You got my back, huh?

recently, i've been watching episodes of this show "the wire" and there are numerous occasions in it where the cops fall through on their end of a bargain to help out informants, little kids, and other people they pledge to support. the last episode i watched ended with this one kid - an arson victim in a hospital - shouting sarcastically down the hall to the cop, "you got my back, huh? you got my back, right?" (or something to that effect. i reference urbandictionary.com a lot when i watch that show). so, today i read this particular chapter in deuteronomy that features a loosely-drawn tie to the theme and, subsequently, have aptly titled this journal entry with a line from last night's wire. the first chapter of deuteronomy is 46 verses long and it is a historical retelling of the struggles of the israelites to take the lands that god had set aside for them under the direction of moses. this is one of the classic stories where israel is intimidated by their much larger, more numerous enemies and they shy away from battle rather than place their confidence in god.

my favorite portion of the chapter is verses 29-30: "then i said to you, 'do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. the lord your god, who is going before you, will fight for you . . .'" i think that's really cool to hear coming from god, because it is kind of the opposite of the way he is so often construed to be: a rule-dispensing/kill-joy/stay-put-until-the-light-is-green kind of supernatural being. i have always been glad that my parents taught me not to view god that way and this verse kind of reinforces the image of god that i've been brought up to appreciate. i know that i am not the only one who faces obstacles of an intimidating nature, but my life is the only one i can speak for and, that said, i know that i am often my own worst enemy. the israelites had plenty of legitimate reasons to not go forward and many people will tell you that it is one can always find reasons to not do something. it is comforting to know that god is supportive of me and that when i am following him he will be going before me and that i have nothing to fear.

i've never really taken seriously that custom people have of making new year's resolutions and i've never felt the need to do it myself. maybe it's because i've worked at too many downtown bars and restaurants on new years eve or because i'm absolutely bemused by the longevity of dick clark (click here or here) and the uselessness of ryan seacrest. maybe it's because i've never had any big dreams, or - more subtly - if i've not wanted to fail. but for some reason, lately i've been seeing the idea of setting goals as a real big first step to accomplishing certain things that i might have otherwise found out of range. so, i've made a few small goals that mostly deal in the short-term (1 year or less) and occupy places in a variety of aspects of my life. this encouragement from the lord found in deuteronomy 1 is a cool affirmation to to go for it. i suppose we'll see what happens.

abuch out.