There is an old saying that goes like this, "Into every life a little rain must fall." Well, it rained on me this week!

Someone hacked into my web pages and set up a phishing scam in the site. The first I knew of it was when my Web Hosting Company shut down my sites for a violation of their rules. After an hour or so on the phone, I did manage to get my email address restored. However, my website is no longer there. So, I began again building a website. I probably needed to do this again anyway. I actually hired a company to design my website the last time, but they are not responding to my inquires; so it looks like I am on my own.

One thing you learn if you have been on the Internet very long is that at some point, something bad is likely going to happen. If you don't get hacked by some pirates, you get spammed, have your identity stolen, your hard drive crashes, or something similar.

Much of my effort in the past has gone into trying to be secure from those types of problems. I have anti-virus programs, spam filters, and spyware detector programs. I back up all of my work regularly on CD's and contract with an online company to keep a backup of my entire computer and every email I receive is checked before it is opened on my computer.

The question is, I guess: Do I feel safe concerning my computer and information? As I write this, a spyware detector is running on my computer, so the reality of it is that no, I don't!

Isn't it great, however, that there are some things about which we never have to worry — things about which we can actually feel safe? Yes it is!

My wife and I won a Hot Air Balloon trip recently, and we took it this week. A friend asked, "Did you pray before you went up?" To which I responded, "No, we are ready to go (die) at anytime!"

Granted there are lots of things we still want to do and see in this life and we wouldn't choose to leave this earth right now; but if it happens, it's OK, because we are ready. We feel safe! We don't have to worry about any hackers or spyware concerning our faith! By not worrying, I don't mean that we aren't concerned or that we don't take precautions! The apostle Paul tells us about preparing and taking precautions. Notice what he says:

Do you want to avoid getting "spiritually hacked"?

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints (Ephesians 6:10-18 NIV).

So, if you want to stand strong, if you want to avoid getting "spiritually hacked," put on the full armor of God! Then, when someone asks if you are afraid to die, you can truthfully say, "NO! I'm protected!"