Rumors of Wars

The more I read scripture, the more I see we face the same temptations and challenges spanning 2,100 years since the time of Christ. 1 Timothy, Chapter 1 says this (and I paraphrase): Do not devote yourself to myths that promote speculation. Our charge is to love from a pure heart, good conscience, and faith. The law is for all in accordance with the gospel of glory.  For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Jesus saved us sinners, that through his mercy he might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.

We live in a time when the media, political parties and extremist groups want you to believe we are in tremendous upheaval. Facts matter only to prove a specific narrative and are shaped to support a specific view. There is a phrase I use when I teach, “70% of statistics are made up on the spot.” Preferences are masquerading as principles. Truth is relative. How you feel is the basis for establishing a baseline for what is right, true, and honorable. The fallen world is turned on its head, again.

The media does not report the news but runs stories on each other to fill the 24-hour news cycle. Political parties are no longer interested in issues and compromise. They take up causes and if you do not align with that cause, you are the enemy. Extremist groups wage war against each other, showing up to protests to yell, fight and kill each other. Social media trumpets and howls at all of this with no interest in sharing viewpoints, driving people further apart. We think we have influence on social media when algorithms determine what we see, hear, and read. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. (See Matthew 7)

So what is our responsibility as Christians? Philippians 4:4-9 says it best and I quote this time:

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about those things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me – practice these things, and the peace of God will be with you.”

In the end, it all comes down to sin. Sin demands justice. Yet, part of justice is a willingness to forgive and be open to reconciliation. That is grace. For the person sinned against, it is the narrow gate and the road to it is an uphill climb.

Paul describes this in 2 Corinthians 6: 1-10:

“Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says, 

‘In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.’

Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. We put no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found in our ministry, but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way; by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamites, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand  and for the left; through honor and dishonor, through slander and praise. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; as unknown and well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.”

Christian brothers and sisters in Christ, be encouraged. You stand in the gap and endure scorn and suspicion and yet you are strong in perseverance and truth. Stand firm and know the Holy Spirit dwells in you and will lift you in this time of turmoil.

Taking a Stand

Revelations 3:15-16 “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.”

Romans 13: 1 “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.”

If you serve in law enforcement, sooner or later you will find yourself providing “security” at a city council meeting or other governing board. At every one of these meetings, there is a time for public comment. Anyone can address the members of these boards to say whatever they want. To clarify, this means a member of the public (anyone) can talk about anything!!! I have suffered through litanies about the existence of UFO’s, the health threats of radio frequencies, demands to legalize all drugs and the list goes on. The point is that the majority of people who show up for public comment spout opinions that are irrelevant to the governing process. The microphone is open to all and yet only people with extreme views show up. Irrelevant or not, it is these views that influence and shape public policy.

Political parties can operate in a similar way. They are driven by extremes when reasonable people don’t participate. They are neither hot or cold because their views are either scalding or immovable in political permafrost. It seems like that is the current state of politics. Politicians appear more like characters in a graphic comic book than elected representatives of the people. How did we arrive at a place where extremes drive government at all levels?

This happened, in part,  because our culture holds to the oft spoken social norm that you DO NOT talk about religion or politics...ever. We also interpret the First Amendment of our Constitution specific to the separation of church and state as an absolute stop sign that prohibits any dialogue, action or idea where the two might intersect. The result is that people do not know what they believe when it comes faith and politics because we talk about neither. We leave it to journalists, bloggers and “influencers” who interpret, for example, a religious freedom court case in a three minute video, or a panel of “experts” yelling at each other over what a politician meant in a Tweet or headlines watered down to “facts” that are more often than not preferences masquerading as principles. We search for truth through experts driven by their own biases and agendas.

It is hard work to know the truth of the Gospel and hold that truth against the planks of any political party or campaign slogan. We get fed up that politics is so convoluted and steeped in relativism that it is easier to be lukewarm about our political responsibility.

What does it mean to be a responsible Christian specific to our duty as a citizen of the Untied States? First, we must pray for our government leaders, elected or in full time service. Pray for them to have wisdom guided by the Holy Spirit, that they will be prudent when spending tax dollars and that they will act ethically and morally in all things. It is not enough to just be registered to vote. If the extent of your participation in government is to show up twice a year and vote a party line, you abdicate your responsibility like “Christians” who show up for church twice a year. We call them “Christers”. If you are not registered to vote, you fail in the most basic obligation to Romans 13 that calls you to submit to the governing authority.

A common understanding of Romans 13 is that it is a peace officer’s call to service. I think this is a limited view of this passage. Romans 13:1-7 covers all of the elements of government. This includes our responsibility to be part of the governance process: to understand the core beliefs of people running for office and the politicians who write and establish laws, to know the planks of the political party you are registered with and to speak up as a member of the public when government runs contrary to the doctrines of our Christian faith. If you are lukewarm because you check out of the political process, you risk being subjected to governing authorities that are entirely separated from what we hold to be true.

Let us stand firm in our faith. Let us be informed when we vote. Do not lose heart when extreme views take over politics and we lose hope that our vote does not matter. Christians must be part of the political process. My charge to you in 2020 is to register to vote, be informed before you cast your ballot and pray for the governing authorities.

Matthew 5: 14-16 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

Same Team

1 Corinthians 1:10, “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, and that you be united in the same mind and the same judgement.”

Paul does not mince words in his writings. He gets right to it and the letters to the Corinthians are no exception. There were divisions in the Corinthian church and message is clear...GET ALONG!!! There is no compromise on this point. The letter goes on to talk through a number of issues that are dividing the church, all of which are still relevant in our present time.

Later in Chapter 12, Paul writes the following, “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.” Translation: We are on the Same Team!

After serving in the police profession for over thirty years, I see similar divisions inside of our own walls. Every peace officer relies on records clerks, dispatchers, jailers, secretaries, property evidence technicians and crime scene processors to get the job done. Everyone does their best to make their community safe and bring justice to the oppressed. That is our calling.

The problem is that we lose sight of the fact that we are all on the Same Team. We grumble and argue. We complain that someone does not do their jobs to “our” standards. We compare budget allocations, promotion lists, rumors of discipline and the latest story of interpersonal conflict to somehow validate our professional struggles, stir the pot or engage in gossip because we get bored. We become divided to a place where our negativity infects our ability to be joyful in our pursuit of justice.

It is our responsibility as Christians to bring peace in our work place. That is our testimony to a lost world. Spend your time between call for service building relationships between people rather than feeding rumors and stoking animosity between work groups. Be a peacemaker among colleagues. That is, after all what we do. Why only step in when you are on patrol, on a 911 call or in meetings with outside organizations?

“If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” Romans 12:18

Unloved

Matthew 18:5-6 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.”

In my current job, I work with police departments across the country to map the social networks of street gangs, cartels and more recently, human trafficking organizations. The power that pimps have over the women they sell for sex is nothing short of demonic. The psychological grip these suspects hold over women in their teens and early twenties is so strong that it can take years to break the victims free from the sex trade. This control is rooted in the reality that these women are starved for parental love, affirmation and support that they do not get at home. The evil is that the twisted love offered by pimps is nothing more than mind control that starts with the promise of forever, expensive gifts and “protection” from people who have let them down. What follows is a nightmare of sustained physical and mental abuse from which these women do not believe there is any escape.

The war to free these victims is in the hands of men and women in law enforcement whose mission is to arrest the perpetrators and work to break the cycle of sexual abuse and violence. The police officer who can stay focused on finding ways to prosecute the suspects and simultaneously care for the victims to get them out of the cycle servitude is nothing short of incredible.

This cop story is about Kim. She is a detective with a California law enforcement agency and currently assigned to a human trafficking task force. As for her faith, Kim grew up with agnostic parents. She started a search for a church five years ago; being baptized on Easter Sunday just over two years ago. I got to know Kim after she was pulled into a brief I was giving on social network analysis (SNA) and how it can be used to break criminal enterprises. It was the final brief I was giving to a group of detectives and Kim was brought in late, having no idea about the meeting she was being told to attend.

The key to getting police departments to use SNA is to find that person in the organization who sees the value of targeting networks to reduce crime. Kim was the one who “caught the vision” of SNA, jumping in to learn the methodology and application. Over the next year, Kim gave me a crash course in human trafficking that I had not previously known or understood. As she worked to use SNA to map out prostitution rings using SNA, I noticed that there was something about Kim that made her stand out from other detectives. She had compassion for the women she was trying to free from a life of sexual bondage. Her motivation became clearer to me over time as she talked about the cases she worked and the girls she tried rescue.

Proverbs 19:21, “Many are the plans in the mind of man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will 

stand.”

Like many of us, Kim had plans for what she believed was the right professional path for her law enforcement career. She wanted to be a homicide detective. She worked hard as a patrol officer to gain experience responding to violent crimes and attended various training events to learn the craft of homicide investigation. When the opportunity came for her to test for detective, she was selected…to the Narcotics and Vice Unit. It was not the direction she wanted to go but accepted the position and eighteen months later, was reassigned to a human trafficking task force.  Kim would say, “It is in God’s hands.” But that did not keep her from a small grumble now and then about not getting the spot in homicide. Here is where I came in…

I was with Kim a few weeks ago wrapping up my project with her department. Her team and I presented how the SNA processes were used at their department to the command staff and homicide detectives. Kim was up late the night before dealing with a prostitution case where they rescued a young girl from a pimp. The homicide detectives knew about the investigation and were quizzing Kim about the case. They wanted details about what the victim had to say. Kim did not interview the girl because as she said, “She was just too tired and she needed to get some sleep.” My impression was that the other detectives were more interested in the facts of the case and not so much about the condition of the victim. Kim told me later that these guys could be difficult and were not always team players at the department.

It was not long after the briefing ended that Kim got a telephone call. At first I thought she was talking to her daughter, “Hey darling! How are you feeling today? Did you get some sleep because you looked so exhausted last night?” As the conversation went on, I realized that she was talking with the girl she rescued the night before. I was humbled at the compassion that Kim showed as if this little girl were her own.

After the briefings ended, it was time for me to get going to the airport. Kim was walking me out of the building and I told her that it was (and continues to be) God’s plan that she is fighting against prostitution. I told her that if she had been selected to be a homicide detective, she would be frustrated. She would be working with people she did not respect. Not only that, she would not be able to help murder victims since they were, after all, dead. No, Kim was right where God wanted her to be. She was the, “an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer.” (Check out Romans 13) More important than that, Kim is loving the unloved. She is the light on the hill showing compassion and giving hope to prostitutes. She is the hand of Jesus.

Who is it in your life who is unlovable? Have you accepted your calling even though it might not be exactly what you think is the best for you? What is it that God calls you to do?

Bonus Time

As you read through this Cop Story, the quoted scripture is from Psalm 34.

¹ I will extol the Lord at all times;
    his praise will always be on my lips.
² I will glory in the Lord;
    let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
³ Glorify the Lord with me;
    let us exalt his name together.

Glenn is a man of God. He served for 22 years as a member of the U.S. Army Special Forces with multiple deployments to the Middle East working with communities to build up local police departments. In 2012, Glenn prepared to leave on his final deployment overseas and started to believe that he was not going to return home. His intuition told him that he would be killed on the battlefield. The feeling was so strong that he reached out to a good friend, a pastor, and asked him to officiate at his memorial service. There is nothing like a “the end is near” feeling to drive you to get right with God. He realized he had many worries in his life and after prayer and contemplation, he found himself at peace. He had to be. He was not going to return home.

⁴ I sought the Lord, and he answered me;
    he delivered me from all my fears.
⁵ Those who look to him are radiant;
    their faces are never covered with shame.

Out on deployment, Glenn volunteered for the more dangerous jobs when his team went out on patrol. He knew he was going to be killed and he could keep other people safe by taking these positions. Glenn took point (first in line), walking in the open and ready to repel any attack. Bring it.

⁷ The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him,
    and he delivers them.

Glenn would walk down narrow streets that were known to be places where insurgent forces would set ambushes. He was, after all, going to die. It was better him than someone else. On one particular patrol, Glenn found himself on point, moving into an alley that he should have walked passed. Halfway down the narrow passage, Glenn took a step. As his foot fell, he looked down and saw a dirt-covered, metal plate. It was the trigger of an improvised explosive device.  In a split second he realized that he was about to step on and set off the bomb. He could not stop in mid step and recognized he was about to die in a fiery explosion. His fellow soldiers would be lucky if they found a shoelace after the dust settled. His foot depressed the trigger, he heard the “click” . . .  nothing happened. The five gallon container filled with homemade explosives designed to take out a truck did not go off.  He was not dead.

¹⁹ The righteous person may have many troubles,
    but the Lord delivers him from them all;
²⁰ he protects all his bones,
    not one of them will be broken.

After the adrenaline of not getting blown up wore off, Glenn found himself in a spiritual crisis. Like Jacob wrestling the angel, Glenn wrestled with two questions: “Why didn’t I die?” and “Why did God keep me around?”

⁸ Taste and see that the Lord is good;
    blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
⁹ Fear the Lord, you his holy people,
    for those who fear him lack nothing.

Glenn’s answer, his life was all Bonus Time. God had other plans for him. Now to figure out what those plans were. Glenn made it safely through his final deployment and returned home. He was even more steadfast in this faith. He started going to church with consistency and recommitted his life to Christ being baptized in the process.

¹¹ Come, my children, listen to me;
    I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
¹² Whoever of you loves life
    and desires to see many good days,
¹³ keep your tongue from evil
    and your lips from telling lies.
¹⁴ Turn from evil and do good;
    seek peace and pursue it.

Glenn’s next assignment was at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Cal. He was the leader of a research and education team supporting military and law enforcement professionals to map the networks of gangs, cartels and terrorist groups. He was not at the tip of the spear any longer, but assisting with the development of crime and terrorism reduction strategies. It was here that Glenn and I met. A retired Assistant Police Chief in his Bonus Time walking alongside a warrior who was nearing the end of his military career wondering, “What was next?” Glenn and I talked a lot about his future. What was clear was that Glenn was not content being in the rear with the gear. His Bonus Time was the call to continue to serve as a warrior; God was calling him to be a police officer. Glenn would retire from the military in 2015 and six months later would be sworn in as a police officer in Layton, Utah. His Bonus Time will be to keep the Layton community safe just as he had served our Nation to keep the world safe. Perhaps his feeling that, “the end is near” was more about worry. God would fix that in an alley, half-way around the world.

¹⁵ The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
    and his ears are attentive to their cry;
¹⁶ but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil,
    to blot out their name from the earth.

The Badge - A Cross to Carry

The call to be a police officer brings with it the burden of seeing the terrible darkness that exists in this world. We see first hand what greed, lust, hate and twisted thinking does to drive people to commit acts of evil against others. There will times in the course of a career that you will feel like the writer of Lamentations. Forsaken in the midst of thieves and murderers sometimes brings with it a sense of dread where all of your actions are scrutinized by the media, the public and critics of all stripes. There are times that it feels like God brings us to places where we think we are forsaken. Itis as if God has left us to fend for ourselves, surrounded by adversaries.

Yet in Lamentations 3:21-26, the writer says, "But this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. ‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul, ‘therefore I will hope in him.’ The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.”

God is with us. He calls us to service as peace officers as Paul writes in Romans 13:1-4, “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer."

As you start you day, rest on these word from Lamentations and Romans. You are not alone and your battle for justice in not in vain. In fact, our battle is not against flesh and blood. Consider Ephesians 6:12, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."

A number of year ago, my eldest daughter spent a semester in the UK. She got to visit many churches and monasteries where she discovered a prayer written by St. Philaret that is recited to this day by many faithful Christians in our world. Consider this prayer each day you go out to serve, even when it feels like you are forsaken and abandoned by God. It is not so. God loves and cares for you. He calls you to service and His mercies are new every morning.

O Lord, grant me to greet the coming day in peace. Help me in all things to rely upon Your holy will. In every hour of the day reveal Your will to me. Bless my dealings with all who surround me. Teach me to treat all that comes to me throughout the day with peace of soul, and with the firm conviction that Your will governs all. In all my deeds and words guide my thoughts and feelings. In unforseen events let me not forget that all are sent by You. Teach me to act firmly and wisely, without embittering or embarrassing others. Give me strength to bear the fatigue of this coming day with all that it will bring. Direct my will, teach me to pray, pray You Yourself in me. Amen.

Post script: St. Philaret also wrote a prayer for prisoners. You can find it at this link: Prayer of the Prisoner

Fix My Kid

One of the more common calls for service for any police officer involves parents who drag their child to the lobby of a police department and demand a law enforcement professional fix an out of control son or daughter. These parents are under the illusion that their failure to parent is somehow going to be changed miraculously by a police officer sitting down with little Johnny or Sally and “scare” them into good behavior. The truth is that a police officer can’t undo years of spoiling, failing to set boundaries or holding a child accountable in 30 minutes or less. You are not going to find success at a police station for winning the war for a child’s mind, body or spirit any more than you will find it dragging a child to a church event. The following is a story to serve as a reminder that forcing a child (or anyone for that matter) to church is not going to teach them how be a better person.

My wife and I recently volunteered for the Compassion Experience hosted by our church. The Compassion Experience is an outreach by Compassion International. (https://www.compassion.com/) This ministry works to provide food, elementary education, trade schools training and sharing the love of Jesus Christ in twenty-six impoverished countries across the globe. The Compassion Experience brings a semi-truck and trailer to local communities to provide a three dimensional experience for people to see what it is like for a child struggling to eat one meal a day, live in dirty conditions with little hope for the future. There are two experiences to choose from that tell a story of a boy and a girl who started in poverty and through the support of Compassion, were able to turn their lives around. It costs less than $40 per month to help one child in need.

We were responsible to usher people into the Experience, providing them with head phones and an audio presentation for a ten minute walk through tour. During our shift, a mother and young son, who was about 10, came into the welcome area. The mother told me that she brought her son because he was spoiled and not appreciative of how good his life was. We got them set up for their tour and sent them into the exhibit. Within seconds, the boy came running out screaming at his mother he was not going to go through. His behavior bordered on out of control and he ran out of the welcome tent and out to the family car where he took refuge in the driver’s seat. The mom apologized, gave us the audio equipment and left explaining that her son had sensory overload problems. We had compassion on the boy, thinking that he was fearful of the dark room.

Ten minutes later the mother and son returned. We refitted them with the headphones and watched as they entered the exhibit. Once finished, they had the opportunity to sponsor a child by selecting a package that had photographs and biographies. From where I sat, I could hear the son talking with a Compassion representative. I was hopeful that he might learn something from his experience. Sadly, he paid no attention to the faces of children in the photographs, but was trying to convince the host that Compassion should be making an exhibit about him. He was, after all an expert video game player and knew for certain that his story would be just as interesting as the two children he learned about from Ethiopia and the Dominican Republic. He had sensory overload…an overload of materialism. I was sad for this boy who was unable to see what he had in his life. I was sad for the mother who somehow believed that a ten minute walk through was going to make her son see something that she had failed to teach him. Our compassion turned to frustration as we began to understand that it was not fear, but self-absorption and materialism.

The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 4:11-13, “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through Christ who gives me strength.”

What is it that God is trying to show you about the blessings in your life that you refuse to see because what you have is not quite what you think you deserve? Are you the ten year old looking for validation or the parent looking for the quick fix? What is it that you want God to “fix” when in reality, He has already done that and wants you to deny yourself, pick up your cross and follow him? 

Right Place, Right Time...Now What Do I Do?

When I promoted into the ranks of police management, my days of enforcing the law came to a screeching halt. No more tickets to write, no more 911 calls for service to respond to and very few heart pounding, adrenaline pumping, made for TV moments. My role as a manager: Stay in the Rear with the Gear! If, by chance, I happen to find myself in the middle of some exciting police event, it's my job to avoid CHAOS (Chief Has Arrived On Scene). But sometimes things just don't happen that way.

A few weeks ago, I was out with a partner and the plan was to grab a sandwich and drive around the tourist areas of the city. We cruised along Cannery Row to check for transients bothering tourists, walked out on Fisherman's Wharf looking for violations of the no smoking ordinance, and took a drive on the beach to make sure people had their dogs on leashes. The goal: keep a low profile and give a few warnings. We ended with a check of the skateboard park and told a group a skaters that it would cost them a $100 fine if they used the park without wearing a helmet. 

We climbed back in the police car and over the radio, heard detectives calling for a high risk traffic stop of a man wanted for multiple robberies. The suspect was considered armed and dangerous. It turned out we were two blocks away and in the right place to get behind the suspect's car to make the traffic stop. As my partner accelerated up the street to intercept the bad guy, my mind raced to remember the steps for making a high risk stop. I'm thinking, "Wait a minute! I am not supposed to be in the lead car on a high risk stop!"

We followed the suspect onto a highway and pulled him over. I took my position at the passenger side door as other officers arrived to assist. After everyone got in their positions, I asked for a patrol officer to switch places with me and I headed to the back what was now a long line of police vehicles. In the rear with the gear! The suspect gave up without any resistance. 

It was great to be part of arresting a dangerous felon. It was also a bit unsettling to be the first unit to make the stop especially when I had not done that for a few years. (Ok, a lot of years.) What happened to a leisurely lunch and  a some friendly warnings for minor crimes? My action days were long over, or so I thought.

The Bible is full of stories about how God called people to action and their initial response was, "Who me?" That statement was usually followed by a litany of reasons of why they couldn't possibly go where God was calling them and why it would not work. God's response, "YES YOU! NOW GO!" Here are a few examples from scripture.

In Exodus 3, God called Moses by getting his attention with a burning bush but was not consumed by the fire. God told Moses he would lead Israel out of Egypt. Moses' response, "I am nobody, how can I go to the King and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" God's response, "YES YOU! NOW GO!" (He led a nation out of bondage.) 

In Judges 6, the Lord came to a man named Gideon and told him he would lead Israel against the nation of Midian. His argued that he was from the weakest clan and he was the least in his father's house.  God's response, "YES YOU! NOW GO!" (He would beat the Midian army with 300 men.)  

The Lord called Jonah (Chapter 1) to go to Nineveh and call the city of thousands to repentance. Jonah ran away. God's response; he sent a fish, swallowed him whole and delivered him to the shores of the city. "YES YOU! NOW GO!" (The people of Nineveh repented and come back to faith.)

I think that these guys were committed to following God. They worked hard, were good fathers and husbands, and lived a life committed to following the Commandments. They did not expect to be called to do something amazing and hesitated when God showed up. If God showed up and told you to go, how would you respond?

Our work lives can be filled with the same old thing day in and day out. We can get lost in meetings, e-mails, phone calls, projects, task lists and text messages missing out on a call to act. It might not be to lead a nation out of bondage, fight a war with a few hundred soldiers, preach repentance to a city or arrest a wanted felon; but it may very well lead to changing someone's life by offering compassion, forgiveness and grace. When prompted by God to reach out, speak out or step over a boat railing and walk on water, will you say, "Who me?" God will likely respond with,  "YES YOU! NOW GO!"

Cracked Pottery

Isaiah 46:8, "O Lord, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand."

How many items of cracked pottery do you own? Long forgotten terracotta containers in a garden shed, a backyard or garage. Broken over the years but not so much to throw away. I have a clay fire place that I burn wood in once in awhile. Over the years, the continuous heating and cooling of the clay caused cracks to appear. You might call it character, but it will be only a matter of time before it breaks apart. Yet when the fire roars it looks so cool! The flame shoots through the spaces and I don't pay much attention to the brokenness of the container.

Cops see a lot of brokenness in the course of a career. Stuff that stays with you long after an arrest is made, a case is investigated or a body is mended. I can testify to the fact that there is evil in this world and we live in total depravity. More often than not, total depravity links directly to the abuse of drugs and alcohol. It makes no difference if a person is a homeless alcoholic or a teenager addicted to drugs, the effects of abuse become evident over time with every arrest or failed attempt at sobriety. The damage inflicted is greater than what is done to a human body, it destroys relationships; separates us from friends, family and God. Yet even in the darkness of addiction, healing can happen and a spark can ignite the fire of a human soul.

One afternoon, I was using a radar gun down the street from a school and caught a guy driving well over the posted speed limit. The man pulled over and when I got to the driver's side window, the distinctive smell of marijuana wafted from the car. I told the guy I stopped him for speeding and he was more then willing to admit his poor driving. Anything  to take the focus off of the blue haze floating out of his car window. I asked to see his driver's license, registration and proof of insurance. After he handed everything over, I told him, "Now give me the rest of the marijuana you were smoking."

After a moment of surprise and a fleeting attempt to deny he was smoking pot, he handed over a small plastic bag with what was left of the green, leafy substance. I searched his car and noticed a key chain with a trinket shaped like a Tupperware bowl. It was the small white pebble inside that got my attention. It was cocaine. The guy was arrested and went to jail. I managed to turn a traffic infraction into a felony arrest. A good days work.

Months passed and the following year on July 4th, I was walking a foot patrol through a beachside parking lot when a man I did not recognize called to me from a rather nice, fifth wheel camper. It was the man I arrested. He told me that it was because I caught him that he turned his life around. Taking me by the arm, he brought me over to his RV and introduced me to his family. He announced with joy that I was the cop that helped him stopped using drugs. He insisted I sit with him and eat. He was a new man. The scars remained but a light of peace shined in his eyes.

"The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life."  Job 33:4

I don't know if this man was a believer, but I do know that when the Spirit of God dwells in you, people don't see the imperfections of our exteriors, they see Jesus. It is through our brokenness that God's grace shines through. We are created by God and when filled with the Holy Spirit, it is that light that shines though through the cracks. As the grace and mercy of the Holy Spirit grows in our hearts, the old pottery falls away and people see who we are intended to be in Christ.

Consider the words of 2 Corinthians 4:7-11 and 16-18:

"But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed - always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh."

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal."

The Big Show

Daniel 1:8, "But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way."

The Big Show is a term used in professional baseball when a player makes the roster of a major league team. Only one in 200 high school ball players will ever get this chance. If you were able to accomplish one Big Show moment, what would it be? A promotion? A successfully negotiated contract? A lifetime achievement award? For me, my selection to Deputy Police Chief with only fifteen years of experience was one of those moments.

What if achieving a Big Show moment meant you had to compromise your faith? This blog post tells the story of Terry Davis. Terry is a Christian who did not compromise when his Big Show moment was within reach. He stood in the dugout of success looking out at a major league field. His name was on the roster, it was his turn to bat, the bases were loaded and he was going to hit a grand slam. God told him to leave the dugout and go to the parking lot. Terry obeyed.

Terry is the CEO of Tri-California Events, Inc. (Tri-California) He was the marketing, special events and tourism director with the County of Monterey and started the Wildflower Triathlon in 1983. In 1994, Terry accepted Christ as his Lord and Savior and started an event management company with his wife Betsy. In 2000, the Lymphoma Society asked Terry to develop and manage a marathon event to raise money for cancer research. At this point in his career, he was a AAA minor league organizer but that all changed when Nike decided to be the major sponsor of the event. Nike guaranteed that the Lymphoma Society would receive $3,000,000 a year as a major sponsor. The venue for the marathon was in the San Francisco/Bay Area. Terry would become a major league player in the event management world. Many are called, few are chosen.

Planning began in earnest. Terry worked with vendors, government organizations and Nike executives to build an event to exceed everyone's expectations. In the middle of getting all the pieces in place, he received an e-mail from the Nike marketing group wanting to put a female twist on the event naming it the Nike Goddess Marathon. Terry read the message and his heart stopped cold. This was a sports event to help people with lymphoma and a woman battling cancer does not feel like a goddess.

Terry had invested a lot of time and energy into planning the event and knew this would change the course of his career. Yet Terry was a Christian first. He followed the one, true God; not a Greek deity.  Terry said, "My God doesn't want me to work for a goddess." He sent an e-mail recommending Nike to change the name of the event with all his reasons. Nike reps responded and indicted they were going to keep the name.

Terry told God that he wanted to do the event. God told him no. He sent a letter to Nike respectfully stepping down as race director; explaining his concerns about the name of the event and that as a Christian, he would not compromise his faith. He wrote that he would assist with the transition to a different event organizer. He was at peace.

In the weeks that followed, Terry visited all of the people, government agencies and vendors explaining why he stepped down. He shared the faith he had in Christ and people could not believe he would walk away from the money, the prestige and the fame.  Terry listed to God not the world.  Three weeks later, Nike marketing dropped Goddess from the event name, seemingly agreeing with Terry it was not a good choice of a title. It was renamed the Nike Women’s Marathon.

This was not the end of the story. Three months after the race, Nike would ask Terry back to organize the 2001 event. Without Goddess in the name, Terry was comfortable that he could honor God with the event.  He has done so ever since. Standing firm in faith allowed Terry to share the hope he has in Christ with countless people. 

 

There is no compromise, we are called to share our faith and incorporate it into our business lives. With each opportunity to tell people about the meaning of the resurrection of Christ, we chip away at the stone of unbelief. Terry continues to sow seeds of faith in the triathlon marathon and event business community witnessing and helping people to become totally committed to Jesus Christ along the way.

Where is God calling you to step out in faith in your workplace?
 

+++

On January 8, 2013, Terry lost his oldest son Nick in a solo motorcycle accident at Westmont College.  This post is in the memory of Nick Davis. Pray for Terry and his family that they are comforted as they deal with the loss of Nick.  For more information  go to nickdavismemories.com .

And then there was Sunday.

This week I attended the memorial service for Detective Sergeant Butch Baker and Detective Elizabeth Butler. Two Santa Cruz Police Officers gunned down last week by a suspect in a misdemeanor sexual assault case. 7,000 people representing countless law enforcement offices, fire departments, politicians and community members gathered at the HP Pavilion in San Jose to remember the lost, comfort the living and to be encouraged in faith.

 
Butch leaves behind a wife, two daughters and a son. He was months from retirement after serving over thirty years as a police officer. His son is just beginning his career as a Santa Cruz Police Officer and now follows in his father's footsteps. I watched this young man bury his head in his white gloved hands as a recording of a dispatcher called his dad's radio call sign three times with no response. It ended with the dispatcher broadcasting, "Detective Sergeant Loran "Butch" Baker, end of watch February 26, 2013." My heart was broken.

Elizabeth leaves behind her partner and father of their two small boys. Her five-year-old son wore his mother's police hat during the service. His father brought him to the stage and asked him if he wanted to say hi to the crowd. A small voice simply said, "Hi." My heart was broken again.

The best story of the day was about when Elizabeth got her first search warrant. Guided by a senior detective, Elizabeth wrote her probable cause for the warrant, got it reviewed by a member of the District Attorney's Office and found a judge who was willing to sign off on the document. She waited in the back of a courtroom until the judge called her into his chambers. The judge, a very thorough and serious man, read through the warrant and raised his right hand so Elizabeth could attest to the information it contained. Elizabeth, in turn, gave the judge a high five! The judge had a look of surprise and shock, the senior detective was horrified and Elizabeth stood there with a big grin on her face, pumped that the judge shared her enthusiasm and triumph!

This was, unfortunately, one of only a few moments of laughter in what I can only describe as a terrible day. The pastor officiating the service closed the memorial by commenting on how the tragedy of the past ten days is reflective of what happened on Good Friday. As Elizabeth and Butch were murdered by an evil man, so Christ was put to death on a cross by evil people who conspired and plotted against him. All innocents; all murdered; leaving us to question why bad things happen to good people. And then there was Sunday...

In the darkness of grief, loss and confusion; a light shined on Easter Sunday. Jesus Christ was resurrected. Raised from the dead, triumphing over evil. It is in this resurrection that we find hope. That all things will be renewed and loved ones lost through death will be reunited. It is in this hope that healing begins.

The service ended and three columns of law enforcement and fire personnel lined the street for blocks to say a final goodbye to Butch and Elizabeth. Taps sounded in the distance and we stood at attention as Butch and Elizabeth, the families and the entire Santa Cruz Police Department left the arena in silence. Only the sound of first responder helicopters flying over in tribute was heard.

It is my prayer that both Butch and Elizabeth will meet Jesus face to face. This time, Elizabeth will high five Jesus not because she has to take an oath, but because both Jesus and Elizabeth share the enthusiasm and triumph of conquering death and knowing peace that surpasses all understanding.

Pray with me that their families and colleagues left behind will find comfort from the loved ones that surround them and that the Holy Spirit will guide them to find peace in the midst of suffering.

"Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always preserves." 1 Corinthians 13:7

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." Matthew 5:4

A Soldier's Story

1 John 1:7, "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin."

I am truly blessed to be part of a fellowship of men who serve in the U.S. military. All are officers representing each branch of the armed services. I am amused that the same ribbing between  the police and fire professions exists between the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines (when they can keep up of course). Our group gathers every Thursday for lunch at the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) in Monterey to talk about a passage from scripture, to share about our journey of faith and to encourage each other as husbands and fathers. For me, it is one of the most connected fellowships of men I have ever experienced.

This blog post is about how the group began. It is a story about what happens when you ask God to grow your faith and to realize that how He answers is never exactly what you expect. This is a story about Chu. 

Matthew 7:7, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you."

Chu is a man after God's heart. He reads scripture daily, is the father to two young sons and is a committed husband. He attends Shoreline Community Church weekly, sitting in the second row of the stadium seats, stage right. I spotted Chu one particular Sunday when I was singing on the worship team. He was not hard to miss as I looked out at the congregation. He is built like a linebacker and takes up three seats during worship because he extends his arms wide to receive the blessing of music. He totally engages in worship and the Holy Spirit prompted me to introduce myself and invite him to join the choir. 

Shoreline Community Church is a big congregation and it took a few weeks before I was able to move through the crowd and catch up to him. I suppose it was not very fair to my "new friend" that a stranger would walk right up to him after church, introduce himself and say, "I really think you should sing in the church choir!" Chu was understandably caught off guard. His wife was not. She began to laugh and gave him the, "So what are you waiting for?" look.

He turned me down flat.

Jonah 1:3, "But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord."

It is true that he tried to run but not before I found out that he was a student at NPS. The Holy Spirit was not going to take "no" for an answer so I went to Plan B. 

"No problem. I am starting a men's bible study at NPS and you can help me lead the group! When can we get together for lunch?"

It is important to understand that Chu was praying for God to give him an opportunity to get more involved at church. I showed up the day after he knocked on God's door. Like Jonah before him, Chu stopped resisting and agreed to be part of the group. And so what started with two guys meeting for lunch turned into a group of 12 men laughing together at the absurdities of the life, holding each other accountable and walking together as brothers in Christ.

Chu asked, God answered. I was seeking fellowship and I found Chu. Chu knocked, I opened the door.

In two months, Chu will graduate from NPS and along with him Chris, Josh, Ray and Ken. They will leave Monterey and continue their military serve throughout the world to keep us safe and to protect our freedoms. More importantly, they will go out as Christians; men of faith to shine the light in this dark world. My heart is full of sadness that our adventure of faith is going to end. I will continue to pray for them even though we will no longer join together each Thursday at high noon.

Luke 10:1-2, "After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.'"

What is God calling you to do? Who is he prompting you to reach out to and fellowship with?

The Second Mile

Everyone has a detractor; a person who works to undermine your efforts. It might be a peer who gossips about you. Bosses who use their influence to impact your career negatively. A partner who takes credit for your work or manipulates circumstances to make you look like the problem. The Bible is filled with stories of people (and groups of people) who stood against men and women of faith.

Ezra (Chapters 3 and 4) chronicles the effort by the Nation of Israel to rebuild the temple of God following the Babylonian captivity. They had a great start and at moment they placed the final stone in the foundation; God’s people made such a loud, joyful noise that is could be heard for miles. Others living in the region were not so joyful. In fact, they went out of their way to make Israel stop the project from completion. “Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building. They bribed officials to work against them and frustrate their plans during the entire reign of Cyrus king of Persia and down to the reign of Darius king of Persia.” (Ezra 4:4-5) They managed to delay the project for 16 years!

Consider Joseph (Genesis 38, 39-41), a man blessed by God and yet sold into slavery by his brothers, accused of sexual assault by Pharaoh’s wife, and left to rot in prison. Joseph would sit in custody for years and yet, in spite of the jealousy and scheming of many, he would later be the number 2 man in Egypt. He would use his management skills to save Egypt, his family and the people of Israel from famine.

Many years ago, I worked for a supervisor who micromanaged and challenged every decision I made. He spun everything to his advantage. If there was a success, it was due to his leadership and skill. If there was a failure, it was someone else’s fault. He was politically savvy and willing to act in his own best interest regardless of how it impacted his rivals or subordinates. The best option for me was to be out of the office but my job required me to work from a desk. To escape this king (notice the lower case k), I made a deal with a local motel owner where drug dealing and other street crimes were the norm. The owner let me set up a room as my office. I could plug into the internet via an Ethernet cable (no Wi-Fi back then) and get stuff done. Call it an early version of a sub-station. I got a place to work in peace and he had a cop car in his parking lot. Criminal activity slowed down in the neighborhood…imagine that.

One toxic leader or co-worker can devastate individuals and teams. The higher they go in an organization, the more negatively that will impact a workplace. It becomes difficult to be positive, to work hard and to do your job when there is little appreciation for what you do. There were times in my professional life when I figured out what I made a minute and watched a clock as a method to cope with a toxic workplace. And yet…

It occurred to me one day that God might be calling me to be that last hope for a toxic co-worker to experience forgiveness and mercy. Jesus makes this crystal clear in Matthew 5:38-42, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.”

These are very difficult words when the “enemy” is in the next cubicle. A thorn in your side that you interact with 40 hours a week, 160 hours a month, 2,080 hours a year (give or take vacation, sick or holiday time off). God called Moses to stand before Pharaoh, Paul before the Sanhedrin and you before a toxic person at work. One axiom my father always reminded me of when I was frustrated was this, “Your employer owes you a paycheck; you owe your employer a good day’s work.”

If you are in a tough working environment consider this: Your employer owes you a paycheck; you owe your employer a grace day’s work. What is a grace day’s work? It means to do your job not only to exceed the standards and expectations of your position but to do your job beyond what is expected or anticipated even when it’s “just not fair”. It is to be patient and kind; to not be envious; to eliminate pride and boasting about your work; not to be angry or keep a record of wrongs; to protect; to trust; to hope. In this way, you will be a testimony of the grace God gave to you when He died on the cross and for you to become a light in this dark world. It may be that it is your work testimony that leads your boss to salvation.

My God bless you in this New Year and may He show you the wonders of His creation in your workplace.

Keep the Merry, Dump the Myth

Each year around Christmas, people who do not believe that Christ is the Son of God spend money on advertizing denying the birth of Christ the Savior. This year is no exception as this bill board is up in New York’s Times Square. I do find it ironic the American Atheists use a Saint as a symbol of their unbelief! The fact is that people began dismissing Jesus’ authority as the Christ 2,000 years ago.  

Matthew 13: 54-59, “Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed, ‘Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?’ they asked. ‘Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, ‘A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.’ And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.”  

Christmas offers a great opportunity to share what you believe beyond the presents, the tree and the eggnog. Throughout the Book of Acts, the Disciples of Christ shared their faith with kings, priests, lawyers and politicians. They did not mince words or tell people what they wanted to hear. They were guided by the Holy Spirit and spoke the truth of the Scriptures. Consider Philip, who shared the Gospel with an Ethiopian official returning from a faith sojourn (Acts 8); or Stephen, who spoke before the Sanhedrin, the ruling council of the Israelites (Acts 7) and finally, Paul explaining grace to kings and their courts (Acts 25). 1 Peter 3:13 says that we should, “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” I was called to give an answer to someone that I never believed gave a thought about matters of faith. 

When police officers work with partners, it is generally as part of a specialized team like detectives or special enforcement unit. One of my first partners was one of the best cops I ever worked with and yet as abrasive as an insult comic. I worked with Jim for over a year. He was an old school, street cop. If he was a journeyman officer, I was the apprentice. I can say that I learned the craft of policing from Jim. However, beyond the street cop expertise, Jim was difficult to be around. He was brash and irreverent. He was more likely to tell you to jump off a cliff (using very different words) than to show compassion. He exploited any weakness or shortcoming for his personal amusement. You did not want to be the target of his course jesting. There were some long days riding around in the police car together. When it came to faith, Jim relied on himself. He knew I was a believer and if the subject came up at all, it was usually because Jim was giving me a hard time. 

One December night, we were driving in downtown Santa Barbara and drove past the Paradise Bookstore. Jim turned on a side street and parked. He didn’t say a word but left me sitting in the passenger seat and went into the business. I waited a few minutes, got irritated that he was shopping and followed him into the store. I found Jim standing in the checkout line holding a set of books titled The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. Now this was weird. C.S. Lewis is considered one of the most accomplished Christian writers of the 20th Century. The Chronicles of Narnia is a children’s series of seven books that centers on the character of Aslan the Lion. Aslan is representative of Jesus Christ. What would Jim be doing buying this particular set of books? 

I walked up and stood next to Jim and commented, “So you are buying The Chronicles of Narnia?” 

“Yeah, so.” 

“Well, The Chronicles of Narnia is a Christian allegory. If you read those books, you might become a Christian.”

Since we were in the checkout line of a crowded bookstore, Jim told me what he thought under his breath and I left the store smiling. It was not very often I got one over on Jim. We got back in the car and resumed patrolling the streets. After a few minutes, Jim says, “So what is Christianity all about anyway?” 

I was stunned. Here was a guy who went out of his way to ridicule and demean me almost daily. He was now asking me about what I believed. I thought for a moment about how to respond. Ok, fine. I figured that he would let me have it when I was done so I would hold nothing back. 

“You want to know what Christianity is all about Jim? Here it is…” 

I started with Adam and Eve and talked about the fall of man. I talked about the consequences of sin and how we are separated from God. I told him about Israel, the Exodus, the Ten Commandments, the prophets, the birth of Jesus. I described the crucifixion and the meaning of this final sacrifice. He listened to story of the resurrection and the meaning of grace. I ended by telling him that we all have a choice and that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We will all be judged and without salvation we risk going to hell. I held nothing back and presented Christianity from a cop’s perspective: Who, What, When, Where, Why, How. I stopped talking and waited. 

After a few moments Jim said, “I haven’t done anything wrong.”  

I said in a matter of fact tone, “Yes you have,” reminding him of something he did do wrong. Something few people knew about, but it was known nonetheless. He knew it too. It got quiet in the car after that. We never spoke again about faith. He would continue to be crass and rude in the days that followed, but there was a change in that Jim stopped mocking me for what I believed.