There are times when I have a keen sense of the obvious, after the fact.

Carefully, I looked around the corner, a silent prayer on my lips for the safety of my kids...

Last week, I was sound asleep when I awoke to loud voices in another part of our house and they were not the voices of my kids! I lay in the bed listening intently to sharp retorts and agressive tones. Getting more alarmed by the minute, I ran down my mental list of possibilities, but since my children's voices weren't in any of the intense conversation, It narrowed quickly to one possibility. My kids were tied up in one of the rooms, by people we didn't know...and they were doing their best to keep any disturbance away from me to allow me time to rescue them!

We'd already had one attempt at a home invasion, and three public attempts to assault us when out shopping! It was time to do the unthinkable! I needed to defend our home and family! Quietly, I donned flips, shorts and a Tshirt, and grabbed the pistol from my desk. Then, opening the door to my bedroom carefully, I sneaked into the hall between my room at the living room.

There were bright lights on, filtering into the hallway, further adding to my distress. I did not cock the firearm, knowing that I'd probably have time to take a look, then pull back into the darkness to arm the chamber. Carefully, I looked around the corner, a silent prayer on my lips for the safety of my kids, as I spied the surroundings in the great room. Hmmmmm....there was only our dog and two celebrating youngsters playing a very loud video game! Breathing a huge sigh of relief, I strode into the back of the room, holding the gun high enough to be seen.

Announcing myself to my children, I quickly removed the magazine. "Uhhhh, do you guys realize how loud you have the sound on this game?" I alternated between restrained laughter and outright irritation, trying to contain both, at the absurdity of the reality. The loud voices of actors blasting at 1 am into a mostly empty space! "You realize how this affected my sleep and anxiety level?"

My daughter quickly turned on her brother, "Dad, I told him we had to keep the level down but he insisted it was ok!" After reminding them of the need for quiet after 9pm, I retrieved a headphone adaptor for them and went back to bed. "Training" session? I remembered that verse! Boy had I been praying!

Lord, our world becomes increasingly hostile to our faith, families, and witness. Help us all to put our trust in You as we daily live out both faith and confidence in Christ, our Redeemer!