My Pregnancy Lasted Longer than an Elephant's

Eleven years ago today, Patrick and I got dressed to appear before a judge. Erin was almost ten months old, and she was in tow. She had on a black beret, with a black, velvet bodice dress with black hounds tooth skirt, white tights and black paten Mary Janes. She was clueless to the stress and energy surrounding this day. We drove to the Belton County courthouse where we met up with our family and our attorney who was my uncle. Unsure of how long we would be here because there was no order to the docket, my uncle started jockeying for position before the judge even entered the courtroom.


All Rise. I had been in courtrooms before but not for anything close to this. As soon as we were allowed to be seated, my uncle sprinted toward the bench. That’s the fastest I think I’ve ever seen him move. The judge decided to hear our case first, and Patrick and I approached the bench. I was happy to be holding Erin because my nerves were on end, and I’m afraid of what I would have been doing with my hands otherwise. As we stood before the judge, he began asking questions of my attorney uncle, and then his questions turned to Patrick and me. Will you be good parents? Will you love this child? Will you see this child as your own? Some of the most ridiculous questions on the face of the earth. Like we were going to answer with, Nope, Nope, Nope. Sometime during the questioning Erin’s chubby little hand reached over the bench and took the judges calculator tape and unrolled it towards her mouth. I didn’t realize it until the judge looked down at Erin. So relieved and a little embarrassed, I replaced the judge’s calculator tape while he grinned. It was one of the best thing he does as a judge, he said, to announce our adoption had been finalized. Of course, pictures were taken. Hugs were given, and our family all made our way down to the first floor to file the paperwork. And by family, I mean me, Patrick, Erin, Sharon and Steve, Lori and Madeleine, Honey and Poppar. It was more like a posse.

What a joyful day it was to finalize Erin’s adoption. I had loved her from the moment God had put the desire in my heart to be a mom. I had wanted her from the moment we had started our search for her. I had prayed for her during our journey to find her, and when I saw her for the first time in the delivery room taking her first breath, I couldn’t imagine being anywhere else in the world.

I am forever bound to another woman in this world because she loved her child so much that she chose life. She chose to give Erin life, and then she chose to give Erin her future. If you have never craved a child, desired to be a mom, grieved the loss of every month that passed, if you have never searched high and low for the child God had chosen for you, if you’ve never known the failure of an adoption because of withdrawal from a birthparent, then thank God. If you have been through those trials, struggles and tribulations or are going through them, know that there is an end, and the reward is great. I cherish my kids. I don’t take them for granted because there’s no way I could have them myself. There are no rule books for adoption because each story is unique. If you are even thinking about adoption, start journaling because it is part of your baby’s story and your journey to meet him or her.

I tell people my pregnancy lasted three years and two months – from the time we started trying till the time Erin was in my arms. My pregnancy was longer than an elephant’s whose pregnancy lasts for 22 months! Did I feel her move inside me? She was growing in my heart. Was I ever uncomfortable? Have you ever talked to another woman who is contemplating placing her baby for adoption and is considering you for that job? You bet I was uncomfortable at times. Did I have cravings? Stress eating can cause people to eat specific things. Thankfully I lived in Belton that had some great places for breakfast burritos! Was I emotional and did I nest? Are you kidding me? Absolutely! Erin’s nursery was ready before we even went to the informational meeting at the adoption agency!

I specifically prayed for a healthy, easy-going baby girl the first go-around. I wanted to be in the delivery room. I prayed for that. There are other things that I prayed for and God answered them. Erin knows without a doubt that it was by God’s design that she was chosen to be my daughter. She also knows that sometimes God does things outside the box in unconventional ways for different reasons, and we just have to trust that He knows what He’s doing and will work it out for our best.

Erin, I can’t imagine my life without you in it. You are such a blessing and a joy, and you were so worth the wait!

My First Meeting

I hate being stuck. I hate to struggle. I hate difficulty, and I hate strife. And yet I’ve been doing it for over a year. A necessary process. If the caterpillar doesn’t struggle and squirm to make it through the difficult walls of the cocoon, it will never reach maturity. It will never turn into a beautiful butterfly. I can honestly tell you I’m on the verge of breaking free, and I am a ready to kiss this old cocoon goodbye.


On Facebook I made a request. I asked if any of my girlfriends on Facebook would like to learn how to read and study the Bible and to hold me accountable. I asked them to inbox me. I think I got about 5 responses, and I was thrilled. But the closer the time came for us to meet, there was a number God had been placing on my heart and mind. So acting on faith, I bought 15 spirals of 3*5 note cards something each lady would need. Before the night of the study, two husbands were called in to work, but the ladies assured me they wanted to be present and would make the next meeting. Then Sunday came. I stayed in the bed most of the day and barely had a voice, but when the time came, I got up to go I had energy, and I had a voice. I was eager to see who was going to be there. I had told my mom about the number, and she wanted me to call once it was all done.

I show up at Starbuck’s at 5:10 PM. It didn’t even start until 6, but I was anxious and eager and excited. The ladies actually started showing up around 5:30 PM. One by one by one by one they arrived until there were 13. My 15 as God has promised. I love it when He gives those little winks at us. I’m so thankful I acted on faith.

I laid out the plan for the study, what they would need, what was going to be expected, and as I closed in prayer, I made sure they couldn’t leave until they met everyone there. You see, these women aren’t from just one church or from one part of town. Some are from Stonewall, Keithville, Greenwood, Shreveport, and Bossier. I’ve known one since high school. I’ve met one only once before. Some I know from church. Regardless of how I know them or how long I’ve known them, they came because they wanted to learn how to study the Bible for themselves, and by doing so are holding me accountable.

After the meeting was over, God had a divine appointment for me with one of the ladies. I know it was him because the connection was not one I had anticipated. It was an opportunity to encourage and pray over a woman with similar struggles. God never wastes anything. He can use it all.

One of the ladies sent me an e-mail, and she granted me permission to quote her. Like me she had gotten bogged down and in a funk. She said, “I have been stuck so deep in the ‘Woe is me to see the WOW is He’!”

To see women excited about learning, to see women excited about growing into an intimate relationship with our Savior fires me up. I am so stinkin’ excited. I can’t wait to see what He has in store for this group of women. Don’t you know that God is anticipating a more intimate relationship with each of his girls, his precious daughters?! WOOHOO!!!! Love it. I can’t wait to blog about what I learn during our Bible study time together and during the time spent preparing. Tis so sweet!

PEA...RCE

My son is left handed. My husband has a gun safe full of right handed guns. I’m grinning. Like me, Pearce will have to learn to shoot using a right-handed gun in his left hand. Typically, people have a dominant hand, a dominant foot and a dominant eye. When Pearce started kindergarten he would write “Pea” with his left hand and “rce” with his right. It is rare that a person is truly ambidextrous like that. Since we had to settle on a hand, we are working on the left hand as the dominant.


The reason you want to know which is your dominant hand is because that is the hand you want to use to hold the only weapon in the armor of God – the Sword of God which is the Word of God. The only way to defeat the evil in this world is Scripture. Jesus used it and won, so why shouldn’t we? Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Here’s the thing about putting on the armor of God and picking up the Sword, the Sword does all the work. Did you get that? The Sword does all the work. We aren’t supposed to pick up our Bibles and go slap somebody upside the head with it tempting as it may be. We aren’t supposed to hold it while we sit in judgment of someone else. In Hebrews 4 it clearly says, “it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” “It” being the Word of God. The Bible does not read, “The one who holds the Sword rules and judges.” Jesus used Scripture to defend Himself from Satan. He quoted it. That means He memorized Scripture. I’m thankful we live in a country where we go to church and read our Bibles to learn Scripture. With that being said, the words that come out of our mouth should be the ones that God puts there, and not the ones we feel like we want to say or feel like we have the right to say. 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” Let me tell you sweet friends, that reproofing is for you as well. S

Now in the morning when I wake up my kids I grab an arm. Sometimes I grab the correct one. Sometimes I don’t. I grab their arm and proclaim this is the arm that carries the sword which is the word of God. Then I flop their arm. Seriously, Erin, this is the best you can do? How can you possibly be strong enough to carry this sword with flabby arms like this? Show me those muscles, girl?  Pearce, you planning on dragging your sword to the fight. I don’t think this arm is strong enough to carry Excalibur into a fight much less even be able to hold up. Can you imagine how ridiculous it would look if Pearce was dragging Excalibur behind him into battle? You’d see a track where he feet had been and a separate trail left by the dragging saber. What am I getting at here? What AM I getting to here? Oh yeah, the point is this…Satan knows the Word of God probably better than you do. If you are going into a gun battle, don’t take a water pistol. You gotta know the Word of God. Meditate on it. Learn to apply it to your life. It takes strength and courage to live a Christian life.

Excallibur was King Arthur’s magical sword that he pulled out of a stone. It was said to have all sorts of powers. That was make believe. The Word of God is real. Dig into it. Grow deep in your relationship with Him. Meditate on God’s Word. Memorize Scripture that way when the day comes and you are confronted, the words that come out of your mouth will not be what comes from hate or anger, but rather the words you speak will be what God has placed in your heart to speak,  and watch God work through you.

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I'm not sure what we will do next 9 weeks...maybe the fruit of the Spirit, or we may continue on the armor of God just depends on where God leads us. Hope you are able to use some bit of what you've read here of the past couple of weeks. Can't wait to watch my kids grow in their faith. Sometimes we have to reapply those pieces of armor throughout the day because we take them off for no good reason...usually because we want our own way. Don't be afraid to reapply the armor. After all, we are to take it into EVERY situation.

Helmet for Big Hair

There was a kid on Pearce’s baseball team that got up to bat and when he swung, the little boy’s batting helmet spun around. It was quite an odd and unusual site. Obviously, the piece of armor we are focusing today is the helmet. The helmet of Salvation. A properly fitting helmet in a suit of armor fits snuggly. It is not built for comfort. It is built for protection. It limits your scope of vision to that which is before you. In battle, the leader goes before his troop. Our focus as Christians is to be on Jesus Christ the One who saved us, the One whom we are serving, the One whom we are following.

Salvation is easy to obtain. Humble yourself. Realize you are a sinner and that your sin will keep you away from God forever. Then ask Jesus to come into your heart and take away your sin. So why isn’t Salvation over the heart then? My personal thought on this is because the biggest mine field Satan plays with is in our own minds. We can be our own worst enemy by what we allow into our minds whether through our own thoughts, what we’ve watched or what we’ve heard. If we are putting on the helmet of Salvation, then we are remembering constantly what it was like before we came into the presence of an Almighty, Holy, Just, Compassionate and thankfully Merciful God, and those thoughts then effect how we live our life and how we look at others and how we treat others.

When I put the helmet of Salvation on Erin in the morning, she’s usually still in bed which means wild hair. If you don’t have curly or wavy hair, you have no concept of what truly wild hair can look like. I remember when she was a baby. I’d go into her room in the morning, and she was just sooooo happy to see me. Oh how I miss those days! She would be standing up, jumping in her baby bed, mouth wide open and hair standing on end like Phyllis Diller. I could gage the amount of humidity by how big Erin’s hair stood. It’s one of those mental pictures I keep in my mind and cherish. Her helmet is not the same size as it was when she was a little person riding a scooter. Her helmet as grown with the size of her head. The depth of the knowledge of your salvation and your faith should be growing. Your head is also a source of wisdom, and wisdom comes from the Lord. Knowledge is also housed in the brain. Your knowledge of who Jesus is, who you are to him, and just how precious your salvation is should mature as you mature in your faith.

Something else to think about...the helmet protects the ears. Remember the children's song Oh Be Careful Little Ears What You Hear? We should use our salvation to filter what we allow into our brains because what we think eventually comes out our mouths and is shown in our actions. If we are focusing our thoughts on redeeming love, then what should come out of our mouths?
One more thing, when you meet someone typically the first place you look is at their face. Correct? If you are wearing the helmet of salvation, then those who meet you face to face would see and should see your salvation on and around your face. Have you ever met someone and just by looking in their face, you knew they were a Christian? Look in the mirror. Are you constantly frowning or scowling? Seriously, if you’re a Christian and can’t find a reason to be grateful or to have joy, then search harder. Does that mean that Christians don’t go through trials? PLEASE! We go through the same trials and tribulations as others, but the difference is we have peace knowing that the God who created us and knew us before we were formed is already ahead of the situation preparing our way, working it out for our good. We just have to keep our eyes focused on that which is before us – Jesus Christ.

My Kids Choose Their Weakest Arm to Hold the Shield of Faith…Interesting

So every morning when I wake my children to get them ready for school, I am attempting to put on their armor of God. The goal is that one day they will apply it themselves and remember it throughout their day. My daughter is right handed, and my son is left handed -- sort of. They choose their less dominant hand to hold the shield of faith…every time. Their weakest arm is what they choose to hold the shield that protects them. Personally, I enjoy helping them put on their shields because I pinch on their “muscles” under their arms and say, “You call this thing a muscle? I thought it was spaghetti!” And of course, I have to tickle them. But I point out how they lack strength in those arms and how we need to “pump them up.” I explain that their faith is the same way. The more you use the shield of faith, the stronger you are and the better equipped you are to extinguish the flaming arrows. The more your faith grows, the bigger the shield to protect you. The shield will cover more territory…if you know what I mean? The older I get the more territory I got.

In order for your faith to grow, however, you have to endure hardship. James 1:2-7, “Consider it a great joy, my brothers, whenever you experience various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. But endurance must do its complete work, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing. Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith without doubting. For the doubter is like the surging sea, driven and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.” James 1:12-17, “A man who endures trials is blessed, because when he passes the test he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him. No one undergoing a trial should say, ‘I am being tempted by God.’ For God is not tempted by evil, and He Himself doesn’t tempts anyone. But each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desires.” (This would be those flaming arrows.) “Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death. Don’t be deceived, my dearly loved brothers. Every generous act and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights; with Him there is no variation or shadow cast by turning.”

Our faith in God grows through persevering through trials. God can use our mistakes and bad choices to grow our faith, or He can allow things to happen in the natural course of events to grow our faith. When we make poor choices, IT IS NOT GOD’S FAULT what happens next. When we take our focus off of God and we wander away from what is right, then we open ourselves up for attack. Our weaknesses are exposed. Sometimes things just happen in life through no fault of our own, and we have no choice but to grow in our faith. The stronger our faith becomes that bigger the shield we can carry. New Christians or children carry smaller shields, but as they grow in their faith, they change out their shields to larger ones.

Ephesians 6:16, “In every situation take the shield of faith, and with it you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” Kind of reminds me of the commercial for Mastercard – “Don’t leave home without it.” You will have the opportunity to use your faith in EVERY situation. 1 Peter 3:15, “…be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.” People are watching how you live out your faith. They are watching to see how you will respond when you don’t get the clean bill of health, when your car breaks down, when your spouse leaves, when your child rebels. They are watching to see how you are going to live out your faith, and you have to be ready to give an answer to them for how you are portraying Christ. Your shield of faith has the crest of the One you serve. So if you are serving Jesus, just be ready to explain how it is you can endure, how you can have hope.

I wonder what God’s crest looks like. I think God’s crest is the same for me as it is for you regardless of where you are, who you are, or what you’ve done. God is just that way. He loves you just as much as He loves me, so I think the crest is the same, but I think the look of the shield may vary. For example, my mom has fought stage 3 breast cancer. Her shield got pretty beat up during the fight, but she held strong to her faith. Are there dings in her shield from the fight? I bet there are. Badges of honor. The shield did its job. Her faith in Jesus, in God got her through the fight of her life. I know of a woman who was abused by her husband who had countless number of affairs. Do you think her shield may have gotten banged up? I bet it did. Here’s the thing, the shield is like a Timex. It takes a lickin’ but keeps on tickin’ meaning your faith is made to endure. God doesn’t expect you to have the faith of a warrior if you’ve never been through the fight. He gives you what He knows you can handle with HIM. He is your shield. You have to have faith in Him that he’s going to take of it. He’s got this problem in front of you. The metal of your faith will be tested, but you will find that God doesn’t skimp out on the armor. There is no defect if you will use it properly. If you hold a shield by propping your elbow on your waist while your hand holds the shield – is that a good stance to defend yourself? Or should you have a fierce grip standing firm? Exactly.

See, you thought this was going to be blogs good for you to teach your kids, but it’s really for you, isn’t it? Model this for your kids. When tough things happen, tell them, “I’m choosing to pick up my shield of faith. I’m going to trust that God’s got this.”

Spiritual Armor -- Flip Flops, Cowboy Boots, or Rubber Boots?

This summer we made our first emergency room run with Pearce. He was playing outside in the yard barefooted. We live in the country, and it’s just not something we do. At any rate, he stepped on a piece of glass, and it ended up slicing an artery on the bottom of his foot. He comes running, hobbling into the house. After sees all the blood coming from his foot, he starts screaming, “I DON’T WANT TO DIE TODAY! I DON’T WANT TO DIE TODAY!” That boy needed some shoes! That boy wanted some peace! While Pearce is very curious about the shoes that have come out in the last year or so that have toes…like the shoe is a glove for your feet or something, as a general rule, my son prefers two type of shoes – flip flops and cowboy boots. When push comes to shove, he’ll wear a pair of rubber boots. Erin, on the other hand, has been about comfort, but now she’s getting to an age where she wants a little bling on her comfort. She’s too funny.


So why is there armor on your feet? Philippians 1:27 says, “…standing firm in one spirit, with one mind, working side by side for the faith (that comes from) the gospel.” We are to stand firm in what is taught in the gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. When was the last time you read and studied one of those books? We can stand firm in our faith because of what is in those gospels…our hope, our future, our forever.

Then there’s that whole Great Commission thing…Matthew 28:19-20, “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Think about Moses and the children of Israel for a moment when they were wondering in the desert. They wore the same stinkin’ pair of sandals for 40 years. They didn’t wear out (Deut 29:5). Just like here, the Gospel of Peace doesn’t wear out. People are looking in all different kinds of places for peace, and Christians are hiding their lights!

God is providing each believer with a pair of Designer shoes!!!! What girl doesn’t like designer shoes? One of a kind, custom made shoes. You got high arches? No problem. Are you flat footed? No problem. The gospel applies to everyone, and He meets you where you are.

When I was growing up, I had really bizarre feet. I had a 7 ½ AAAA and a 7 AAA. Try getting shoes to fit right on those things! I hated shoes. My feet have changed some, but not as much as some of my girlfriends whose feet grew during pregnancy. Yes, that’s another thing about feet. They grow! As your understanding about the gospel grows and what it means to you, the more it becomes necessary to GO. Share it with your wait person at the restaurant. Share it with the person beside you in the waiting room. Just share.

My kids have me roll down their windows when we go through the drive-ins because they want to tell the workers that Jesus loves them. Something as simple as that is putting your feet to action.

One more point, if you aren’t on your feet moving, you’re on your behind. If you’re on your behind, guess what gets bigger? YEP! Your derrière. And there ain’t no armor to cover that…just sayin’.

A Light Saber to the Rib Kills the Boy EVERY TIME

I’m going to show my age here, but did Jane Russell do a commercial for “cross-my-heart” bras? Sorry men. This whole breastplate thing looks different on a woman, and my mind wandered in this direction…you know, that whole ADHD thing.

Several years ago a girlfriend and I went to Italy on an amazing trip. We took an excursion to Austria, and as part of that excursion, we took the tour of a castle. The owner of the castle had been a collector of uniquities – my term for unique, bizarre, and downright strange things. One of the more normal things he collected was armor. There was one armor set that could have been worn by Goliath. It was mammoth! What I thought was strange was the armor the size of a 3 year old. They had armor made so their children could play in it! How could a child possibly play in a suit of armor? Seriously. Can you imagine being the one who had to shape the little, bitty breastplate? How tedious that must have been because they were exact replicas of a larger one. A coworker of mine left the Farm and went into a branch of law enforcement. She may be 105 pounds on a good day and very petite. When it came to her bullet proof vest, it had to be cut down to her size.

If I were to get a breastplate, I’d want them to forge a six-pack for me…ripped. I may be soft in the middle behind that breastplate, but on the outside, I WOULD LOOK GOOOOD! But once again I chase a rabbit, squirrel or eagle.

But in the armor of God, the breastplate of righteousness protects your chest. Your chest houses your heart and lungs, so obviously when I wake the boy up and put on his breastplate of righteousness, I cup my hands, and I beat it onto him. I tell Pearce that the breastplate of righteousness protects his life force. Lungs pump oxygen, and the heart pumps the blood. Without them, you die. So, Pearce, may the force be with you! When he and I play swords or light sabers, I am for his heart. He does a great dying scene – hysterical. He aims for one of my appendages, so if he gets me below the knee, I hit the floor to his level and continue the battle.

Righteousness is doing what is right in God’s eyes. I tell my kids, when your friends do something they aren’t supposed to or they make unwise choices, you have the courage to stand your ground and do what God would have you do. By choosing what God would have you do, you are preserving your own life much like having a life preserver. But here’s the thing about the breastplate, it only protects the front. It is does not cover your backside. God equips you to stand your ground. When you choose to run with the pack and they desert the place where God wants you to stand, your backside is exposed, and that is where you will get attacked. You’ll get bit in the behind every time.

Proverbs 4:23, “Guard your heart above all else, for it is the source of life.” How many times have you gotten your feelings hurt or your heart broken because you allowed something or someone in that shouldn’t be that close to your heart? If we are wearing the breastplate of righteousness, whatever is meant to hurt our heart God can use for his good. Consider Genesis 50:20.

If you are doing what is right in God’s eyes, the choices you make will be life preserving because you are following Him and His leadership. We are under His protection when we are living in His will. Does that mean we won’t go through trials? Uh, NO! What it does mean is that when we go through trials we can have faith that He is hemming us in from the front and the back (Psalm 139). He is already at the end of the struggle, and He has gone ahead of us to prepare the way, to make the rough places smooth (Is 42:16). And when we get weary fighting the good fight, God fortifies us with His strength. Psalm 73:26, “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart, my portion forever.”

See how important it is to put on that cross-your-heart breastplate of righteousness? Now, go! And may the force be with you!

The WWE of Belts Is a WWJD Belt

We do not watch wrestling in our home for many, many, MANY reasons all involving the boy as you can only imagine. Even though we don’t watch WWE, my son has seen the commercials. He’s seen the buff players. He’s seen the belts! I don’t even know what WWE stands for! But those belts are as big and gawdy and are more bedazzled than a southern girl’s handbag, and my little boy would love to put his hands on one of those belts. Instead, he opts for his cowboy buckle – his momma can stomach that one a little more easily.

So in the morning when we put on the armor of God, I put my arms around Pearce’s middle and with my hands, I secure the WWJD belt of Truth. Of course there is tickling involved. I’ve got to get some fun in when and where I can, and he has a great laugh. Plus, this belt will do more than hold your britches up.

It is the belt of Truth. Jesus is The Way, The Truth, and The Life (John 14:6). He is the One and only way to heaven. Jesus – we make sure we put Jesus around Pearce’s gut.

In my job, I rely on my gut, my instinct, Jesus – a lot. I pray that Jesus will control my children’s guts, instincts, and will protect their stomach which processes the things we take into our bodies utilizing what is good and profitable and getting rid of the rest. The belt also provides support to the torso or the core. Jesus is our cornerstone.

Here’s the thing about truth. Truth does not change. If someone exaggerates the truth, it is no longer the truth. It has in fact become a lie. Satan would like for us to split hairs saying part is true and part is not, but that is how he gets his foot in the door. As I tell my kids, just stick to the truth it suits you better. People need to know that your “yes” means “yes” (Mt 5:37). They need to be able to trust that what you say is the whole truth without any flare for the drama or exaggeration.

So with our Belt of Truth, I pray my children will choose Jesus to filter out the impurities of this world and that they will choose Jesus to protect them from the father of lies. I pray they will choose Victory in Jesus and proudly wear the belt of Truth. As my friend Bo Roberts says when he testifies in court, “I’m a truth seeker.” I want my kids to be a Truth seeker. I want them to seek and follow Jesus while wearing the belt of Truth.

Even Pearce Knows You Don't Go into a Gun Battle with a Water Pistol

My daughter loves going to chapel. I’m so thankful that she is growing deeper in her faith. She wants to hear more than the same stories in the Bible. She wants to learn life application. I LOVE IT! SO THANKFUL! So when she asked if we could put on the armor of God this year, I readily agreed.


Much to my family’s chagrin, I am a morning person. I will sing. I will sing off key; I will sing in the shower; I will sing loudly; and I will sing out of rhythm if it will get them up and moving. My personal preferences for songs in the morning are When Cows Wake Up in the Morning and Get Up, Get Up, Get Up in Jesus Name by the Bennett sisters. You know, now that I think about it Erin may have asked me to do the armor in the morning so I wouldn’t sing. Erin is SOOOOOOOO not a morning person --- EVER.

So every morning when I wake them for school, I’ve been dressing my kids in their spiritual armor, and the next few blogs are going to be about the armor that my kids are learning to wear, what it looks like, how it feels, and what it means.

In Ephesians 6, the Word of God tells us that we are to stand firm against the devil’s schemes, and we are to put on the full armor of God. We can’t hand select what we will or won’t wear for the day. It’s like a uniform. Can you imagine if a police officer decided not to wear his uniform shirt for the day and instead chose an undershirt? Ridiculous, right? And the thing is, we have to put the armor on every day. I mean unless you are a practicing nudist you put on clothes every day don’t you? If you don’t put on your armor you’re leaving yourself exposed, and at this point in time in my life, I don’t want that much to be exposed…know what I mean? Not putting on the full armor of God is like going into a gun battle with a water pistol…it’s just ridiculous. We gotta be prepared. We need to teach our children to be prepared as well.

My prayer is that as a result of this school year, my kids and I will remember to put on the armor of God before our feet hit the floor every day. If you can use this, great. If you want to share, please feel free. As parents, I think we have to help each other out.