One Night, Burglar Suddenly Rushed to My Bedside

By Jinyan, Italy

One night, a burglar suddenly rushed to my bedside and threatened me in a low and urgent voice: “IPad and iPhone, hand them over quickly.” With that, he reached out his hand trying to throw back the covers. Facing this, my heart rose into my throat and my mind went blank …

Whenever I recall this scene, I still have a lingering fear. Had it not been for God’s care and protection, the consequence would have been unimaginable to me.

Burglars Broke In

When I first went abroad, I worked in a hairdressing salon. One night in September, we didn’t finish our work until one or two o’clock in the morning. Before the boss left, he habitually said to me: “Be careful!” I responded, “Okay!” Yet I thought: “I have slept here for several nights, and nothing has happened. As long as the door is locked, everything will be all right. You worry too much.”

However, at three or four a.m., I half-consciously saw the flashing light of a cell phone. In my half-sleep I thought: “Is it already five in the morning? Are the boss and other colleagues coming?” Without thinking further, I asked: “Who’s there?” Unexpectedly, I had just finished my words when two black figures hurried out of the salon.

At that moment, I was somewhat alarmed and immediately sat up. By the light of the streetlamp I found there was a big hole in the glass door of the salon. “Heavens!” I thought. I hurriedly tried to reach blindly for my cell phone and call my boss, who lived across the street, but my efforts were for nothing. My heart sank and I thought: “I’m done for! My cell phone has been stolen; what can I do? I can’t shout for help. If I irritate the burglars, I would be in trouble.” As a girl, I couldn’t possibly deal with them.

Just then, one of them came back. In the dim light, he looked like an African and very tall. He rushed to my bedside and threatened me in a low voice: “IPad and iPhone, hand them over quickly.” At that moment, my heart leaped into my throat and my mind went blank. I could only cry out to God in my heart and ask Him to give me courage to face this burglar.

When he was about to search me, I jumped to my feet, instinctively pushed away his hands, and screamed desperately: “Don’t touch me! Don’t touch me! I’ll do it myself …” While saying that, I shook open the sheets and covers for him to see, and told him that they had already taken away my cell phone, and that there had been nothing left on me. Hearing my words, he turned around and left. I slumped onto the bed and my heart thumped violently. I kept thanking God for His protection.

The Burglar Threatened Me a Second Time

I had thought that this robbery had been over, but never had I expected that he would return again. He rushed to me and still asked me for iPad and iPhone. This time, his tone was more urgent and aggressive. It seemed that He would harm me at any time. I was really frightened, thinking: “The foreigners in this region all think that Chinese people are rich. When he asked me for things the first time, I told him that I didn’t have anything else. If I still say that again this time, will I irritate him?” In the darkness, I indistinctly saw he was holding something in one hand. “It is a knife?” I thought, “If he kills me now, nobody else will know it.”

Right at that second, I was suddenly aware that I am a believer in God. God is the Creator and I should call out to Him. So, I kept crying out to God inside: “O God! I’m very scared and desperate now. I don’t know what I can do, nor do I know what will happen to me. God, please keep and lead me.” After praying, a line of God’s words appeared in my mind: “Without God’s permission, it is difficult for Satan to touch even a drop of water or grain of sand upon the land; without God’s permission, Satan is not even free to move the ants about upon the land—let alone mankind, who was created by God.”

That’s right! God is the Creator who controls all things in this world. Though the burglar was sturdy and fierce, he was just a creature and was also in God’s hand. Without God’s permission, he couldn’t touch even a single hair of mine. God’s words gave me great comfort and courage, dispelling my fears. Then I told him: “I have nothing left. One of you guys took away my cell phone.” After hearing my words, he actually turned around and went away. I couldn’t help giving thanks and praise to God in my heart.

The Burglar Returned a Third Time

The only safe place in the salon was the bathroom. So I stumbled into it with bare feet, locked the door inside and then slumped onto the floor, praying ceaselessly to God in my heart. Then I suddenly remembered that my suitcase was still at the front door. In it were my laptop and all my savings. Once again, my heart flew into my mouth: “Should I fetch it or not? If I go fetch it but happen to run into the burglar, I might irritate him and be harmed by him. If I don’t, once it is stolen, I will lose my laptop and all the cash. How will I go on living then? …”

When I was thinking about this, I again heard the footsteps and the sound of broken glass when someone sneaked in. All at once, the nervous atmosphere attacked me again. Hiding in the bathroom, I held my breath, and my heart thumped with fear. Suddenly, he gave a sinister giggle. That immediately made my hair stand on end and my heart almost rise into my mouth: It’s done. Could it be that he found my suitcase? I kept crying out to God: “God! God! What should I do? What should I do? Please lead me.”

After praying for a while, my heart calmed down a lot. I remembered Job’s story in the Bible. When Job lost his children and property, he didn’t make any complaint. Instead, he believed that his own life and all his property were bestowed by God, and that there was God’s permission in good or bad things that happened every day; he should obey God. Therefore, even after he lost everything, he still said: “Jehovah gave, and Jehovah has taken away; blessed be the name of Jehovah.” “Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?” I thought to myself: “This environment I’ve encountered today is also out of God’s permission. No matter whether the burglar will take away my suitcase or not, isn’t it still in God’s hand? I should imitate Job and submit to God’s orchestration. Even if I’m robbed of my suitcase, I should still obey God and stand testimony for Him.”

When I thought of this, my heart grew calmer. At this time, the footsteps outside sounded again. Judging from the sound, it seemed that the burglar was leaving. I breathed a long sigh of relief. After about twenty minutes, there were no more movements outside. I carefully opened the bathroom door and peered out. At the instant when I saw by the dim light that my suitcase still remained there, I was deeply touched. Then as fast as I could, I rushed to take my suitcase to the bathroom. After locking the door inside, I sat against the door on the floor. It was dark around me and I didn’t know what time it was then, but I could hear footsteps outside in the street from time to time.

Time quietly slipped away. As I heard there were people talking, more and more traffic moving outside, I opened the bathroom door and walked out of the salon. At that moment, a passer-by came and I used her cell phone to make a call to my boss. A few minutes later, they arrived on the spot and asked me with concern: “Are you all right?” I said: “Luckily, I’m all right. I’m fine.” Subsequently, I recounted to them what had happened to me. They all said: “For a young girl, you dared to face several burglars without being harmed in the slightest. You’re really brave and lucky. You know what? In this area, people are robbed even on the street in the daytime. Some are even injured when robbed of their jewels. …” Hearing what they said, I kept thanking God in my heart: It is not that I am brave, but that I have God as my reliance. It’s God who has saved me. This time I just lost a cell phone, while my life and all my other property remained safe. It was God’s protection that helped me through the terrible night.

Afterward, my boss took me to a cell phone store and said to me: “You were robbed of your cell phone in the salon. We will compensate you for your loss and buy you a new phone of the same type. Now choose one yourself.” Hearing that, I was even more moved and was really grateful to God.

From this experience, I saw God is really by my side as my rear guard and my ever-present help. When I was seized with fright and panic, it was the leadership of God’s words that gave me reliance as well as the courage and confidence to face the burglar. When I submitted to the orchestration and arrangement of God, He was considerate of my weakness and blinded the burglar from finding my suitcase. All these were God making a way out for me. This environment not only allowed me to gain some more practical knowledge of God’s deeds but also increased my faith in God. Thank God. All the glory be to God!