MC
Showing posts with label sheepdog. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sheepdog. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 20, 2019
Wednesday, June 27, 2018
A Cop's (Warrior's) Father's Day
This study is applicable to not only those of us serving in law enforcement but father's in general: A Cop's (Warrior/Sheepdog) Father's Day. Pass it on.
MC
MC
Thursday, August 31, 2017
Blessed are the Meek?
Here's last week's newsletter and Bible study if you need it for reference, not yet on our email list or following on social media. There is a reason for the "?" at the end of the "Blessed are the Meek" (and this passage might not mean what you think it does). Blessings! Blessed are the Meek?
MC
MC
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
The Warrior's Path
Greetings, fellow Sheepdogs!
MEETING UPDATE for our Front Range locals and visitors:
We’re “on” tomorrow (Thursday, November 19) for our regular time of “sheepdog” fellowship, profession-relevant Bible study and prayer starting at 1900 hours at Calvary South Denver in Littleton . Plan on meeting in classroom #7 unless our "old" room is free. I’ll have highlights of the FCPO National Conference and we'll discuss what makes us “different” in terms of our calling both in law enforcement AND as Christian officers/leaders. Our “path” is indeed that of a warrior (aka Col. Grossman’s “sheepdog” analogy). Spouses are encouraged to attend!
As always, I’ll post a recap with scriptural references for our readers all over the country and world as part of next week’s newsletter. Stay tuned!
I sent everyone a copy of Ten-Four Ministries latest newsletter in a previous email but, while I have them linked on our website (left-hand column), the information is important enough to include the information again in this format. Check it out: http://thecenturionpapers.blogspot.com/2009/11/truth-is-what-matters.html. Great stuff!
FCPO NATIONAL CONFERENCE RECAP:
As most of you know by now, I had the honour of teaching all three days at the recent Fellowship of Christian Peace Officers (FCPO) national conference at Glen Eyrie in Colorado Springs . The Centurion Law Enforcement Fellowship (TCLEF) was well-represented at the conference and our own Matt Wallenburg did an awesome job leading worship -- "thanks Brother" (and check out the new pic at the bottom of this page)! I was also asked to serve on the FCPO National Board of Directors -- truly an honour. The Glen Eyrie grounds are spectacular and God blessed us with great weather -- although some of you “flat-landers” struggled with the altitude – LOL. We had outstanding fellowship and the testimonies shared by fellow officers from all over the country were amazing and moving! TCLEF is but one cog in what we envision as a growing world-wide network of Christian outreaches to criminal justice personnel and their families. I’m also excited to see us affiliated and active with FCPO, POFCI, Ten-Four and other similar Christian law enforcement ministries. Please keep us in prayer as we “run to the battle” in this vital area of ministry.
My first teaching of the conference weekend was on prayer -- and praying in accordance with God’s will in particular. Interestingly enough (God has a unique sense of humor), I received the answer to something important that I had been praying and striving for just moments before I was to speak. Diana and I had prayed that God would manifest His will in this endeavor but His answer, a “NO” (or perhaps “wait), was in fact tough to take. That said, a big part of our walk as Christians is TRUSTING Him to give us only what is in accordance with His PERFECT plan for our lives instead of only seeking our own way. It is this type of “surrender” that is a foundation of what it means to really TRUST Christ as our Lord & Savior. The concept is especially hard for cops but essential nevertheless. I should also point out that this same spirit of “surrender” meant having to spend much of the night changing my pre-prepared messages from what I had planned to what our Lord wanted me to say!
That said, how CAN we be sure we are praying in accordance with God’s will? The Bible gives us clear answers to the question. 1 John 5:14-15 tells us, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to HIS WILL, he hears us. And if we know that He hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of Him.”
The trustworthy website http://www.gotquestions.org/ does a great job of summarizing this and related questions for personal study and reflection: http://www.gotquestions.org/praying-will-of-God.html. The related links at the bottom of the same webpage, along with http://www.gotquestions.org/questions_prayer.html, provide additional biblically sound information on prayer in general. Bottom line is that prayer is how we fellowship and communicate with God, is vital to our development as Christians, and is most certainly a cornerstone of this ministry. In fact, our Father tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to “Pray without ceasing.” Please take the time to check out what God’s Word has to say on the subject. Pray – and pray some more!
TRAINING:
This week’s training post comes to us from http://www.policeone.com/. They’ve provided a really great case law update (short/concise): http://www.policeone.com/legal/articles/1964272-12-Supreme-Court-cases-affecting-cops/. Take the time to stay up-to-date and ready to rock out there.
Don’t forget your spiritual training, physical fitness, nutrition, defensive tactics, firearms, etc. Think Sheepdogs – not sheep!
PRAYER REQUESTS (As always, send me your prayer requests and we'll include them here as appropriate.):
(1) A Colorado PD sergeant is asking that we pray for his newborn son who has been hospitalized with some very serious medical issues.
(2) Continue to keep Denver PD Officer Allison Casias in prayer (spiritual and physical). Allison has been moved to a rehab facility and is showing progress (praise God)! Sign up for regular updates and/or share messages of encouragement at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/allisoncasias/journal.
(3) Mahnomen County (MN) Dep. Chris Dewey continues to recover from his latest major surgery at Swedish Hospital in Englewood . Pray for continued recovery and that he can be moved back to Craig Rehab Hospital ASAP. His wife Emily covets your prayers as well. Follow Chris’s progress at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/chrisdewey.
(4) We’ve had a slew of Colorado State Patrol troopers seriously injured in traffic-related incidents this past week. Please keep them in prayer.
(5) Pray for a GJPD crime analyst who is dealing with some serious/ongoing cancer issues (healing, strength, etc.).
(6) Pray for a GJPD officer who, after the FCPO conference, is being led to start a LEO Bible study/fellowship group in Grand Junction. Way to lead and obey, my Brother!
(7) Pray for a dear relative – that he would come to have a deep, “full-on” relationship with Christ and would walk forward and away from the issues that he has allowed to hold him back.
(8) Let’s keep Fort Hood Police Department Sgt. Kimberly Munley, her FHPD colleagues, the injured, and the families and friends of those killed, in prayer. This sister reportedly did an outstanding “sheepdog” job!
(9) Pray for a brother officer dealing with some serious financial issues.
Finally, we need to be in prayer reference the new/upcoming film being produced by Sherwood Baptist Church in Georgia (of Fireproof and Facing the Giants fame). Courageous will center around four sheriff’s deputies dealing with work, fatherhood and family issues. This is EXACTLY the kind of project we need to support! Check out the movie website for more: http://www.courageousthemovie.com/. Stay tuned for more…
Hope to see you Thursday!
MEETING UPDATE for our Front Range locals and visitors:
We’re “on” tomorrow (Thursday, November 19) for our regular time of “sheepdog” fellowship, profession-relevant Bible study and prayer starting at 1900 hours at Calvary South Denver in Littleton . Plan on meeting in classroom #7 unless our "old" room is free. I’ll have highlights of the FCPO National Conference and we'll discuss what makes us “different” in terms of our calling both in law enforcement AND as Christian officers/leaders. Our “path” is indeed that of a warrior (aka Col. Grossman’s “sheepdog” analogy). Spouses are encouraged to attend!
As always, I’ll post a recap with scriptural references for our readers all over the country and world as part of next week’s newsletter. Stay tuned!
I sent everyone a copy of Ten-Four Ministries latest newsletter in a previous email but, while I have them linked on our website (left-hand column), the information is important enough to include the information again in this format. Check it out: http://thecenturionpapers.blogspot.com/2009/11/truth-is-what-matters.html. Great stuff!
FCPO NATIONAL CONFERENCE RECAP:
As most of you know by now, I had the honour of teaching all three days at the recent Fellowship of Christian Peace Officers (FCPO) national conference at Glen Eyrie in Colorado Springs . The Centurion Law Enforcement Fellowship (TCLEF) was well-represented at the conference and our own Matt Wallenburg did an awesome job leading worship -- "thanks Brother" (and check out the new pic at the bottom of this page)! I was also asked to serve on the FCPO National Board of Directors -- truly an honour. The Glen Eyrie grounds are spectacular and God blessed us with great weather -- although some of you “flat-landers” struggled with the altitude – LOL. We had outstanding fellowship and the testimonies shared by fellow officers from all over the country were amazing and moving! TCLEF is but one cog in what we envision as a growing world-wide network of Christian outreaches to criminal justice personnel and their families. I’m also excited to see us affiliated and active with FCPO, POFCI, Ten-Four and other similar Christian law enforcement ministries. Please keep us in prayer as we “run to the battle” in this vital area of ministry.
My first teaching of the conference weekend was on prayer -- and praying in accordance with God’s will in particular. Interestingly enough (God has a unique sense of humor), I received the answer to something important that I had been praying and striving for just moments before I was to speak. Diana and I had prayed that God would manifest His will in this endeavor but His answer, a “NO” (or perhaps “wait), was in fact tough to take. That said, a big part of our walk as Christians is TRUSTING Him to give us only what is in accordance with His PERFECT plan for our lives instead of only seeking our own way. It is this type of “surrender” that is a foundation of what it means to really TRUST Christ as our Lord & Savior. The concept is especially hard for cops but essential nevertheless. I should also point out that this same spirit of “surrender” meant having to spend much of the night changing my pre-prepared messages from what I had planned to what our Lord wanted me to say!
That said, how CAN we be sure we are praying in accordance with God’s will? The Bible gives us clear answers to the question. 1 John 5:14-15 tells us, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to HIS WILL, he hears us. And if we know that He hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of Him.”
The trustworthy website http://www.gotquestions.org/ does a great job of summarizing this and related questions for personal study and reflection: http://www.gotquestions.org/praying-will-of-God.html. The related links at the bottom of the same webpage, along with http://www.gotquestions.org/questions_prayer.html, provide additional biblically sound information on prayer in general. Bottom line is that prayer is how we fellowship and communicate with God, is vital to our development as Christians, and is most certainly a cornerstone of this ministry. In fact, our Father tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to “Pray without ceasing.” Please take the time to check out what God’s Word has to say on the subject. Pray – and pray some more!
TRAINING:
This week’s training post comes to us from http://www.policeone.com/. They’ve provided a really great case law update (short/concise): http://www.policeone.com/legal/articles/1964272-12-Supreme-Court-cases-affecting-cops/. Take the time to stay up-to-date and ready to rock out there.
Don’t forget your spiritual training, physical fitness, nutrition, defensive tactics, firearms, etc. Think Sheepdogs – not sheep!
PRAYER REQUESTS (As always, send me your prayer requests and we'll include them here as appropriate.):
(1) A Colorado PD sergeant is asking that we pray for his newborn son who has been hospitalized with some very serious medical issues.
(2) Continue to keep Denver PD Officer Allison Casias in prayer (spiritual and physical). Allison has been moved to a rehab facility and is showing progress (praise God)! Sign up for regular updates and/or share messages of encouragement at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/allisoncasias/journal.
(3) Mahnomen County (MN) Dep. Chris Dewey continues to recover from his latest major surgery at Swedish Hospital in Englewood . Pray for continued recovery and that he can be moved back to Craig Rehab Hospital ASAP. His wife Emily covets your prayers as well. Follow Chris’s progress at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/chrisdewey.
(4) We’ve had a slew of Colorado State Patrol troopers seriously injured in traffic-related incidents this past week. Please keep them in prayer.
(5) Pray for a GJPD crime analyst who is dealing with some serious/ongoing cancer issues (healing, strength, etc.).
(6) Pray for a GJPD officer who, after the FCPO conference, is being led to start a LEO Bible study/fellowship group in Grand Junction. Way to lead and obey, my Brother!
(7) Pray for a dear relative – that he would come to have a deep, “full-on” relationship with Christ and would walk forward and away from the issues that he has allowed to hold him back.
(8) Let’s keep Fort Hood Police Department Sgt. Kimberly Munley, her FHPD colleagues, the injured, and the families and friends of those killed, in prayer. This sister reportedly did an outstanding “sheepdog” job!
(9) Pray for a brother officer dealing with some serious financial issues.
Finally, we need to be in prayer reference the new/upcoming film being produced by Sherwood Baptist Church in Georgia (of Fireproof and Facing the Giants fame). Courageous will center around four sheriff’s deputies dealing with work, fatherhood and family issues. This is EXACTLY the kind of project we need to support! Check out the movie website for more: http://www.courageousthemovie.com/. Stay tuned for more…
Hope to see you Thursday!
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