If you ask the average gun owner why they have a gun, they’ll probably answer with something about personal defense. The sound of an intruder in your home in the middle of the night is a scary scenario, but one that every gun owner has probably considered. How will they enter? How will I respond if they come in through this door or this window? What are my best fields of fire to keep from potentially hurting others?

All of these are things to think about, sure, but if it happens, you have to react, especially when the bad guys are coming into the house armed.

That’s what recently happened to a man in Utah.

An alleged intruder was shot and injured Saturday night after breaking into a home in Lehi, police said.

About 8:40 p.m., officers were dispatched to 391 N. 900 East on the report of a burglary in progress, according to a statement from Lehi police. The 20-year-old man had gotten into the second-level apartment and “was armed with a knife,” Lehi Police Sgt. Robert Marshall said.

The home renter, also in his 20s, shot the man, Marshall said. He is not likely to face charges in the shooting.

While officers were on the way to the house, dispatchers told them a 20-year-old man had been trespassing at the house earlier, had returned and was trying to break in, according to the statement.

When officers arrived, the alleged invader had been shot three times, twice in the leg and once in the stomach.

However, this shows you why we need an armed citizenry. The alleged intruder got to pick the time and place for the encounter. He had every advantage, so far as we can tell, except for one. The resident had a firearm that leveled the playing field.

Guns aren’t magic. They don’t keep you from being attacked. What they do, however, is allow you to respond to those attacks in a quick and effective manner. It won’t matter if the other guy is bigger, meaner, more skilled with a knife or with his hands, none of that. Like they used to say, God created all men, but Sam Colt made them equal.

The worst-case scenario is that you have an equal level of force to the home invader. You’re armed with a handgun, and they’re armed with one as well. Here’s the thing. I’d rather have parity be my worst-case scenario than my best-case. I’d much rather have that be the nightmare than the pie-in-the-sky dream. Without a gun in your hands, though, you don’t get that.

While anti-gunners are constantly trying to infringe on our right to keep and bear arms, it’s imperative we remind people that the bad guys are still out there. They’re out there, they’re armed, and they don’t recognize our right to exist. We need firearms to even the score at a minimum, and we’ll stand against anyone who wants to infringe on our rights to have them. That’s how it has to be.