i've got your back.

this morning i watched a series on lifechurch.tv concerning spiritual warfare and the supernatural. i scrawled notes on several pages of my journal; however, there is one thing in particular that i want to pass along.

at the core of spiritual warfare we see Satan, our enemy, and the Holy Spirit, our protector. and, although we are in the world, we do not wage war as the world does (2 Corinthians 10:3). if you grew up in church, you probably remember marching methodically while singing a little ditty about the Lord's army, and you've more than likely heard countless sermons about the armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18). still, something i heard today was new, an idea i've never really considered.

craig groeschel, senior pastor at lifechurch, made mention of the fact that although we are well prepared with valuable tools, our backs are left uncovered -- we're equipped with a helmet, a breastplate, a shield, a belt, sandals, and finally a sword. obviously we're talking metaphorically, but there is a lot of truth to groeschel's idea. he pointed out that the armor of God seems to be made complete only when the rest of the "army" is concerned. this "army" consists of other believers, those who will pray for you, encourage you, and hold you accountable. essentially, we need an "army" who will watch our backs.

this idea really made sense to me and further emphasized what God's Word makes mention of several times: the importance of fellowship. so, onward christian soldiers... i've got your back.

z.cavaricci + me = love.

i had a good talk with a friend last night. we talked about hope deferred and dreams that are never realized. we wondered aloud about love lost and the process of moving on from any unfulfilled good intention.

when we talked of love we questioned how new love begins when old feelings still exist. my friend, you see, feels that one must be completely over their previous love interest before they can commit to someone new. i, on the other hand, am becoming more convinced that one must find a new interest in order to escape the feelings connected to the last love recipient.

here's my thought, an analogy i came up with in order to help my friend see the light:

in eighth grade i loved two things (i use the term "loved" loosely here -- work with me): a boy named andrew and z.cavaricci. my feelings for the boy faded as soon as an upperclassman asked me to go to a drive-in movie; however, my feelings for mr. Z (or is it mr. C?) were a little more lasting. if you too had an unrequited love affair with z.cavaricci, you'll know what i'm referring to. i remember my idealistic views about wearing my z.cavaricci jeans forever. in fact, i remember specifically promising my mom that i would wear them forever -- i would have said anything in order to convince her to buy me the overpriced jeans i loved so much.

then, one day something better came along. maybe it was pepe, or lawman. maybe mossimo stole my heart. i don't quite remember who came next in the long line of fashion fervor, but the point is that someone (or in this case, something) came next.

maybe it's a ridiculous analogy, but someone else always comes along and makes you forget about the last guy who didn't really deserve your affection in the first place. the great thing is that one day you settle into someone. you find someone who deserves your affection, returns your affection... someone you don't ever really get tired of but instead want to spend all of your time with no matter what other options arise. like a great pair of gap jeans, you get comfortable with them and they never really go out of style. you feel good in them/with them, and you know that even at your worst they're going to complement you (stylistically complement, that is. or, in the case of a boy, a verbal compliment will do).

just one more thing before this lengthy analogy gets out-of-hand (i know, i know... it's already gone): it's never okay for a pair of jeans (or a man for that matter) to advertise their logo across your backside. i'm just sayin'...

maybe another day.

i should write:
God is good and teaching me new things.

i shouldn't write:
it's 2:29 am.

maybe another day.

hatched.

we left early this morning for a day in tulsa, and at our departure, we made sure to slow to a crawl long enough to say farewell to the eggs resting in our driveway. when we returned home we again slowed in order to check on the status of the four killdeer eggs. to our surprise, four tiny birds were resting where the spotted eggs had resided only hours earlier. we made a detour into the yard in order to steer clear of the babies and their protective mother. i went into the house with the intention of getting my camera in order to document this exciting event. when i returned to the gravel nest i was surprised to find it empty. in the few minutes it had taken me to get my camera, the mama bird had moved the babies to a new (and hopefully safer) location. i was quite crushed (like the eggs would have been if i hadn't protected them) -- these birds i had watched so closely and been so protective of had just... well, flown the coop.

a flip-flopped bird might be cute.

the long driveway that leads to my family's home is gravel -- a pleasant trail for rugged tires to venture to and fro; an unpleasant place for flip-flopped feet. the darn rocks are pointy and not exactly inviting where my tender feet are concerned. still, one species other than tires or feet (neither of which are a species per se) has made its home on said gravel... birds.


not just any birds, my friend. i did my research after nearly running over the chirpy creatures on more than one occasion and found that these feisty plovers (one in particular) are ground birds who often nest on gravel. after closer inspection of the overly zealous killdeer, i realized that indeed this mama bird was simply protecting her four speckled eggs.

apparently, her seemingly ridiculous behavior is all a part of her defense mechanism. this particular species, when threatened by tires or flip-flopped feet, runs from her eggs squealing and flailing about as if in pain. these clever birds understand that if a predator were to approach them, they would rather go for an easy kill (i.e. an injured bird) than her camouflaged eggs. why weed through the gravel for a few eggs when you can have a grown bird for little to no effort?

my research left me questioning what exactly the mama birds then do to their prey once they've lured them away from their eggs. my conclusion: their piercing squeal leaves the predator begging for mercy... kind of like my flip-flopped feet after a walk on the treacherous gravel.