Hi, all. Just a thought to help start your weekend. 

It was six years ago this month that my middle daughter and I traveled with a college-sponsored tour group to France.  We visited and were shown many amazing places.  One, in particular, that stood out rather prominently was the Palace of Versailles.  Not only is the great hall of mirrors an awesome thing to behold, so are the grounds of the palace.  But before we could reach any of that, we all passed through the large iron gates and marched single file through a security check.

Now a security check in your own country manned by folks who speak your own language can be daunting enough, so thankfully our excellent tour guide told us exactly what to do and not do as the guards asked their questions and ushered us into the palace courtyard.  We were immediately made very aware of the many well-armed guards all around us.  The young woman in this picture was one of those guards.  They obviously intended to put up with no foolishness.

In our own lives, we travel here and there.  We experience different places, people, and things.  But regardless of where we go, we should always be on guard.  The world is intently watching the Christians to see if we slip up, stumble, fall, or fail.  They are ready to take aim and fire at God’s people for any misstep or mess up.  So we must always be on guard.

Guard our bodies, guard our steps, and for some of us the hardest of all – guard our tongues.  Just one false move, and our positive witness could be over and done for.  Sounds like we have an awful lot of responsibility resting upon our shoulders, doesn’t it?  Well, certainly God knows were are not perfect, just forgiven! 

It would be so simple to stay away from those folks and mind our own business.  However, had we not filed through the daunting security, we would never have experienced the beauty of Versailles.  Be on your guard this week.  It’s worth it — for you and for all of those who watch.

Just a thought. ’Til later.

Rev. Brad Campbell can be reached at mastah.pastah@yahoo.com.