CAUGHT FROM BEHIND

The year, I think, was the Fall of 1981. I was playing rugby with the only team from Marion, Ohio; we were playing Ohio Wesleyan University on campus in Delaware. I don’t remember whether we won the match or not, but I remember very well being caught from behind. In rugby there are no forward passes allowed (rugby is similar to football, but different in this respect); all passing must be backward laterals. Defensively, I was playing outside center, which put me in perfect position to intercept one of those laterals. I did! As I was running with much energy down the field toward the end zone for a “touch” (football: touchdown), I was caught from behind by “Speedy Gonzales” (had to be his name!); not only did he catch me, but his tackle drilled my right shoulder in the concrete-hard dirt. I don’t remember much of the game, but I remember that.

Do you try to outrun anything? There are many things in our past we try to outrun. They are scarred memories. Perhaps we never addressed them or, perhaps, we did but their imprint won’t leave us alone. If we have not addressed them then be sure your sin will find you out. Moses spoke the sentiment of those words when he addressed the tribes of Israel that settled on the east side of the Jordan River. They promised him they would cross the river and help their brethren eradicate the land of people the Lord judged as unworthy of living on the land of their possession. If the tribes failed, Moses said, they can be sure their sin will find them out and bring them to judgment (Numbers 32:23)!

You promised the Lord in your conversion He would be the One to whom you would devote your life. That means there is no other who has such a hold on you as the Lord does; there is good reason for this. It was the Lord Jesus who dies to give you His life, He is your everything, He is your all. It might be painful and embarrassing to give attention to a significant failing or failings in your life. It would be for any of us. True as that may be, what is the alternative? Carry it with you? You will be caught from behind. RT