If confession is as “they” say good for the soul, then I must confess. I am always striving to improve the essence of who I am and that is surely embodied in my soul. Anyway, my confession is this: I binge-watched the Netflix series, SAFE. All eight episodes over the course of two days. It was my first ever binge-watching experience and throughout it, I kept saying to myself, “Stop! This is unhealthy. It’s well past midnight; you won’t get your 8 hours of sleep.” None of those thoughts deterred me. I had to know how the story ended. Part of my brief obsession as the plot unfolded was the evolving dichotomy of the show’s title and its story line. Each episode began with the visual of the title “Safe” emblazoned in huge letters across the gates of a gated community wherein resided the story’s characters. And within that assumed haven, evil had its way. No gates could stay its reach or its destruction. Within the supposed refuge of a community with a guarded entrance and security cameras that captured all who came and went, evil twisted the truth and hid the sins of seemingly ordinary people. No matter what I watch, read or observe, always my mind seeks meaning relative to the scriptures. And I never fail to find within God’s holy book, a truth that stands the test of time. This binge-watch was no exception. The show’s title is but a play upon words. Neither the gates nor the cameras offered safety, the very thing the residents sought. They forgot or never knew that evil in all its forms easily bypasses human efforts to ward against it. They forgot or never knew that evil grows in the heart and if not thwarted by the Holy Spirit, blossoms into hurtful, sinful, callous and often catastrophic words and deeds. One lie begets another and another and another. But in the end as the residents of the gated, SAFE, community discovered, truth is released from the scaffold to claim its place on the throne. There is no manmade safe haven on earth against sin in all its dimensions. The faithful know this. That’s why for us, no matter where we live, we find our ultimate safety in the Lord. His word is the gate that guards our heart and mind so that we “fear no evil” for He is with us.
Peace. Joy. Love.