Sunday, May 27, 2007

Lovely way to spend Sunday lunch

I saw her as she pulled up on her bike outside the church door, our service was nearly over.

She had a pretty skirt on, between 16 and 19, and she asked the usher if she could use the washroom. He directed her around the corner, and to the first door on the right. She seemed thankful.

Unfortunately, my office is the first door on the left. And sometime between when she entered the washroom, and left the church a few moments later, she took the opportunity to enter the door on the left.

She saw my keys, wallet and cell phone tucked beneath some books.

She went through my wallet, then grabbed the cell and left. That quickly.

I am grateful she didn't just take the wallet, but rather went through it. I don't think there was any or much cash in it. But she did grab the cell, a relatively new one with a few years of monthly payment left on it.

And so because theft occurred I have to talk with the police. They took my statement over the phone, but would like to talk with me, at the church. So here I am, waiting for the police to arrive.

At least it was only dollars that were lost, at least on this end. A few hundred should fix me.

But I don't know what the cost is to her.

What did she loose in the theft?

3 comments:

  1. Oh man. You know what's weird? I saw her come in and for some reason I got to thinking "what if...". What if she was a distraction for someone entering the church through the basement to steal something? What if she didn't just want to use the bathroom, but just said that as a front? Weird. Maybe there is something to this "discernment" thing (of one kind or another).

    I'm sorry to hear about this. A church should be open and welcoming, which sometimes that comes at a price, I guess.

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  2. Oh Crumb!

    What is really bad is that we can also easily lose in this theft - way more than stuff. We lose that sense of trust and our willingness to give people a chance. We gain a sense of violation and with it a growing sense of suspicion and cynicism.

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  3. That's a really tough break. This is the second theft from the church in just a few months. We want to make strangers feel welcome, but we also need to keep the place secure. Lord show us how to be as wise as serpents while as harmless as doves.

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