Ms. Camp's story this morning about her experience with the burglar that broke into her home while she slept reminded me of my own experience when I was a very young mother. 

It was New Year's Eve and my husband and I were out on the town.  My son was just a baby and was spending the night at my in-laws home.  My husband and I got home in the early morning hours and after puting our money and jewelry on the kitchen table, (Something we had NEVER done before) we fell into bed, exhausted.  I was awakened to the sound of a crunching noise and my brain registered "someone is breaking into our home"  I shook my husband and told him someone was breaking in but he turned over and told me that it was just the cat crunching on his food.  I was too tired to argue and fell back to sleep.  I was awakened again by the noise and again, I shook my husband...."Someone is breaking in!" I said sleepily. Once again, my husband assured me that it was just the cat.  I lay there with my eyes closed just listening but it had grown quiet.  I heard my baby roll over in his crib and then I heard him sigh in his sleep.  Comforted by the sound, I fell back to sleep.

In the morning, I got up and went to the kitchen to make coffee and found to my shock that our sliding glass door was ajar.  The handle with the lock was still locked into place but the screws had been sawed off.  Our jewelry and money was gone from the table but I found nothing else missing.  I cried out to my husband to come take a look.  I turned to him and said, "All I remember was the sound of the baby turning over in his crib and his sigh" 

My husband looked at me in disbelief.  "Tina, he said, the baby was with my mom!  He's not even here!"

My skin crawled and the hairs stood up.  What I had heard was the burglar standing over my bed!

Looking back on this, I realize that God had put us into a stupor for our protection.  Neither one of us felt the urgency that the situation should have instilled.  I believe that if we had gotten up to confront the intruder, perhaps we would have been injured or worse during the confrontation.  I also believe that God had impressed us to leave our money and jewelry on the kitchen table so that the burglar would be pacified with the loot and not feel the need to acquire more.

I thank God for His protection.  That even when we are unaware of the danger we are in, He has ALREADY sent His angels to surround us and fight our battles while we "sleep".

Thank you Ms. Camp for presenting this message this morning.  I am so glad that you were carried safely through the night as I had been years and years ago. 

Psalm 91

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