16 Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.
Losing a battle you never should have been in is embarrassing. I can only remember being in two physical fights in my life. That is not because I have any memory loss, but that I have chosen other ways to handle these types of situations. I am sure as an elementary aged kid I got in some tussles. The first one I remember happened in 7th or 8th grade. I was the new kid and felt I needed to stand up against some offense leveled at me. The other guy ended up with a bloodied eye. The second fight was during training in the Army. As I remember it, I was losing the fight, but the other guy ended up with a bloodied eye. Do you notice a theme? Those who know me know that I am not a strong, physical type of person. I am too small of build to be physically threatening to almost anyone. And I am OK with that. I have had to learn to fight smart rather than relying on my physical power. The best strategy for me has been walking away, and walking away early. As soon as there is any hostility, I work my way out of the situation. I will never be able to win with my physical strength, so I take the insult and get out alive. Both incidents where I could not get away I used a nasty weapon to get away: I went for an eye. I am not proud of my tactics, but I got away. I am still here today. In our text these seven sons got a lesson in humility. There was no strategy they could use in this battle. Even their numbers were not enough to help them. This one demon possessed man sent them all running. Naked back then was just as embarrassing as it is today. Never enter a battle you are not willing to lose! That is a good rule of thumb when choosing battles to fight. If you are not willing to lose, the fight is not important enough to you to win.
The Arnold Journey 