Romans 3:13). 

By the end of my manicure I had a full on revival going  in my head. The urge to go over and hug those ugly spirited girls was real. I wanted to let them know how beautiful they are. That they deserved better of themselves. That there is a Maker a Creator who loved them so much He died for them. That if they got to know Him their lives would be transformed. Honestly, the struggle was intense. I wanted to say "Hey! Sorority girls! Wake Up! Jesus is coming soon. The real party is going to be in heaven not at the KA house!" But out of respect of my kids reputations I refrained. BUT I prayed it all the way home.

"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly"-Colossians 3:16

 

Submission gets a bad rap

Our life has been stressful of late. And that is putting it gingerly. Quite honestly I can't imagine walking the path I have walked without two things:  (1) Jesus (2) my husband. We all seem to be on the same page. And I honestly thank God for that daily.

The bible is very clear about the husband and wife role. And many people get this wrong....myself included. One revelation that I have had in the past 5 years is that I was created, by God, to be a helpmate to my husband. Genesis 2 points out that the Lord took a rib from Adam to create the woman. The rib is significant. He didn't use his head which would mean intelligence over the woman. And He didn't use the feet which would mean trampling over or domineering over the woman.  God used the rib which, to me, indicates the middle. Side by side. Partners. I love that don't you? The Lord truly has thought of everything!

But marriage gets even more exciting. Our husbands are to love us as Christ loves the church. That is huge love! That means fighting for us. Defending us. Protecting us. Making sacrifices for us. Lifting us up in prayer. Providing for us. Guiding us. Honoring us. Being our equal partner.  Isn't that awesome? The Lord requires obedience from us as well.  As wives we are to pray without ceasing for our husbands (Ephesians 6).  Even those husbands that have not accepted Christ. Scripture tells us that our husband will see in us the "beauty, gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God"  (1 Peter 3). Thus causing us to be precious to our groom! Amen!

Here it comes: submission. Yes, submission gets a bad rap. Probably because it has been so misinterpreted. The Lord is asking us to submit to our husbands as we do to Him (Ephesians 5). That does not mean letting an abusive husband control us in the name of Jesus. No, it simply means that we are to trust that our husbands are going to honor God in their roles as our defender, protector, provider, Godly partner. This confused me for a long time. I was raised by a very strong willed Southern woman. My parents adored each other. Part of that adoration was probably because my Mother ran the show. In hind sight, it probably took the heat off of my Dad. Therefore my Dad didn't have the pressures that come with being the head of the household.  I'm convinced this is why my Dad never got over my Mother's death. He could not move forward. He was paralyzed with grief and fear. He did not have the tools to lead. And he was by no means a weak man. Actually quite the contrary.

So, guess what I did the first decade or so of my marriage? Ran the show! I didn't trust that my husband knew what was best for us. Because, of course, I thought I did. In my mind he was to work, provide, and I was to run the household. Sometimes I would get very angry with him when he would try to help me. If he saw me struggling with too much on my plate he would always try to help. I'm embarrassed to say I would tell him quite frequently "Would I come into your office and rearrange it?". He patiently waited for me to figure out what our roles were as a partnership. I am very grateful for his kindness in the face of my sometimes, eh hem, overbearing ways.  He never once stopped putting me first.

I caused my husband great resentment. And if I'm being honest probably great confusion for my children.  For a season we were not on the same page at all. We would butt heads. It was a battle of the wills. When I finally realized that I needed to let my husband be in charge of final decisions in every aspect of our lives? A miraculous thing occurred. Every decision was made from a mutually and equally  loving partnership. When I began to verbally say to the girls, workmen in our home, friends  "Let me consult Robin on that. As the head of our household I stand behind his decision". Whoa! All of the sudden I was a rock star to my husband! He not only felt the love and respect I had (have) for him but he saw it put into action. God was right! "Your godly lives will speak to them better than any words. They will be won over by watching your pure, godly behavior" (1 Peter 3). It turned the tide for our marriage. And, lets be honest, the man planned a full on marriage vow renewal in a church, with bridesmaids, and a sit down dinner reception for our 25th anniversary. I'm telling you...submission is a powerful thing!

Does that mean that I want my daughters to be meek, mild, and timid in their future marriages? Absolutely not! But my prayer is that the more they submit and commit their lives to Christ the stronger they become. In that strength they will see that they must let their husbands lead, defend, protect, and love them as Christ loves them. That they will settle for no less than righteousness in their marriages. That they will submit to Godly lives. In that submission they will find  power and strength in the Holy Spirit.  When trials come they will be a united partnership with their husbands. 

God knew exactly what he was doing in our marriage. He knew that the trials were coming. And lots of them! Had I not grown in Christ? Realized what my husbands biblical role is in our marriage? I'm not sure we would have made it. My stepping beside my husband has allowed him to grow into the man Christ longs for him to be. Standing beside him in marriage has allowed us to work as one flesh. It's not always perfect. Some days far from it. But it works. God's way always works.  I'd say almost 26 years of marriage is a rarity in our generation. I'm thankful for Him and him every single day.

A friend loves at all times, And a brother is born for adversity - See more at: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Best-friend#sthash.cScXqEnL.dpuf

Many a man proclaims his own loyalty, But who can find a trustworthy man? - See more at: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Best-friend#sthash.cScXqEnL.dpuf

A friend loves at all times, And a brother is born for adversity - See more at: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Best-friend#sthash.cScXqEnL.dpuf

A friend loves at all times, And a brother is born for adversity - See more at: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Best-friend#sthash.cScXqEnL.dpuf

"Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that satan may not temp you because of your lack of self control"-1 Corinthians 7:4-5

Crazy Train

How many times have you tried to do something on your own without the help of God? How did that turn out for you? My guess is, like me, you have tried to control your life for a very long time. You praised God for being good but you were still in charge of your own life...Amen? You happily skipped through life doing your own thing. Because after all, it is your life.

You know what is best for you. You know what is best for your children. You want them to be musically, athletically and spiritually well rounded. Because that is what good parents do right? You have them in violin lessons, art camps, soccer, basketball, baseball, youth group and ballet. You drop them off at after school activities and then hurriedly run and try to get supper started. You start homework in the car while eating a snack. By the time bath time comes you are spent. Absolutely a zombie. You just want to be by yourself.

The weekend roles around and its full of soccer games, recitals and of course church on Sunday. You don't have time for anything but Sunday service. But you want your kids to get the concept of goodness. You find yourself dropping your kids off at Sunday school. Meanwhile you and your husband duck out of your class to run to Bo-jangles before the crowd starts. By Sunday night you wonder why you don't feel refreshed. Why your marriage seems stag net.

You have said "yes" to every committee known to man because (1) you want to be acknowledged (2) you don't want to disappoint anyone (3) you honestly believe working yourself to death makes you a good Mama. Can I get a witness? Anyone?

For most of us we start out with good intentions. Before we know it the circus has turned into crazy town. Our kids schedules are running our lives. Our husband is agitated because we are too tired to give him the intimacy he needs. We end up socializing every weekend. We love our friends but when we get home we realize we really just wanted to be in our "soft clothes" with our husband and kids. Ring a bell?

And then it dawns on us. We want off the bus and we want off NOW! But we don't want to disappoint anyone. Eventually our hearts harden. We begin to just go through the motions. We thought we were living our own lives. In reality we  are in bondage to everyone we have committed time too. Some of us loose it. Simply fall apart. Others just live an entire life in bondage. Our hearts becoming harder with each passing day.  And some of us realize this isn't working and we need help.

Many of us view giving up control of our lives as "weakness" "failure" "poor parenting". In reality it is not until we surrender to Him that we actually gain strength!  When we allow Him to soften our hearts we begin to live again. We are not resentful of commitments. We are not as short tempered with our children. We become perfectly balanced with our husband. The pressures of life are still there. But we are excited with each day. Excited because we know we have been faithful to God. We know we are letting Him guide our path.

Does it make life easier? Not all of the time. But the choke hold around your emotions is removed. You are able to see God's plan for your life. You trust that His way is the right way. You know that He has you in the palm of His hand at all times. You know you can Rest in Him. Time is short. Are you tired? Are you ready to park the bus? Ask Jesus to be Lord of your life today. Then sit back and watch miracles happen.

"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh"-Ezekiel 36:26 

I'm a hypocrite

I realized this past week that I am a hypocrite. I talk to everyone I know about how great Jesus is. I blog about my relationship with God. I read about Him. I study Him. I pray to Him. I pray about Him. I try to live my life for Him. And yet this past week when the Lord is who I needed most in the whole world?  I turned, first, to my husband and friends for comfort. Then I told Jesus about it. Asked His opinion on how I should handle a situation after the fact.

I need the Lord right now more than I have in my entire life. I need to hear Him whisper "Elizabeth, it is going to be okay". And amazingly I don't hear Him. I know He's there. I can feel His presence. But He is silent. Do you remember when you were a kid and you had a test? You studied all night and you knew the material. You show up to class the next day and you can't remember anything! You stare at the blank test and panic "I know this!!"  That's a little bit how I am feeling today.

We just wrapped up the last week of our daughters treatment in group family counseling. I blogged about how much I dreaded it. I was wrong. I was dead wrong. It was one of the most informative and humbling experiences my husband and I have ever had. I will say that the Lord appointed our group. It had to have been divine intervention. Our group had so much in common it was uncanny. Every doubt Robin and I had was met with a fulfilled need in the form of a parent, child  or a spouse who had experienced exactly what we have. We all thought we had bad relatives trying to be good. What we learned is that we have sick family members trying to get well. We didn't cause it. We didn't create it. But we have all enabled it. And only they can change it. The federal prosecutor, the student, the business owner, the dentist, the doctor, the college professor. The bravest human beings I have ever met.

It was recommended for our daughters treatment to live in a sober living house with other college aged girls in recovery. After her "graduation" we hoped in the car and drove the 300 miles to her new city. Where she will live and work for the next several months.  In the cover of darkness we dropped our daughter off. Standing in the driveway with her Barbour coat, Tory Burch shoes, Citizens jeans, Louis Vuitton bag and boarding school class ring.  $40 cash in her pocket and no car or phone. Her outside dressing may have looked orchestrated. But beneath she was identical to her new 9 roommates. "You can do this" her Daddy whispered with tears in his eyes. I hugged her. Told her how proud of her I was. She met our gaze with "I want to go home". We told her she was not allowed to come to our home again until she was sober. I hugged her. I told her again how much I loved her.  And we left.

I cried the whole way home. Deep, ugly bellowing cries. I couldn't breathe. Robin squeezed my hand. "When we dropped her off at rehab we buried half of her. When we dropped her off at that house we buried the rest of our child.  She can do this, Elizabeth". He was right. We are doing the right thing. This was the "tough love" I've heard about my whole life and thought was a scapegoat catch phrase. We have to stop loving her to death.

I opened my bible this morning and a piece of paper dropped on the floor. I picked it up. It was quote I have written about before. God did know I needed to hear Him today!

         "Sometimes God wraps His glory in hard circumstances or ugly obstacles or
         painful difficulties, and it just never occurs to us that within those life-shaking
         events is a fresh revelation of Him".

When we sit in our desks, after we've opened the test booklets, the initial panic has subsided. We breathe. Slowly the answers to the tough questions start to come back to our memory. Line by line. Slow and methodically we fill in the blanks. We may not get all of the test questions right. But the answers do come. We close the test booklets. We feel at peace. It was hard. So very hard. But we survived it.

"This is the day the LORD has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it"-Psalm 118:24

Call Me Crazy. It won't be the first time

We are leaving this weekend to go spend the next week with our daughter. Four days of non-stop, action filled, therapy. I'm looking forward to this about as much as I do a root canal. I'm not in denial. I am not insensitive to others. And it's not that I don't love my child or care about her well-being. Of course I do! I am yet to figure out how four days of dialoging and processing in a group setting is healthy. If it were four days of just our family and a counselor? I would totally get that. If it were four days of praise and worship I'd be leading the group.

I have several friends who have either sent their children through this program or they themselves attended. The camp is divided. Half say the  4 day therapy session is the best thing to ever happen to them. The other side of the camp says it was informative but did not have any affect on them at all.  So before you begin posting  comments let me argue my case. Explain from a biblical standpoint where I am coming from. Fair enough?

Our family has always had open communication. Seriously, 3 females and a male? No secrets in this house!
And quite honestly with as much as we have experienced in the past decade there has been no room for secrets. Everything was laid out flat in front of the Almighty. In fact, before she left, I told our daughter there were just some things I really don't need to know. Truly. If you were raised in the 70's or 80's I feel confident there are things your parents don't know to this day. Most call that unhealthy. I call it common sense.

My husband and I are strong believers in the power of the spoken word. If you have an insecurity and you speak it? Satan is going to grab right onto that verbal thought. Next thing you know he is attacking you from every angle based on that spoken word. Satan can not read our minds. When we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior we are covered. Sealed. We can communicate with the Holy Spirit non verbally. We can not do so with satan. Therefore he waits to pounce on our weaknesses. Those weaknesses can only be reached through the negative spoken word.

Think about that for a moment. If Jesus Christ, who is completely free of sin, was not immune to the temptations of satan why on earth would we think that we are? The bible very clearly tells us:

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may
have life and have it abundantly."-John 10:10

Satan's only  job is to steal, kill, and destroy. There is no bargaining with him . He wants your life to be in shambles.  He wants you dead.  Or to stay in  bondage to drugs, alcohol, sex, food, hoarding or whatever it may be. If he can keep you in chains?  You can not experience the full riches, righteousness and freedom that is found in Christ Jesus. And because you can't experience that you can not give all of your glory to God. And that is what the devil wants. He wants the Lord's glory at any cost. Plain and simple. He could care less about you. No, he just wants to bind you, lead you into emotional death, and get you out of the way.

Now fast forward to group therapy with strangers. There are going to be spirits in those sessions waiting to pounce somewhere. The first individual who testifies something negative and the next person who is in agreement? Where do you think the enemy is going to attack? He does not want that bondage to end!
I will tell you this is true based on my personal experience. When we hash and rehash our minds get more and more confused. In steps satan for the kill. Call me crazy. It wouldn't be the first time!

Jesus, on the other hand, came to give new life. Abundant life in Him. Amen?! He wants the chains broken. He wants to love us.  Lift us up. He wants to heal us. Renew our minds. He wants us out of the pit of hell. He knows the plans he has for us to prosper. If they will let me I could lead four days of praise! Can you imagine how strong the Holy Spirit would move in that room?!

We are called to love our neighbor.  We are called to have compassion. We are not called to try and make sense out of the senseless. That's the Lords job. He wrote our testimony before we were born. He knows how this thing is going to play out. Does that mean we do nothing? Absolutely not! It's a given we love our girl to the moon and back. We love , support, cherish, encourage, and cheer on those we are praying for unconditionally. What if we prayed for four days for everyone in the group. Intercessory prayer. Now that  to me would be an awesome four days! I've already been given strict instructions not to preach. If the Lord prompts me? There just might be some soul saving rather than soul searching next week.

"He sends forth His word and heals them and rescues them from the pit and destruction."-Psalm 107:20

Prepared For Battle

We are living in a season of great deception on this earth. It is often hard to recognize
good from evil and evil from good. As Christians we are moving targets for the enemy.
 

"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh
about, seeking whom he may devour"-1 Peter 5:8

God tells us that His word is mightier than a two edge sword. In other words it can cut
through anything! We are able to thwart off the enemy causing him to flee by reciting
scripture. It's one of the beautiful gifts the Lord has given us.

"For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword,
it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the
thoughts and attitudes of the heart."-Hebrews 4:12

The Full Armour of God must be prayed out loud. If we are saved the enemy can not penetrate
our thoughts. He is not omniscient. Therefore he can't read our minds. By reciting this prayer
out loud, over your family, you are telling the enemy to back off. That you are fully covered in
the blood of Jesus Christ.

When I first began reciting this prayer out loud I felt ridiculous. I was raised in a protestant denomination where the clergy prayed for us. It was, by no means, natural to pray out loud without repeating after the minister. I began by reciting the prayer to our dogs. All three labs. One of each color. Lined up attentively ready to be ministered too. They loved it!

There is no perfect way to pray. God knows your heart. It may feel silly praying out loud at first. After awhile you will  walk around your home proclaiming the Blood of Jesus!  On furniture, doors, toys, laundry, televisions, computers, floors (just ask my husband). You can never have too much Jesus or too many angels.

God's word is active and powerful! When you pray this prayer before leaving your home you can
rest assured that the Lord has his angels surrounding you. To fight for you. Now why in the world would
you want to take on the world with out them?

Prayer is powerful. Don't leave home without it!

Dear Lord,

As I get out of bed today, I know I'm stepping onto a battlefield. But I also know
You have given me everything I need to stand firm. So in the power of Your
Holy Spirit, I put on the full armor of God.

First, I place the helmet of salvation on my head. Protect my mind and imagination.
Guard my eyes, allowing no sin to creep in. Focus my thoughts on the things of God.
Let the breastplate of righteousness keep my heart and emotions safe. I pray that I won't
be governed by my feelings, but by truth. Wrap Your word around me like a belt. And
safeguard me from error. I put on the sandals of peace to guide my steps. Plant my feet in
Your truth. Empower me to stand firm against attack.

Next, I take up the shield of faith. Protect me from satan's fiery arrows. Place me shoulder
to shoulder with Your army to oppose the devil's schemes. Finally, I take up the
sword of the Spirit, Your word. Help me to read the bible in a fresh, exciting way so I will always be ready to deflect attacks and pierce hearts with Your truth.

I know I'll face assaults today, Lord.. But You've empowered me to stand firm. Give me strength for
the battle today.

And all of God's people said Amen.