By Elsie Fishgrab
Retired BBFI Missionary to the Navajo
Shorty grew up in the early days of the state of Texas. Outlaws, cattle rustlers, and horse thieves were prominent residents. And, following the example set before him, Shorty happily set forth to see what he could get by with.
At the ripe old age of 10, he started smoking, and then graduated to liquor and a few other things. Naturally, those things took money, so he had to swipe a few chickens, then a couple of billy goats. After that, he went on to bigger things, until one day he and a couple of friends tackled something really big. He’d been doing pretty good at getting away with things, but that day he didn’t quite get away fast enough. He soon found himself heading for the Texas border, just one short step ahead of a very angry posse bent on frontier justice, which was often meted out at the end of a hangman’s rope.
Well, Shorty couldn’t wait to collect any of his personal belongings, so he just lit out of Texas on one fast horse and the clothes on his back. When he finally shook that posse and left the Texas border many miles behind, Shorty sat down to take stock of his present situation. It didn’t look very good. Few clothes, no money, no food, and nowhere to go for help.
Of course, with a little careful maneuvering, he could probably find a change of clothes, maybe even a quilt, hanging on an unguarded clothesline — but money could be a real problem. He’d have to tread pretty carefully, as he was still close enough to Texas that his reputation could have arrived ahead of him.
After giving it some serious thought, Shorty realized he’d left everything he had in Texas. And, he’d even have to leave his name there too — otherwise he might end up back in Texas to pay for all his crimes.
“Well,” he mused, “everything I had I left it in Texas, so what could be more right than I call myself Shorty Leffit? For that’s just what I did, I leff it all in Texas.”
Sometime later, Shorty found himself wandering around in No Man’s Land. No Man’s Land was an area several miles in scope surrounded by the states or territories of Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, and New Mexico. An area not claimed by any organized group, the only law available was a United States marshal that had to be called from somewhere in one of the surrounding states or territories — which could take anywhere from a week to a month to accomplish. This, of course, gave an outlaw plenty of time to change locations or call in friends to help defend his territory. And most Federal marshals didn’t much care to engage in a shootout with a gang of outlaws. So No Man’s Land was a safe hangout for criminals of every sort.
For some of them, No Man’s Land was also a place where they could take time to consider their lives and decide where they wanted to go from there. After due consideration, Shorty decided he didn’t want to end up in prison — so he would just steal enough stuff to get himself a good start, then he would “go straight” from then on. Several outlaws, after a trip through No Man’s Land, came out on the other side owning land and cattle and becoming respected ranchers. Shorty himself came out with a wife and enough stuff to make a new start, and he was no longer known as Shorty Leffit, but was Shorty… Smith? Jones? Brown? Doesn’t really matter, they were all generic names anyway!
And now you must be thinking, “Just what is the point in all of this?”
The point is that God has a place that we might call No Man’ s Land — a place where we must stop and take a good look at our lives thus far, a place where we can decide if we will go right on with our old, sinful way of living, or if we will make a right turn and “go straight” in the path the Lord will set before us.
When we choose to go His way, the Lord Himself will give us a new name. He will write it down in the Book of Life where it can never be changed or erased.
Shorty Leffit had many name changes in his lifetime, and always he worried that someday his real name would catch up with him. He lived in fear that he would be hauled back to Texas to pay for the crimes he had done. When the Lord changes our names, we are free from fear, for Jesus Christ himself will stand as our lawyer and plead our cause in time of trouble.
“…To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden mana, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.” Revelation 2:17
“He that overcometh shall be clothed in white raiment: and I will not blot out his name in the book of life, …but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.” Revelation 3: 5