Are you "Above & Beyond" or "Retired on Duty?"

This past week was typical of what seems to be a recurring pattern of extremely busy schedules, making due with less, and ongoing officer-involved incidents for which your prayer support is both coveted and essential. That said, let’s not forget our priorities: God first, family second, and THEN “the job.”

First off (for our locals and visitors), we will meet as scheduled this Thursday (8/27) starting at 1900 for profession-relevant fellowship, prayer, and Bible study. See below for details.

As we continue to make ourselves more obedient and available to God, He in turn is taking this ministry in directions I had not previously envisioned. Here are just a couple of examples:

(1) It was never the intent of Centurion Ministry meetings to take the place of regular worship at your church. That said, LEO schedules are such that, for some who attend our meetings, it may be the only time they can gather for Christian fellowship and teaching. Accordingly, God has recently provided us with some outstanding live worship music to open our meetings with. An out-of-state visitor recently brought his guitar and led us in a couple of songs and now officer-candidate Matt Wallenburg, who also plays guitar and leads worship for our church’s Tuesday night service, is doing the same on a regular basis. Depending on Matt’s availability, the plan will be to open our meetings with a couple of contemporary worship songs to lift us up and get us in the right frame of mind to hear God’s word and message.
(2) We are coming along side our wounded brother and sister officers who come to Craig Hospital (a nationally-acclaimed rehabilitation facility) in Englewood and other locations in the Front Range (in addition to “being there” in prayer and support throughout the country).

I continue to seek God’s direction for our ministry and am excited to see where He will take us. Don’t forget to “pass the word” to others!


LAST MEETING RECAP:

Last week’s study was outstanding as we took the opportunity to share testimonies and stories of what Christ has done/is doing in the lives of law enforcement personnel and their families. We also concluded our look at how we as Christian officers should be acting towards our supervisors/superiors – REGARDLESS of how THEY are behaving. Our Scripture passage was Ephesians 6:6-7: Not with eye service, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord and not to men. David, in Psalm 18:29, provides us with a great example of someone who was not a complainer or “retired on duty.” David was a “then some” man after God’s own heart (meaning he was proactive, got after it, and made things happen). So who becomes a “mighty man” on the job, in the church and for the Kingdom? The one who hears the heart of his employer. The “world” says, ‘Skate by. Leave early. Cover up.’ But God, who sees all, says, "I’m looking for men and women who, with good cheer, enthusiasm, and singleness of heart respect those in position over them with fear and trembling." This is not an easy command in light of what often passes for “leadership” within the law enforcement profession. However, it is a command nevertheless. In the end, perhaps the only way we can be obedient to this directive is to seek God’s grace and help. Trust that He is faithful to give it. Let’s continue to ask God to give us that grace while at the same time changing the hearts of those above us.


NEXT MEETING PREVIEW:

This week I’ll teach on the importance of fellowship with other Christians and why God directs us to do so. In brief, we’ll give biblical reasons as to why we can’t simply be “lone rangers” in our walk with Christ. We’ll also have “round 2” of officer testimonies (this is YOUR time to share) along with worship and prayer. Hope you can join us!


UPDATES on our wounded brothers:

(1) Jefferson County (CO) Investigator Art Peterson has improved enough to be moved out of ICU and up to a regular room at Swedish. I brought him a peace officer’s Bible this weekend but the nursing staff have asked that those wishing to visit please call ahead. I have their direct number – call or email me if you wish to visit and I’ll pass-on the information. Art has some very serious injuries and his road to recovery will be tough to say the least – let’s keep our brother and his family in prayer. I did get an email from Denver PD Cpl. Dan Andrews that he was on his way home when he came upon the scene and stopped to help lift the truck off of Art. That Art was able to get a shot off while pinned under the stolen truck and stop the driver/suspect before she could inflict more damage or hurt others is a testament to his training, conditioning and fortitude. Outstanding!
(2) Both Densey Cole (Chicago PD) and Chris Dewey (Mahnomen County S.O) are back in rehab. We are still on schedule for their benefit BBQ on September 5th (see website and previous newsletters for details).
(3) Englewood PD Officer Jason Pearson was injured while pursuing an armed gunman last Saturday. Jason’s new black & white took quite a hit (see photo at bottom of website) but he still managed to get out and assist his fellow officer in apprehending the suspect. Jason was subsequently hospitalized for a time but is now home recovering. Please pray for a full recovery and that his superiors will back him as they should.
(4) I received word that Arvada Detective Bill Johnson has been released from the hospital after surgery for cancer. He is able to have visitors and receive calls – shoot me an email and I’ll provide the “411.”


TCM PLANNING CALENDAR:

(1) Regular meeting: Thursday, August 27th, 1900 hours, Calvary South Denver in Littleton.
(2) Benefit BBQ for Densey and Chris: Saturday, September 5th in Englewood. See website for details. Please bring your families and join us (should be a hoot).
(3) Regular meeting: Thursday, September 10th, 1900 hours, Calvary South Denver in Littleton.
(4) "Blue Mass": Saturday, September 12th, 1630 hours, 1530 Logan in Denver. Sworn personnel are requested to attend in uniform and you don’t have to be Catholic to attend and this is an opportunity to honor our brother/sister officers who "gave all."
(5) Regular meeting: Thursday, September 17th, 1900 hours, Calvary South Denver in Littleton. (6) NO MEETING on Thursday, September 24th.


PRAYER REQUESTS:

(1) Fellow State Investigator Mitch Lovett has been activated and deployed to the Middle East with his Navy Reserve unit. Pray for his safety as he goes into harm’s way for us.
(2) Continue to pray for our wounded brother officers and their families. If you are local or visiting, consider taking the time to pay them a visit.
(3) Pray for the success of the benefit for Chris and Densey. This is gearing up to be a HUGE event.
(4) Mike Jones, husband of TCM regular Michelle Jones, is suffering from a rare and potentially fatal (and painful) medical condition. Please lift this brother in prayer.
(5) Retired Canadian officer and current FCPO liaison David Greenhalgh is currently in Kenya ministering to police officers in that impoverished nation. He was scheduled to leave this week but has extended another month! David covets your prayers (safety, etc.) and can add you to his mailing list if you would like to be updated on his mission there. Email him at motorcop@gmail.com for more info. We would certainly complain less if we understood what our brother officers in “Third World” countries deal with on a daily basis!

Until next week (unless we see you Thursday)…stay safe and pass it on!