Can't Touch This!

The following little story was told by a young WWII Army recruit: “My brother and I arrived at boot camp together. On the first morning there, our unit was dragged out of bed by our drill sergeant and made to assemble outside the barracks. ‘My name is Sergeant Jackson,’ he snarled. ‘Is there anyone here who thinks he can whip me?’ My six-foot-three, 280-pound brother raised his hand and said, ‘Yes sir, I do.’ Sergeant Jackson called my brother to the front of the assembly and as they stood next to one another facing the group the sergeant once again snarled, ‘Men, this is my new assistant. Now, is there anyone here who thinks he can whip both of us?’” It’s nice to have someone that is big and strong who “has your back”! It’s the feeling you may have experienced as a kid when the class bully picked on you every day at school, until the day your big brother walked in with you. He didn’t even have to say a word. Everyone understood that to mess with you was to mess with him, and nobody wanted to mess with someone bigger and stronger than they were. There are many times in life when we feel we can take on the whole world and come out on top; but those times are rare. More often, we feel overwhelmed by the challenges of the world which seem much bigger and stronger than we are. If we arrogantly want to know if there’s anybody who thinks they can whip us, be assured there are folks willing to take up the challenge. Here’s a little poem to encourage you.


When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, when the road you’re trudging seems  all up hill, when the funds are low and the debts are high, and you want to smile, but you  have to sigh, when care is pressing you down a bit, rest, if you must - but don’t you quit. Life is queer with its twists and turns, as everyone of us sometimes learns, and many a  failure turns about when he might have won had he stuck it out; Don’t give up, though  the pace seems slow - You might succeed with another blow. Often the goal is nearer  than it seems to a faint and faltering man, often the struggler has given up when he might  have captured the victor’s cup. And he learned too late, when the night slipped down, how close he was to the golden crown. Success is failure turned inside out - the silver tint  of the clouds of doubt and you never can tell how close you are, it may be near when it  seems afar; so stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit - it’s when things seem worst that  you mustn’t quit. (Derived from the original: “Don’t Quit” by John Greenleaf Whittier)


[Philippians 4:4-7] As a Christian, we must remember that we don’t face any challenge alone. God’s Spirit lives within us and God has promised to be with us (Acts 2:38-39). With the confidence that comes through that knowledge, we are able to face the world and ask, “Is there anyone who thinks they can whip both of us?” Of course the answer is a resounding, “NO!” because, “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them (the worldly spirits), because the One who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). God promised to be with Moses (Exodus 3:12); God promised to be with Joshua (Joshua 1:5); God promised to be with Gideon (Joshua 6:16); God promised to be with Jeremiah (Jeremiah 1:8); God (Jesus) promised to be with the apostles (Matthew 28:20). When we are faced with an overwhelming responsibility to live out the message of Christ in an antagonistic world, we need to remember that we have the same promise; God will be with us. “...If God is for us, who can be against us?” “...Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?” (Romans 8:28-39). Take courage my fellow Christian; there’s nobody strong enough to whip both of us, in the spirit of Christ.