Spider Shield

I love trail running. Most days I head out the door about 200 feet to an old logging road in the middle of hundreds of acres. Sometimes I encounter a hunter or a farmer slowly navigating his truck down the rutty, muddy, rough terrain; but most mornings it's just me and the wildlife.

But with running on an isolated trail comes something I don't love: spider webs.

Invisible. Sticky. Evil.

I see them at the last second, too late to avoid them. It gets in my hair and face, clings to my arms, sticks to my neck. And it takes me the rest of the run to get rid of it.

But I've gotten wise: I carry a branch with hundreds of small stems shooting in all directions, perfect for destroying the web before I even see it. It's my spider shield. And though it takes effort to carry it and keep it right in front of me, it's worth it. Because my runs are spider-free.

Or so I thought. The other day I tossed down my branch at the end of a run, took one step, and walked smack into a web. It got everywhere. I was entangled. 

And my mind immediately went to Hebrews 12:

"...let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us," (verse 1, NIV, italics mine).

Those spider webs should remind us of something else we don't love: SIN.

Invisible. Sticky. Evil.

Satan is tricky. Rarely do we see sin coming; most of the time we see it at the last second, too late to avoid it. It gets ALL OVER US, and it takes us the rest of the month or the year or our lifetime to get rid sin's consequences.

But the next verse in Hebrews 12 helps us to be wise. In the next verse it tells us how to keep away from those webs:

"...fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith..."

We have a Righteous Branch with hundreds of little stems shooting in all directions, perfect for destroying the power of sin before we even see it: JESUS. 

And we keep our focus on Him, allowing Him to go before us in the form of FAITH. Our faith in Jesus Christ forms a shield in front of us, ready for the evil that is waiting.

Doesn't that remind you of another verse:
"In every situation take the shield of faith, and with it you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one," (Ephesians 6:16, HCSB).

Faith is the noun form of believe. When we believe (verb), we have faith (noun). And that faith is our shield against the evil one. 

So we fix our eyes on Jesus, believing Him when He says,

"You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world!" (John 16:33, HCSB)

"...if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing," (James 1:5, HCSB)

"Don't worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus," (Philippians 4:6-7, HCSB)

(And there are hundreds more.)

Believe Him. He's your shield of faith. He protects you from sin. He clears the path before you.

Rejoice that our faith keeps Satan at bay. 
Rejoice that you don't have to fight sin in your own power; Jesus is here for that.

And rejoice that spider web season is almost over for us trail-runners. Bring on the Winter!!!