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The "thin blue line" covered by the blood of Christ. |
Praising God that, despite some typos that I've now fixed, this week's newsletter and
Father's Day Bible study made it out in time for the holiday. That said, wishing all my fellow dad's a blessed Father's Day. Sadly (and I'm with you here), some of us will be kicking ourselves today for a plethora of reasons. Just know that God has a Word (and "the Answer") for you on this subject -- scroll down!
On the local front (meaning in this case our FCPO-Aurora "cop church" fellowship), our own APD Officer Matt Springer will begin teaching a new Bible study through 2 Corinthians starting this Thursday (Calvary Aurora, High School Room, 7 PM): bring your spouses, invite a colleague and join us. Yes, we are also still working through the Book of Acts as well...stay tuned for more on that as well.
Let's get home safe from our shifts while being radically bold in Christ -- a part of which can include
sharing these newsletters/Bible studies with others
while also being the courageous fathers God has called us to be (impossible unless we are living under the power of the Holy Spirit).
Again, have a blessed Father's Day!
MC
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RESOURCES
PRAYER REQUESTS
(1) With his permission, I'm asking that we be in prayer for fellow cop, author and former FCPO board member, Mike Dye. On July 5th, Mike will undergo robotic open heart surgery to correct an inherited condition. Please lift Mike in prayer for a successful surgery and recovery.
(2)
Our own CSP Trooper Andrew (Stranges) and his bride-to-be, Michelle Bruni, will "tie the knot" this Friday. Pray for them...and include a word for me as well -- that I will do a good job officiating their ceremony!
(3) Oregon State Trooper
Anthony Bettencourt covets your prayers as he deals with the persecution for having the audacity <sigh> to live his faith in the work place. Our brother has obtained able counsel (praise God).
(4) All of us who are father's need your prayers!
Have a prayer request or announcement you would like included here? Need prayer?
Email me
! I also post prayer requests on my Facebook page ("friend" me).
UPCOMING EVENTS
(1) As you know, writing and teaching on leadership (and SERVANT-leadership in particular) in law enforcement is a big part of what I do both in ministry and "on the job." Accordingly, I give strong support to Law Officer editor, friend, and fellow cop/law enforcement instructor, Travis Yates' latest seminar,
Courageous Leadership
.
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The Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
The Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
is a FCPO-affiliated, evangelical Christian outreach to our own in law enforcement. These newsletters and Bible studies are part of this effort and past editions can be found on our
website
and on social media
(
Facebook
and
Twitter
)
pages. Feel free to adapt these messages for your own individual or group use and please share them with others.
In addition, I regularly speak at both law enforcement and civilian conferences and events around the country -- please shoot me an email if I can be of service to your church, agency or organization.
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Fellowship of Christian Peace Officers
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FCPO-USA exists to provide biblical support ("backup"), accountability and iron sharpens iron fellowship to Christian officers first in the U.S. and throughout the world as well. My chapter -- FCPO #217/-((FCPO Metro Denver and Aurora), typically meets every 2nd and 4th Thursday at Calvary Aurora (High School Room, 7 PM) for "cop church" Bible study, prayer and servant-warrior fellowship
. Spouses are both welcome and encouraged to attend with their LEO! Our next meeting is set for THIS Thursday, June 22nd.
Information on the other
FCPO chapters
meeting around the country (including the new chapter here in Arvada, CO) can be found on the
Chapter Locator
pages on the
FCPO-USA
website.
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God, Cops, Fathers and Father's Day
Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, 'Father, give me my share of the estate.' So he divided his property between them." --
Luke 15:11-12
All of us who do or will carry the title "father" are a work in process -- none perfect, no not one (a paraphrase of Romans 3:10-12). In my unsaved, "BC" days, I failed miserably as a father (no small amount of sin there). Especially for those of us serving in law enforcement, being a good father is even tougher. Praise God (the ultimate Father -- "Abba" -- literally "daddy"), He is not only our main role model but He is most certainly able to restore and heal where we've fallen short if we will but place our whole trust in Him.
In Luke 15, Jesus describes a man with two sons. Like the rest of us, this dad was not perfect and made mistakes with his kids. No doubt he tried to do the best with what he had but the pressure of raising two very different boys was real and raw. One day he faced the challenge of how to respond to the disrespectful demand of his youngest son. His solution was to give both boys their inheritance, knowing they were unlikely to be ready. The result? The younger squandered his gifts while the oldest grew self-righteous and bitter. Praise God, what looked like a major parenting blunder turned out to be a decision that brought the youngest back to the Lord. The lesson (well, part of it anyway)? Imperfect fathers must trust the Lord to bring about His perfect plan.
"For a son dishonors his father... But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me
."
Do you feel overwhelmed with your responsibilities as a dad? The day in and day out energy it takes to love and lead your little ones takes much more out of you than you ever imagined. Feel like you've failed? One thing is for certain: you can't be your best without learning from the best. Alone you may be a better father than some, but with the help of others you can become a better dad than most. So, invite two or three other dads for coffee and Bible study on biblical parenting and biblical fatherhood. Get involved with the men's ministry at your church (yes fellow officer, we need to be in church as our schedules allow). Start discipling (mentoring) a young dad. Set the tone by being vulnerable about your own insecurities and failings as a dad. Imperfect fathers learn both from other imperfect fathers AND the most perfect Father of all.
Above all, as imperfect earthly fathers we must lean into our perfect heavenly Father. He takes our best efforts and carries out His will. He takes our mistakes and teaches us humility. He takes our weaknesses and makes us strong in Him. Our imperfections are not an excuse to plateau as a parent. We keep learning. We ask forgiveness from our child. We pray with our child. We play with our child. When we are honest about our fears and struggles we create an environment of open communication. Fathers fail when they quit, but they succeed when they stay engaged with their kids and with Christ. Fatherhood is not for the faint of heart, but it is for a heart of faith.
"As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him." Psalm 103:13
Prayer
: "Heavenly Father, please help me be the father you've called me to be and keep me in the process of receiving your perfect love and grace."
See also: Proverbs 23:24 and 30:11; Luke 11:11; 1 Corinthians 4:15; Ephesians 6:4
The bottom line? It is ONLY by being Holy Spirit-led and Holy Spirit-filled that we can come close to being the father's God has called us to be, and it is ONLY by being being born again in Him that we are able to receive the Holy Spirit. Do you have that? Think God can't fix what you (we) have lost as a father? Trust Him and watch what happens! Consider the following:
(1) Jesus' first words in His earthly ministry were: "
Repent and believe in the Good News
" (
Mark 1:15
). There's that word again! To
repent
is a "180" -- a complete, radical change of mind and heart as it relates our sin. To
believe
as God intends it to
completely and radically surrender to Him in
faith
("believe" and "faith" have the same Greek root meaning) in the same way you have faith that your body armor will stop the rounds it is designed to stop or that a skydiver's parachute will open (we stake our lives on it)! Moreover, the words repent and believe are literally two sides of the same coin in meaning and intent (see the "Are you really a Christian" link below for more). For more on this, Pastor Ed Taylor's message on repentance is excellent: What is Repentance?
(2) As noted in
John 3:1-21, Jesus said, "...
you must be born again." Note our Lord's emphasis on
must (not "may" or "should"): this is the
life-saving/life-changing personal relationship (not "religion") with Christ that I stress so often. See
What does it mean to be a born again Christian.
Then see:
(a) Take the
Good Person Test
and see how you do (as shown in this study, you can't ever be "good" enough without Christ). Then go to...
With that, let me close by again sharing the final scene in the film
Courageous that comes with a question: "
Where are you, men of courage?" Where indeed!
Need prayer or more info? Feel free to
contact me!
MC
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