Texas Pastor Thomas Wilson recently received yet another reason to give God all the glory and praise after surviving a horrific incident in which he was robbed and shot twice after he refused to allow the gunman to use his phone. The shooter told the pastor of Meadowbrook Baptist Church, “God is not going to bless you tonight.”
Well, that’s where this gentleman was wrong. God did bless Pastor Wilson. He kept him alive and thwarted the efforts of this godless, wayward man. I’d say that’s a miracle, wouldn’t you?
According to The American Tribune:
The encounter happened last Wednesday as the 61-year-old pastor was leaving the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo alongside his secretary. He claims he was then approached and asked by an individual if they could borrow Wilson’s phone.
Upon refusing this request, he was cursed by the individual. “I told him no, and he kept going on and he even said these words, ‘God is not going to bless you tonight,’” Wilson recounted. The pastor then began to walk away from the man when he realized his car had been burglarized.
According to Wilson, the man who had just asked to borrow his phone returned and demanded that the pastor hand over his bag. “At first I was going to give it all, just give it up, but then he pulls the gun and it’s pointing right here in my face, and I saw this guy has no intentions of letting me walk away from here,” Wilson said.
Wilson then recounted that he felt compelled to take defense action against the gunman who he believed at the time was going to shoot him and his secretary.
“As agitated as he had become, he was going to not only shoot me but also my secretary and I couldn’t let that happen,” he continued. “I reached and grabbed at the gun and tried to get it away from my face and it went off, hitting me in my shoulder.”
"*" indicates required fields
As the battle between the two men continued, the pair eventually wound up on the ground. Wilson sustained a gunshot wound to both shoulders before the man got away with the bag containing valuables. Unfortunately for the bad guy, he left behind a shoe, cell phone, and a few other items that the Houston Police are now using as evidence to try and track him down.
Wilson then stated he is fully open to the biblical idea of extending forgiveness to the gunman, however, he also said the criminal needs to be caught in order to protect innocent lives in the community. And he’s absolutely right. Offering up forgiveness to someone who did you harm is something we are commanded to do by God. After all, how can we be forgiven of the cosmic treason we committed against God if we aren’t willing to forgive others for far less egregious offenses? However, even though we forgive those who hurt us, and God can forgive them too, that doesn’t mean there aren’t consequences for your actions.
Pastor Wilson called for the gunman to be brought to justice and to be held accountable for what he did.
“I want this man caught; I want to protect others,” the pastor said. “He still has to take responsibility for what he has done, but in the midst of that, we still have to have a forgiving heart,” Wilson said.
“I thank God that I’m still here today, ” Wilson went on to say, revealing that his faith has only gotten stronger following the incident. “To Him be glory, I’ve not had any real pain since the shooting.”