I recently received an email saying that I had been caught on a Web camera doing horribly lewd things. The sender wanted me to pay a lot of money to keep it quiet. It sounded like I was in quite a bit of trouble. However, there was just one problem with this scheme that the blackmailer apparently didn’t count on.

I had a powerful weapon to combat it: the truth. I knew I hadn’t done what he was saying I had done. Thus, I recognized that the sender of that email was bluffing because I had a conscience clear of guilt.

White Noise

I periodically receive emails like that saying that I’ve been filmed doing horrible things, and the blackmailer demands money to avoid exposing my indiscretions. I also sometimes receive phone calls telling me that I can have my student loans forgiven, my credit card balances wiped clean, and my car warranties renewed at a very low cost.

The same flaw exists in all these schemes. I never use a Web camera except during business meetings. I’m not guilty of anything I would be ashamed of. I paid off my student loan less than a year after I graduated from college, more than a decade ago. I don’t have a single credit card. And I’ve never had a car warranty. So I can see through all the lies, and none of them have any power to tempt or terrify me.

It’s funny when I actually talk to someone over the phone about one of these scams. The people who call me usually sputter and are taken aback when their impressive claims fail to make an impact. I tell them that none of the things they are talking about apply to me, and they are shocked. “You really don’t have a credit card?” they say in disbelief. “That’s right,” I answer calmly. Then they try to justify themselves by saying they need to update their records, or it’s a case of mistaken identity.

Thankfully, those calls have died down in recent years as they’ve discovered that I’m immune to their attacks.

My point is, there is power in being good. Your confidence increases when dealing with scam artists when you know you are in the right. There is no debt collector or anyone else of that ilk who can legitimately demand your attention. They are all just white noise, easily ignored.

Something They Can’t Touch

I know I talked about The Shawshank Redemption recently, but I’d like to bring it up again because it perfectly coincides with this topic.

At a key moment in that film, Andy Dufresne tries to give his friend Red hope that there is more to life than being in prison. He says, “There’s something inside that they can’t get to, that they can’t touch.” In this case, he’s referring to hope, which is definitely a good thing to have. But it could apply equally to the truth.

Andy knows he’s not guilty of the crime he’s been convicted of, even though everyone around him believes him to be guilty. So he has hope that justice will prevail, and he will eventually get out of prison. He wants to share that hope with his fellow inmates. And he knows that the only way Red will ever get out of prison is if he learns to forgive himself for the terrible crime he committed in his youth and be willing to accept that he’s worthy of having a life outside of prison.

Thankfully, both of these men get exactly what they deserve in the end.

Salvation Lies Within

Even if I got hounded by collections agents, online scam artists, and debt forgivers to the day I die, I wouldn’t have to fear any of them. Because they have no power over me. All the arguments they use, or the ability they have to create doubt in most people’s minds, fall flat when it comes to me. That’s the power of being different. Being the one truly innocent man in Shawshank Prison. I am not perfect, and I have made plenty of mistakes in my life. However, I am doing my best to improve and be good.

Salvation lies within, we are told (somewhat ironically) in The Shawshank Redemption. It applies to Andy’s body and soul in the film. The body because his Bible contains a rock hammer he’s using to tunnel out of his cell. The soul because the words of the prophets lead everyone to the source of God’s salvation.

The truth shall set you free. If you are free of guilt toward God and men, you will feel free. It takes a lot of hard work to get there and stay there, but it’s worth it.

This is the Deja Reviewer bidding you farewell until we meet again.

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