Embrace the Camera: It's Saturday!!!!!

(No, Jon, we don't have school today.  lol)

Scott is off helping his brother & family move to their new house.  I'm home with the kids.  We kind-of figured that my extra hands would be totally outweighed (and undone) by theirs, so good luck fellows!  See ya when you get home.

I've been following Emily over at The Anderson Crew for a couple of years now and thoroughly enjoy her Embrace the Camera posts.  I love her reasoning, she says it way better than I can here.  So I figured now that I'm doing this blog, I'd join in the fun.  After all, she's right, I have almost no pictures of myself!

Today, I got some photos of the boys, just for fun, and then let them use the good camera.  I actually look pretty natural in the pictures considering I was fighting a panic attack over trying to take the camera back for fear it would be dropped.  Surprisingly, some of the best pictures were taken by Jon!

Saturday morning Lego Adventures.

My future Supermodel.  He strikes a pose for every picture.

This was him dancing.  Goofball!

 

 Jackson's picture.  No, I have no idea what Jon is doing.  Yes, for some reason, Joshua decided to play dead.

 

A little better picture.

 

 This one is my favorite.

And, yes, Joshua is alive...

 The boys saw the muscle competition pictures and were disappointed that they weren't included.

Joshua informed them that they needed to "look like they're going to the bathroom."  That prompted this face from Jackson and a marching dance from Jon singing, "Grr!  Grr!"  

Yeah, thanks, Josh.

September Re-Cap

Well, a quick September recap for you. 

 As you can see, Jonathan was SUPER excited about his first day of school.  

 However, homework appears to be a blast.  **eyeroll**  Goofball!

 The desperate wait for Jonathan to turn 5 is finally over.  Yes, that's a powdered doughnut with a candle and a pizza box.  Whatever makes the kid happy.

 And what birthday party would be complete without a muscle competition...

 Yes, I know, a girl's party.  However, the Good Lord saw fit to bless me with boys...

 5 of them!

Here's the "real" birthday cake.  I'm officially to coolest mom ever for finding that candle!

Happy Birthday, Jonathan!  And, yes, you're no longer, "Still 4."  You really are 5!

XOXOXO

Meditations: Full Armor of God--Why do we need it?

Ephesians 6:10-18

Over the years, many of us have heard reference to the "Full Armor of God" and the Bible as the "sword."  My favorite reference is the T-shirt that says, "Don't Fight Naked," on the front in bright pink letters.  The back says, "Put on the full armor of God," with a knobby-kneed cartoon character wearing nothing but the "armor."

Funny, but what's the point?  I don't fight battles that require big pieces of metal to protect my body EVER, let alone on a daily basis.  As a matter of fact, I'm pretty sure the average person in Ephesus, when Paul wrote this letter, didn't fight battles like that either.  So, what in the world was Paul talking about, and why is it still so important that you can get a T-shirt reminding you not to fight naked?

Paul gives us a rather surprising (and sometimes difficult to swallow) answer in Ephesians 6:10-13.  He calls us to be strong in the Power of the Lord and he assures us that, at the end of the whole fight, we'll still be standing.  So far, so good.  After all, I already know that "God is God, and I am not," so recognizing that any strength I need has to come from the Lord is kind of a given.  Add on top of that, the assurance that I'm on the winning team, and I'm suiting up!  Except...What battle?

I'll admit I'm good with the goofy shirt, after all, that knobby-kneed fellow reminds me of my dad, and believe me, I have no desire to see my dad naked!  However, I'm not sure how armor is going to help me when I battle my son about doing his homework or my dear hubby about finances.

This is where goofy T-shirts drop the ball.  Looking again at Ephesians 6:10-13, Paul spells it all out.  "Our fight is not against people on earth."  Paul is not talking about a physical set of armor.  He's talking about a spiritual set designed to protect us from "the devil's evil tricks."  You see, contrary to popular opinion, we are not the only intelligent beings that God created.  There is a whole spiritual realm that influences our temporal realm.  We've seen reference to this in the form of angels and, another thing that people want to turn a blind eye to, demons (the devil's minions).

The devil and his minions are where the armor comes into play.  God has created an eternal-life saving suit for each of us.  Each piece is designed to thwart the enemy's attacks and bring us through the battle to the final victory, eternal life with Jesus Christ.

Next Week: Full Armor of God--The Belt of Truth