Did you get dressed this morning?

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Ephesians 6:10-18

As I read this I was reminded that I need to put on a little more clothing today. Not the material, external kind, but that which guards my heart and mind. There are days I'm just picking up pieces of the armor, not all of it. How beneficial can that be? Would I ever want my husband to go out into the battlefield with only some of his protection? No way! Today the Lord has used the sounds I hear of gunfire to awaken my heart to the war around us. Not what I can see on the news or hear on the radio, but the spiritual battle that takes place all over the world and so often goes unnoticed...or so we think. Our hearts and minds need to be protected. Our children needed to be dressed for battle. They may be too small to put it on themselves so we have to help them. Are you dressed for battle? Are you guarding your heart and mind? Are you helping your young boys to put on their armor? Those are the questions I asked myself this morning.

I woke up struggling with the thought of going to church for some reason...mainly because I miss Kevin and just wanted to lay around the house and stay out of the cold...but God lead me here to this scripture to remind me that it's not beneficial to me or my boys to skip church. When I heard the gunfire from the Soldiers in training I felt sorry for them that they were out there on a Sunday morning and I guess from there the Lord just began to speak to my heart. I'm grateful he did! I must go get dressed and wake up the boys for church!

Thank you, Lord, for the reminder to put on the full armor of God. Thank you for your Word that is living and active, sharper than any double–edged sword and penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; that it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. I needed to hear what you had to say today.