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An
Outreach Publication of the Church of Christ at
Creekwood |
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The Shield of Shame Keith Wishum reports that there are several types of beetle larvae that carry what is called a fecal shield. They keep their own excrement and build a shield from it on their backs. That discourages predators -- not just for the reasons we might think. It's not that potential predators find the shield contents disgusting; they find them dangerous. The beetles feed on noxious plants so that their fecal material is poisonous. Other creatures do not want to bother them! Some
PEOPLE are like that: they feed on toxic thoughts!
They store them up and build an invisible shield that
is highly effective at keeping others away.
Being If
we store up and carry around noxious things from our
past, the past poisons the present and it robs us of
joy. If we hope to be joyful, we must do some
forgetting. Notice what Paul said: “Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:13-14). For Paul, part of his past was “persecuting the church” (Philippians 3:6). At one time he was convinced that he ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth (Acts 26:9). He realized his error when he was confronted by the risen Christ and he became a Christian (Acts 9, 22, 26). Paul's
past was dark. It could easily have darkened the rest
of his days. Jesus died on the cross so that we might have the forgiveness of our sins (Ephesians 1:7). Our sins can be cleansed by His blood when we respond in trusting obedience: believing and trusting in Him (Acts 16:30-31), turning from our sins in repentance (Acts 17:30-31), confessing Him before men (Romans 10:9-10), and being baptized (immersed) into Christ for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38). He will continue to cleanse those who continue to walk in the light of His Word (1 John 1:7). We ALL have our share of shame however, we don't have to carry it around (Romans 3:23). God offers to FREE US from our shield of shame to let us live with joy and hope. Won’t you allow Him to free YOU from the burden of sin? David A. Sargent, Minister Church
of Christ at Creekwood * Slightly adapted from “A Word from Williams Road #514 -- Forgetting the Past to Enjoy the Present” by Keith Wishum of the Williams Road Church of Christ, Americus, Georgia. To Subscribe to "Living Water" send a blank e-mail to:
HTML version: subscribe-livingwater@lyris.dundee.net Follow this link to locate the church of Christ nearest you: www.churchzip.com Archived issues of "Living Water" can be accessed from our website at: www.creekwoodcc.org
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