Two weeks ago, vandals took advantage of me forgetting to lock the doors of my truck. The next morning when I opened my door this is what I found. All the glove boxes and consoles had been emptied and thrown onto the seat & floor…except one. If you notice in the top left corner of the picture, there is a cap. Nothing was touched in this part of the console.

Now the rest of the story. On the previous Thursday morning I attended a breakfast meeting at Friendly Chapel. That morning a gentleman I didn’t know came to sit at our table. He gave each of the 8 men sitting at the table a cap. Across the front of the cap was boldly embroidered, “Jesus First”. I placed the cap in the console of my truck. That is the cap at the top left of the picture. Underneath the cap was a bank bag, a good hunting knife and a few other items. The cap never moved… it was never touched. The vandals never knew what was under the cap. Oh, and the bank bag…it contained name tags for members of a Bible Study Fellowship group.

So many times, we become so focused on the event and miss the big picture. The vandals invaded my space and stealing change was the small picture. The Bigger picture was they encountered God’s Power over evil. They didn’t want to tackle with Jesus.

Today we are witnessing new levels of violence and disregard for common decency. Evil has become bolder. If you are surprised, you need to read your Bible. God has warned us. “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” Ephesians 6:12

God has given us instructions on how to prepare. “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.” Ephesians 6:10

God has given us instructions on how we should respond. “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

God spoke these powerful words through Paul… “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:3-5

And the Good News, “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”   1Corinthians 15:57

We have a choice. We can focus on the smaller picture by blaming others, pointing fingers, and getting mad or we can recognize the Bigger Picture of what is truly happening around us.

Be Ready…Be Prayed Up…Tell Someone about the Only Hope, Jesus.