Glenn Rawson told the following story, “Years ago, I learned a lesson from, of all things, a spider. One day while I was working at home, I was working under the eaves of our house and noticed a very large spider web, and perched on an upper corner of that web was a very large spider. I don’t know what came over me, but an idea suddenly struck me. I bent down and picked up a small twig, and threw it into the spider’s web. It stuck! That spider was on that twig instantly. It didn’t take him very long to determine that this wasn’t lunch, and what he did next has always impressed me. He grabbed that twig, and with his legs he cut the strands of the web holding the twig, and dropped it back on the ground at my feet. I was intrigued! I wondered if he’d fall for it again. So — reaching down, I grabbed the twig, and I threw it in the web. And again, it was the same reaction as at the first. In a quick hurry, that twig was back on the ground. This was a very determined spider! But, I couldn’t let it go. You can call it spider harassment if you want, but I picked up the twig, and I threw it back up into the web again. By now his web was getting quite tattered. Again, he pounced on that twig and he threw it right back at me. I decided that any creature, that determined, deserved my respect. I left him in peace. I left his web in taters, but I left him in peace. Now, the point: How like that spider we should be. There are foreign influences which pollute the webs of our lives constantly. They are thrust upon us through television, the internet, the printed page, our music, sometimes even our friends and our acquaintances. If only we were as quick to throw out this pollution as that spider was. Obviously, the process of severing such things from our lives can be painful and even seem self-destructive. But you know, I have never met a man who was sorry he undertook the surgery of repentance.” It would be a wonderful thing if we could all throw things out of our (webs) homes, our lives, things that are pollutants, things that diminish us or our homes. Instead, many of us have welcomed them in and in many cases, rather than they have been thrown into our web, we have brought them in. I remember assisting with the project of cleaning out an older home that hadn’t been lived in for a while. There were many old magazines in boxes, many of which were inappropriate. The temptation to look was great but I was spiritually mature enough at the time not to. The previous owner of the house obviously was not and unlike the spider, had left the twig in his web to pollute it. There are so many and such a wide variety of pollutants (twigs), all colors, sizes, shapes that young and old people have to deal with every day. We have to pray for our youth to dodge, and avoid all the myriad pollutants that can negatively affect their young lives. It is hard enough for mature people who have been through the obstacle course of life, those who are just starting through have to have our help. We can’t be examples for all youth but we surely must be for our own. There are going to be twigs brought into, or thrown into their webs regardless of what we do.` God bless them with the strength to throw them out. Thank goodness for the God provided option of repentance and forgiveness. As Brother Rawson has said, “I have never met a man who was sorry he undertook the surgery of repentance.” We have to discourage bad habits from getting a foothold in our lives. Someone has said, “Do not water your weeds.”