Ord 21B (Aug. 26, 2012) Ephesians 6:10-20 

            Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 
            Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand 
            against the wiles of the devil....... As shoes for your feet

            put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel 
            of peace.......Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer 
            and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere
            in supplication for all the saints. Pray also for me, so that      
           when I speak,a message may be given to me to make known with 
           boldness the mystery of the gospel,.. Eph. 6:10-11, 15, 18-19   

What struck me immediately about this passage is the 'offensive militaristic' imagery of the battle armor and weapons vs. the 'defensive posture' called for by the writer, making use of the actual defensive weapons named: truth, righteousness, proclamation of the gospel of peace, faith, salvation, the Spirit, the word of God. THAT is the 'whole armor' of God we are to wear. And with that armor we will be as successful --or more so!-- than Michael Oher at defending his quarterback's blind side.

Which of these necessary Christian defensive points do you have a strong, firm grasp on? And which do you have not so much of? Doesn't this give us an automatic 'to do' list, to be working on those traits which we are a bit 'thin' on so as to build them up, to 'thicken' their ability to act as armor. 

              +How do you discern which are the 'weak links' in  your chain mail?   
              +And once you've determined that, how do you set about fortifying those links?
              +In other words, what is the foundation of all our knowledge and action? 

TRUTH

Short-lived Vice-Moderator Tara Spuhler McCabe, Moderator Neal Pressa, and current Vice Moderator Tom Trinidad, all Teaching Elders,  answer questions and also hear some offer their own stories, at least one speaking the truth of her congregation publicly for the first time, at a Town Hall meeting. 

RIGHTEOUSNESS    

The last of the early morning worship services, on Wednesday we again celebrated Communion in the Ecumenical service.

  
PREACHING THE GOSPEL OF PEACE

Preacher at the Ecumenical Worship Service Wednesday morning.....he did preach the gospel of peace!

Shoes of a person who is not just ready and waiting to preach the gospel of peace, but who does it day in and day out in every aspect of her life.

FAITH

A simple wall banner painted on plain brown wrapping paper -- like paper grocery bags -- in the interactive Prayer Room at GA.

SALVATION

The communion table in the sanctuary of First Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh.We prayed through 9 pages of typed prayer requests turned in on Sunday morning, mostly by folks visiting for the General Assembly. At one point the sunlight shifted through the clerestory windows and bathed it beautiful stone with a luminous quality.  

SPIRIT (WORD OF GOD)

Peace doves beckon you to enter the interactive Prayer Room.

Fireworks from our hotel room on the Fourth of July -- no gentle dove here, pure raucous Wild Goose  (and most definitely on the loose!)

A bit before sunset: pure illumination.

PRAYER

If the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace are beautiful, how much more lovely are the hands of those who pray for peace?