Bob Vernon was a Los Angeles motorcycle police officer. The day was dawning when he saw a red pickup truck speed through a stop sign. This guy must be late to work, he thought. He turned on his lights and radioed that he was in pursuit. The pickup pulled over, and the officer approached.
Meanwhile, in the truck, the driver was panicking; he thought, “The cops already know!” He rested his hand on the same gun he had used a few moments before to rob a local convenience store, a bag of stolen money resting on the seat beside him. The approaching officer said, “Good morning, sir. May I see your…” He never finished the sentence. The driver shoved his gun toward the policeman’s chest and fired just inches away. The cop was knocked flat seven feet away. A few seconds later, to the shock of the criminal, the officer stood up, pulled his service revolver, and fired twice. The first bullet went through the open window and smashed the windshield. The second tore through the door and ripped into the driver’s left leg. “Don’t shoot!” the thief screamed, throwing the gun and sack of money out the pickup window.
What saved the policeman’s life? That morning, when he dressed for work, he pulled the body armor over his chest; dozens of layers of Kevlar trapped the bullet before it could destroy the vital tissue below. Paul finishes his profoundly personal letter to the Ephesian Church, reminding us that we are at war and must dress for it.
