He was one of those supercilious young idiots that make the most of such small power as ever drifts down to them.”
–William MacLoed Raine (Wyoming)
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us.”
–Hebrews 12:1 (NLT)
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I have had the good fortune that during my lifetime I was able to spend twenty years working with Royal Rangers (Assemblies of God, boy’s organization). At Outpost 7, old Freeway Forest in Houston, I had the privilege of working with eight Gold Medal of Achievement recipients. That was back in the late 1970s through the 1980s. That was quite an achievement for an outpost for the Gold Medal was something earned, and not easily.
We had a great senior commander, Wilton Christopher, and he made sure the boys stayed on track. We had some kind of training or outing every month come rain or shine. Every summer there was an extended camping trip for those who earned the privilege. In our outpost we had two items that were developed. One was a very large, and I mean very large pacifier and the other was a tug-of-war rope tied into a knot. The pacifier was for the kid who whined on a campout. He had to wear it around his neck until there was another whiner or complainer. The knot was worn around the neck for those who had been “knotty.” It was transferred in the same manner as the pacifier. Woe to the Ranger who was “knotty” just before bedtime for that knot was hard to sleep with. (Imagine doing that today with the twinkies and snowflakes).
In saying the above, I came across a little poem a couple of weeks back and it seems apropo to use now. It’s called, “The Knots’ Prayer.” I do not know the author, so I’ll just give him that famous name, Anonymous.
Dear God:
Please untie the knots that are in my mind,
my heart and my life.
Remove the “have nots,”
the “can nots” and the “do nots”
that I have in my mind.
Erase the “will nots,”
“may nots,” might nots”
that may find a home in my heart.
Release me from the “could nots,”
“would nots” and “should nots”
that obstruct my life.
And most of all
I ask that You remove from my mind,
my heart, and my life all of the “am nots,”
that I have allowed to hold me back,
especially the thought that I am not good enough.
I pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen
There is much to tempt us in this world to be knotty (naughty), but we are to avoid those things. We are not to partake of the evil and lusts of the world as we journey through it. Let the Lord remove that rough, coarse knot from around your neck that weighs you down. Put aside those things that easily tempt, those things that might ensnare us. Pray that the Lord gives us grace and shows us mercy and removes the “knots” from around our necks.