Robbery

Last Sunday night our church was robbed.  The thieves entered through a very small window that once housed a small air conditioner.  Thankfully, nothing of great value was stolen.  We lost a Igloo cooler, a weed eater, a coffee pot, some tools (shovels, etc.), and some paint.  Thankfully they couldn't get into our auditorium where we have a keyboard and ceiling fans.  

Robbery has been somewhat of an epidemic in our church's neighborhood lately.  Most of the houses on our block have been robbed the last couple of weeks.  The perpetrators are becoming very bold and are breaking into houses during broad daylight.  

Thursday evening during our mid-week church service some young men were stealing building supplies from the house next to our church and were carrying the stolen goods over our church building (that's right--over the roof of our church while we were in it) to another house down the block!  We didn't know about it until after the service.

The thieves are mostly drug addicts who live in the neighborhood.  They steal to buy drugs.  People in the neighborhood are afraid of them so most robberies go unreported.  The amazing thing is that after robbing a house, the thieves go down the street selling the stolen goods to other people on the same block.  

Thankfully, a lady who lives behind our church saw who broke into our building last Sunday and gave us the names of the theives.  So this week I went to the police headquarters to report the robbery (and the names of the suspects).  Who knows if anything will be done?

Besides the robberies, violence has also increased in the neighborhood.  A number of people we know of have been assaulted lately, and it's becoming increasing dangerous to be out on the streets after dark.  Local gangs frequently stop cars and city busses demanding money.  

THE BOTTOM LINE: This neighborhood needs the gospel!  Please pray for us.