The most successful general in American history was the Confederate Cavalry officer Nathan Bedford Forrest. Forrest had no formal military training and disdained those who did. Yet his leadership skills, courage, and grasp of the frailties of the human personality produced victories over his enemies that were astounding. He must have been one amazing poker player because Forrest perfected the use of the “bluff” to the constant consternation of the Union.
On numerous occasions he forced a well-entrenched, superior strengthened foe to surrender. He would continually parade his smaller forces conspicuously in view of the fort’s walls and display his few artillery pieces in different positions surrounding the fort. His opponent was led to think he faced a vastly superior force. Combined with Forrest’s ruthless sounding threats of holding no quarter unless his enemy would immediately surrender, Union forts fell, often without a shot.
On one occasion, General Forrest used these tactics against a Union Cavalry column four times larger than his own whose sole mission was to find and destroy Forrest’s marauders. Once Forrest had the Union horse soldiers on the run he declared, “Put the skeer on ‘em”. Whereby his men then harassed and hounded the rear guard and flanks of the bluecoats until they were a scattered wreck. During this engagement the story is told that after 4 straight days of relentless pursuit Forrest’s horse walked straight into a tree and knocked the sleeping General to the ground where he remained sound asleep.
Early during the Great Depression economic panic was sweeping the country. In one of his fireside chats President Franklyn Roosevelt spoke the immortal words, “We have nothing to fear but fear itself.” Bill Johnson says, “Fear is the John the Baptist of he who comes to steal, kill and destroy.” If “perfect love casts out fear” then nothing we do should be motivated out of fear, for where fear exists there cannot be love.
Like General Forrest, the enemy’s greatest tool is to “put the skeer on” us. If he can get us to focus on the negative circumstances or the “what ifs” then he’s got us on the run.
Graham Cooke tells the story of a man he was praying for some years ago after a meeting in Florida. As Graham began to prophecy over the fellow, he noticed the guy got angrier and angrier. Finally Graham had to stop and ask the man what was up. The man said, “You idiot, here you are prophesying about my future and you say nothing about the leukemia I now have, with a prognosis that I will be dead in 3 months.”
Graham then said, “Listen you pelican, God is speaking from your Future into your present, but if you don’t want Him to, that’s fine.” Not getting it, the man walked off. Several years later Graham was back in the area and this same man came up to report that he had gone home and realized God was speaking to him from a Future where he was free of leukemia. At that moment the man resolved never think of his leukemia again. He testifies that he has lived those past years cancer free and has actually fulfilled much of what Graham had prophesied over him.
Remember the BBC series, “Planet Earth”? There was that episode where dolphins in Florida would find a school of fish in some shallows. The dolphins would rapidly swim around the fish and stir up the muddy bottom with their fins. The dolphins “put the skeer” on the fish by surrounding them with the brackish water. The fish would become so panicked that they would jump right out of the water into the waiting bills of the dolphins. All because the fish got “skeered”…
When we give into fear it can become a self-fulfilling prophesy because, as Job says, “My fears have come upon me.”
Tom Hovsepian is part of the leadership team at Church on the Mountain, a vibrant community of believers in Crowley Lake. We meet at 9:30a.m. Sunday mornings. Call for more information: 935-4272 or www.ChurchOnTheMountain.org
