Guard Duty

Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.                       1st Corinthians 16:13

When I was little my friend and I went on “Guard Duty” almost every night of the summer and most weekend nights of the fall and winter.  We would dress in camouflage, carry our play guns, and wear Army helmets.  We would patrol the street and the alley guarding against burglars and enemy attacks.  We must have done a pretty good job because there were very few instances of theft on our street. My family did have cars stolen on two occasions and lawn furniture was stolen from our front yard however, those were also the nights that my mother made us come inside early.  The thieves obviously had scoped out the neighborhood and knew when to strike!  The neighbors never knew we were around because we did a great job of staying hidden because of the possibility of a sudden attack on 7th Avenue North.

When I read the verse from 1st Corinthians it makes me think about how serious my friend and I took our role as neighborhood protectors.  As the sun went down on a summer evening, one of us would call the other and ask if we were going on guard duty.  We would get our helmets, guns, and, if our moms said OK, even some camouflage face paint. We fully expected to catch a burglar and were always ready, well as ready as an eight year old can be, to take them down.  Now as a 48 year old, I catch myself walking outside late at night and just looking around.  I guess once a fake soldier, always a fake soldier.

Those were fun nights as a kid and I always took my job as the neighborhood guard very serious.  I think about those times now that I am older and I hope I am as serious about guard duty today as I was then.  Do I guard my heart against the evil thoughts and negativity that can so easily creep into my life?  Do I guard my brain against the words and images that Satan can use to take me away from the thoughts of my Heavenly Father?  Most importantly, do I guard my family against the evil in this world?  Am I on guard every day and never take a night off?  I pray each day that I am doing my best to guard you and I trust that you are doing your part to be on guard.  How do we guard ourselves and our loved ones?  I believe we can do this by first of all praying.  Pray each day and ask God to fill your heart and mind with His thoughts.  Pray for Him to increase your faith daily by reminding you that He is always present.  Pray for each other daily and ask Him to protect your family, friends, coworkers, and teammates.  Pray each day for God to not walk beside you, but instead to walk directly in front of you and lead your every step. 

Chad