Police officers replace tools stolen by thieves

Adrian Salgado is a gardener in Santa Ana, California, a suburb of Los Angeles.

When thieves stole his truck, cell phone, landscaping equipment, and a thousand dollars in rent money, he lost his only means of supporting himself and his family. With the money gone, he had no way to replace his tools.

Police were able to recover Salgado’s truck, but his equipment—including a lawnmower, edger, hand tools, and leaf blower—was gone.

The police officers felt they had to do something to help. They pooled their resources, obtained money from their police association, and went shopping. Home Depot chipped in another hundred dollars and offered military discounts to the officers who serve as reservists.

The police officers gave the new tools to Salgado, who immediately went back to work. One officer said, “I’ve been doing this job for twenty-seven years. Every so often it’s a good day. That was a good day.”

Does God understand?

It is gratifying to see police officers caring so personally for those they serve. In our broken world, there are times when we may wonder if God feels the same way about us.

Over the weekend, a teenager was fatally shot after knocking on the wrong door in Atlanta. A father of four is on life support after a fight with another man in the parking lot at Dodger Stadium left him with a fractured skull. A South Carolina student got into a car, erroneously thinking it was her Uber ride and was later found dead. The driver has been arrested on charges of murder and kidnapping.

Each day’s news gives us reason to question whether the Creator cares what happens to his creation. For assurance that he does, let’s explore a question many of us may not have asked before.

Why was Jesus born?

If I asked you why Jesus came to the earth, you’d say: to die for our sins.

You’d be right, of course.

But what would you say if I asked…