A shopping trip for a new outfit normally doesn’t escalate into touch-and-go excitement, but Friday was different. As I pulled into a parking space facing the big glass doors at Carson’s, a security vehicle screeched to a halt in front of me.

One man jumped out and ran at top speed across the lot and around the corner of the store. The other put pedal to the metal and screeched in the opposite direction.

Once they were gone, I went inside to start my hunt for clothes, but something funny was going on at the cashier’s desk. Authorities were quizzing two 20-something girls, when all of a sudden the man who had jumped from the security car burst through the double doors, flying past the cashier, the girls, and me, and disappeared into the store.

Later, questioning the cashier, I learned a team of 3 shoplifters had been foiled in their attempt to steal clothing. “They always work in teams,” she said. “One is the look-out, another makes a purchase to distract the sales staff, and a third heads for the door with the stolen goods.”

This time, though, cameras had been following the girls as they’d moved through the racks pretending to shop. Something about the way they repeatedly glanced at the cashier, whispered among themselves, and showed signs of nervousness tipped off security. And as the girl with the clothing stepped from the store, those watching were ready.

Shoplifters are willing to risk arrest for one of several reasons: financial gain, rebellion toward authorities, or just for a lark. If this team of girl-thieves had known their every move was being monitored on closed circuit TV, would they have done it?

Silly question.

But maybe that question is pertinent for all of us. What do we do when we think no one’s watching? If we believe in God and his omniscience, that’s just one more silly question, because never is there a moment we’re not being watched.

And two more questions that ought to be silly but often aren’t: Since we know we’re being watched, does it make a difference in how we act? And if not, why not?

These would have been good questions for those 3 girls to talk through in reference to the eyes of security cameras before they attempted their crime. But it’s even more important for the rest of us to ask the same questions of ourselves, in relation to the eyes of God.

“God watches how people live; he sees everything they do.” (Job 34:21)

Praising and Praying with Mary

1. I’m thankful for my week off of chemo, spending Monday with friends rather than at the hospital.
2. I’m thankful for a weekend in Michigan and the vibrant green of spring.
3. Please pray I’ll keep focused on God and his plans rather than my own