I was a late-night fan of the television show, Gun Smoke. Matt Dillion was just a cool dude in my mind. If there was a shoot-out going down and Matt needed to get closer to hit his target, he would tell old Festus, “cover me,” right before he ran out into fire. “Cover-me” means to provide COVERING FIRE, fire designed to suppress the enemy and a suppressed enemy will allow the person calling to be covered to move to a new fighting position.
That’s a powerful request to ask someone to cover us. It doesn’t mean we stop fighting but it does mean that we are asking for support in the fight. We’re asking that someone “suppress the enemy” while we shift to a new position. When you think about it, many of us have been fighting life’s battles alone. It a choice for some of us but it was forced upon others. Imagine how much easier it would be to shift to a new position in life with the help of someone “suppressing the enemy.”
Some of my more religious readers are probably thinking, “God covers me” or “The blood of Jesus covers me.” Please, don’t get me wrong, as a Christian, I believe we are covered by the blood of Christ and in His blood is life. We are covered by the life of Christ Jesus and if we live our lives “The Way” that Jesus did, then we too will have the spiritual support that suppresses the enemy. (although most times it’s the inner-me that requires suppression)
However, we are housed in flesh and some of our battles are mental and physical as well as spiritual. Sometimes we are thrown directly into battles that are not our own and other times we jump into the battles of others. Whatever the case may be, it would benefit us more if we learn to and reach for that help that will cover us.
Joan Baez says it best, in the lyrics from her song.
No man is an island, No man stands alone,
Each man's joy is joy to me, Each man's grief is my own.
We need one another, So I will defend,
Each man as my brother, Each man as my friend…
Don’t make the mistake of refusing to reach for support because others failed you or abandoned you. I have learned one of life’s difficult lessons which includes that people are resources sent from God and they have free-will just like we do. So, we hinder our growth and productivity attempting to hang on to resources, people, and relationships that have expired.
If this year has taught us anything, it has taught us and is continuing to teach us the meaning behind the words of that song. Let’s end 2020 with a commitment to ask someone to cover us, in prayer. Don’t be fearful to ask someone to cover you as a support person that stands with you during times of distress. Reach for that sister or brother to cover you as they walk alongside you, judgement free, not advising but as a supportive listening ear you can trust never to repeat what’s been shared. My prayer is that each of us finds our Festus like Matt Dillion did and we can be covered spiritually and naturally so.
