Bucktown in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, had been having some rain.
Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries
By Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour
"Alligators"
May 4, 2017
1 Peter 5:8 - Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
Bucktown in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, had been having some rain.
Actually, they had been having a lot of rain.
It was the amount of the rain which had everybody worried, and it was fear of flooding that urged them to keep their eyes trained on the storm drains. That explains why they were watching when something did come out of the drain behind the Marie Riviere Elementary School.
Yes, something came out and it wasn't water.
What came out of the school's drain was a seven-foot alligator. Steven Nicholson, a resident of the Parrish commented: "First his head emerged out of the drain and then his whole body."
Now I am not an educator but I don't think most teachers and superintendents want to have an alligator stalking their playground.
Now I can tell you, with a high degree of certainty, that day there was never a time when the little ones at Marie Riviere were in any kind of danger. The students weren't in danger because the students weren't there. It was spring break and everyone had wandered off to the four directions of the compass.
Even so, nobody thought it was a good plan to allow the alligator to settle down in a nice, unobtrusive place and wait until the kids returned. Instead, they decided the men would keep the gator distracted and entertained, while another volunteer called for some assistance: that is, an alligator-wrestling, pest-control officer.
By the time the pest control people arrived the men had managed to work up quite a sweat keeping that alligator entertained -- keeping everybody around, both safe and sound. Those men had done a fine job and nobody had to nag them to get going.
No, those men saw the job which needed to be done and they did it.
I wish the same enthusiasm and commitment would be there when it comes to protecting our little children from the spiritual alligators who are waiting for them. They -- like Peter's lion spoken of in our text -- are eager to devour these young souls. The pornographer, the drug dealer, the representatives from crazy cults and religions are ready to do their worst.
This is why we have to do our best.
We need to be consistent and faithful in pointing children to the Christ. We need, in word and example, to share the blood-bought story of salvation, which brings us to faith and makes us members of the household of the Lord.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, dangerous animals like lions and alligators are easy to identify. That is not always true when it comes to spiritual threats to our little ones. Grant to all adults in authority a sense of discernment that they may do all that is necessary to keep their children in Jesus. This I ask in the Savior's Name. Amen
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