Briefing: Not everybody is cut out to be a Law Enforcement Officer. Police Officers don’t follow the crowd. When shots are fired and people are running away from the danger, cops are running towards it. We talk different, we act different, we think different? We Are Different.

Dispatch (Assignment): How are you different? Read Matthew 7:13-14.

On the Street: There is a sign in our workout room that reads, “If it were easy, this room would be full”.

Growing up, my dad used to tell me, “Son, if something sounds too good to be true, then it probably is”. We all know this to be the case, yet time and time again, we see people falling for the easy way out, the get rich scam and the short cut. I could go on and on. You practice like you play but first you have to practice. Hard work pays off in the end. Do the work up front and enjoy the benefits later.

Christ does not call us to what is easy but what is worthy. Most LEOs have some kind of retirement, a reward for years of hard work. I look at my life here on Earth the same way. I need to put in the hard work for Christ now so that when I am finished (death), I will have a retirement (heaven). Maybe that’s why Ephesians 6:7-8 says, “Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.”

We have to go against the grain; we have to live our lives in such a way that people know we are different than the world. We live for someone greater than ourselves. Growing up, I was blessed to listen to Pastor Ron Horton preach messages that I have fallen back on all my life. I remember him asking this question during a sermon, “Have you run into Satan today? If not, you may be going in the same direction.”

The brave men and women I work with have no problem rushing into places where everyone is fleeing. I want that same courage and bravery demonstrated in my Christian life. I want to be courageous for Jesus.

Highlights from this Read: Jesus is the gate (John 10:7-10) and the shepherd. We know His voice and follow Him.

Investigational Resources: In 1 Corinthians 16, Paul instructs the Corinthians about serving. Mark 8:34-35 and Matthew 10:38 are passages in which Jesus tells us to take up our cross and follow Him. John 10:7-10 explains that Jesus is the gate.

Officer Safety Principle: We have to make a conscious decision to live contrary to this world; to live for Jesus Christ. We have to live in such a way that we meet Satan head on.

from The Gospel of Matthew Through the Eyes of a Cop
©by Charles Gilliland. Used by permission.
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