Devil's Backbone

September 12, 2023

Beloved:

          Euphorbia tithymaloides ~ a name that calls to mind words sixth graders spell in the national spelling bees.  Mine is only three stems with leaves, not nearly as lush as in this picture.  I got it from my hair salon after they divided the enormous one they've had for years.  Even up close it’s hard to tell if it’s real or plastic, which gave me the idea for writing about it, given the common name, Devil’s backbone.

          I cut teeth on a theology that preached the Devil as a master of disguise, who will reel you in with power . . .roaming to and fro, seeking whom he may devour, a theology with a devil stronger than me who is out to get me and it is up to me to resist all his temptations and be good enough for Jesus to save me.  That was a lot of pressure for the people-pleasing 13-year-old bookworm I was then.  To say the least.  More accurately, it was a form of spiritual abuse, twisting the story of God’s unconditional love for us in such a way that it terrorizes children.  Somehow the devil’s backbone is strengthened in the telling of the Jesus story, so that little kids run to Jesus out of fear instead of joy, feeling chased by wolves instead of welcomed by a loving parent.
          Once I read and thought and prayed through the theology for myself, I understood the story so very, very differently.  In the Christ event, the spine of evil was snapped, broken irreparably.  Irreparable as it may be, it hasn’t breathed its last, and humans do as humans will when they are fearful, hurt and disconnected – they will tap into that evil.  And God help us all when the most fearful ones are also powerful.  This sort of evil often wears a suit and tie.  It can be legal, even become policy.  A master of disguise . . . as the song goes.
          Still, it has healed my heart and soothes it now to recognize that any devil chasing me is too far broken and paralyzed to harm me.  At most, they may frighten or discourage, but only so long as I give them such access to my heart.  Instead, I choose to stay where I am wanted, where I belong, in the watchful care of the one who calls us his sheep, and promises to keep us close, always and forever.

~ peace & prayers,
pastor annette
​

My sheep hear my voice.  I know them, and they follow me.  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish.  No one will snatch them out of my hand.  My Father, in regard to what he has given me, is greater than all, and no one can snatch them out of the Father’s hand.
~ John 10:27-29