Watch Your Six

I was sitting down in my office the other day reflecting on all that has transpired in my life over the past few years and unlike the preacher in Ecclesiastes I do not find all to be vanity.  I do not find this to be true with me because there is always something going on.  There is always a need that has to be met, some hurt to be mended or some crisis to avert.  There is always grace to be extended and above all, there is love to be given and to be shared.  I also believe that our loving God is always active and working and above all, He is still on the throne.  He often places others in our path for us to minister to or at times to be ministered to by them.  People are placed within our lives so that we can experience the grace and love of God on a more personal level and in a physical encounter.  A lot of the people we meet in this life become a part of our lives and though not always present physically, they are present spiritually as the love that is shared for one another resides in our hearts.  If we look at this a little more closely we will find that this is one example that God the Father gives to us to help us to better understand the well-known Bible Doctrine “Omnipresence.”  This doctrine states that God the Father is everywhere present.  This includes that He is not only in our hearts and minds but He is also in the hearts and lives of all His people.  We are more sensitive to this presence of the Holy Spirit in those that He has placed in our lives than we are in others.  We are as much a part of them because He resides in them.  I have said all of this to get us to see that we are all connected to the Saviour and with all of those with in the body of Christ.

Sometime back in a previous posting I mentioned that I had an unexpected heart catheterization resulting in four stints being placed in my heart and the outcome of that catheterization was a wakeup call to reality.  This wakeup call was in all actuality an awakening to the truth that reality is what it is.  We also must come to grips with the fact that we have to face reality no matter how bitter of a pill it may be.  There are no cookies and cream covering, nor are there any rose colored glasses that can change it.  We are all human and part of the makeup of man is that we are frail, and no matter how strong man is he is still a frail being.  It is part of our make up to keep us aware of the truth that in this life we need God.  Fortunately, part of the God that we need is found in the relationships that He pours into our life.  Prior to the heart cauterization I did not consider nor view myself as being fragile because I did whatever I wanted and pretty much when I wanted to do it.  Now that I walk around with these stints in my heart I find my perception has changed.  I have had to learn that mortality is a lesson in existence.  We all exist in this world for just a short time and it is far better learned and explored as we begin to connect and network with other believers.  This network of souls soon begins to keenly knit together into a much needed bond to provide the strength for ourselves and for one another in this life.  I am reminded of the scripture where God says, “And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” (Ecclesiastes 4:12)  Alone and by ourselves we are vulnerable and weak.  Teamed up with another there is some strength for the battles ahead but, a three-fold friendship, like a three-fold cord is one of strength.  Why is this?  It is because each one is dependent of the other two though he may at times act or react as independent he still relies upon the wisdom, strength and prayers of the other two.  How true this is for the Christian walk and way of life? 

We were never meant to go through this life alone, which is noted in God’s purpose for marriage, Genesis 2:18.  Man is a communal being and thrives on the connectivity of others whether near or far away.  When studying the Armor of God in Ephesians 6 we find that there is ample armor for battle except for our back and for years I have heard preacher’s proclaim that this is because we are not to turn and run but I do not believe that this is true.  I have found that God has that covered.  I have also come to the conclusion that God has intended for other believes to do the same one for another.  When in the military you would often hear someone shout out “watch your six,” to those who were about to go out into harm’s way.  I believe that in this passage of Scripture God intends for us all to “watch the six” of other believers.  I sometimes feel that we can take is a bit further in saying that as believers we know that God has our back.

Part of a marriage vow in essence states, “I’ve got your back” when promising to never leave or forsake the one to whom you are marring.  The reasoning being that when someone has your back, it is to be an unconditional support.  Life is, as we all know, full of surprises.  The enemy rarely walks up to us and confronts us, most often he blindsides us, tripping us up and knocking us down. If and when we have someone watching our backs they do so without complaint providing us the necessary support no matter how undesirable the situation that we are facing.  Much like a spouse, they should be willing to step in and help, to be prepared to support and defend those that they are bound to support.  Those that have your back at the same time recognizes the goodness within you that others may not.  They recognize the potential and the ability within you at times when others (including yourself) do not.  When someone says that they have your back, your life from that moment on will be greatly enriched.  I believe this is the truth behind Solomon’s writing the book of Proverbs, here are just a few: “A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” (Pro. 17:17); “Faithful are the wounds of a friend:” (Pro. 27:6), “A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” (Pro. 18:24) & “He that rebuketh a man afterwards shall find more favour than he that flattereth with the tongue.” (Pro. 28:23)

At one of the churches I pastored I had a Deacon who used to always say to me, “growing old ain’t for sissies.”  A Good friend of mine often says in jest, “You don’t know how bad life can really be until you spend most of your time with the person that you loathe the most.” (He says this of himself when he is feeling alone).  Both of these men knew the value of having someone who had their back, someone who would be there for them no matter what the circumstances.  They both knew the value of someone who they could be completely open and honest with, without fear of any repercussions.

Each individual we meet, every individual that crosses our path are people that God has purposefully placed our lives.  We will find that they either cross our path for just a moment or we may end up walking the same path together for a while.  Either way, we soon find out that their lives are in fact interweaving in and out of our own lives.  God is slowly interlocking their lives within our, in a pattern of spiritual strength and stability much like a weaving loom interlocks the different threads being used to form a tapestry.  Each interlocking color a represents a different friendship or passing individual all of which forms the pattern of the gospel story which we are a part of and becomes our story.  The shuttle that moves the thread back and forth is the presence much like that of the Holy Spirit as He ministers to us and help knit each life each story into our own and into the Gospel story that we are to share with others.

 

Some friends will go deeper within a life pattern that takes us both deeper within a relationship that God uses to improve us both.  As mentioned earlier all relationships become interweaved into a life tapestry if you will some causing change many not.  But there will be some friends who will grow into deeper life changing friends these friends are there to help us in our walk with and for the Lord. These friends are much like a Cotton Gin which separates cotton fibers from their seeds, allowing for much greater productivity and quality of being.  Accountability friends like to the Cotton Gin help us to remove besetting sins and other recognizable issues from our lives in order to help us to become more productive in the gospel community.  These are those who not only say “watch your back,” they will actually do so.  There are not many within our life circle can we honestly say that they “have our back,” there are only a handful (outside of my wife) that we know and trust who we can honestly know that actually “Have our SIX.”