Modern Day Marauders

This morning I was watching the movie First Knight, it is one of the many stories about King Arthur and his knights.  Truthfully, it is one of my favorite versions of the tale.  As I was watching Malagant and his men ravage a village; killing the inhabitants and burning it to the ground I couldn't help but wonder what would make men go to such extreme acts of violence and hatred.

I understand this is just a movie for entertainment, but if you know anything about me, you know I am often moved to deeper thoughts by the images I see in movies, television and books.  God can use anything He chooses and for me it just happens to be the entertainment industry which speaks to my heart.

There are just some people in this world who for whatever reason just want to take everything they can by any means necessary, regardless of who they hurt in the process.   As Alfred told Bruce Wayne in the Batman movie The Dark Knight, "Some men just want to watch the world burn."  Now this is not a thought process I understand at all.  It is as foreign to me as a second language.  These are people who only look out for number one, and could care less what happens to anyone in the process.

I read one time that all it takes for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing.  This is why I believe these modern day marauders are allowed to get away with as much as they do; good men and women for whatever reason refusing to stand up to them.  I can't stand bullies.  Bullies are those people who just push others around.  It usually stems from insecurities in their own lives, and rather than face them and do something about it, they take the initiative and bully others before they themselves can be bullied.  When you realize this about them, it's easier to feel sorry for them.

I've only been bullied a couple of times in my life, and instead of standing up to the bully, I usually ran away, believing to retreat being the better course of action.  I can say now as an adult, it wasn't.  I wish I would have stood up to the bullies back then.  I might have possibly taken a few lumps, but at least then the bully wouldn't have continued to have so much power over me. 

I'm not advocating violence by any means, but sometimes you just have to stand up to evil and face it head on.  This is where I think we're missing it as a society today.  Groups of people who use fear to control other people's lives need to be taken to task.  Recently a Jordanian pilot was burned alive by the terrorist organization ISIS.  In retaliation, the King of Jordan suited up and led the attack on them.  I've got to say I was impressed.  It's been a while since I've seen any national leader with a set take up a posture like this.  I say kudos to King Abdullah.

These modern day marauders come in all shapes, sizes, colors and genders.  The thing which should become the standard in dealing with them is for us to stand up to their evil wherever we see it, regardless of how big it is, saying, "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!"  Then take them to task for their actions, regardless of the outcome.

Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!