What Goes Around

I was riding with an officer named Bill several years ago. Late into the second shift, he was called to the report of a burglary. Sure enough, bad guys had broken into a repair shop and stolen tools. The witness said they fled along a set of railroad tracks behind the shop.

Bill radioed for Brian and his partner Merlin. Well, Merlin wasn’t exactly a partner. Merlin was a huge Rottweiler. He picked up the trail and led us along the tracks, then across a small creek and up a steep hill.

The hill was every bit of 30 feet (this was in West Virginia) and wooded. I dropped back and let the officers and Merlin get well ahead of me. If someone jumped up from under a rock or out from behind a tree, I didn’t want to be in the middle of it, in the dark on a steep hill.

Merlin lost the track in about the middle of the hill. Brian began to call-out: “Police Department. Show yourselves now or I will release the dog.” I didn’t like that. He shouted again, louder. I liked it less.

Merlin was a good dog – while he was on his leash. Off the leash, Merlin was unpredictable. Unpredictable and mean. I was far enough behind the officers that, if the dog circled around and came from behind me, he might assume I was a bad guy and bite me where my mamma used to swat me.

Brian did not release the dog. Turned out he did not trust him either.

We didn’t get the bad guys that night. The officers later learned from informants that they slipped into the nearby apartment of a friend. They were eventually arrested.

But there is a reminder here. An undisciplined life is much like an undisciplined dog. There may come a time that it will come from behind and bite you.

The Apostle Paul teaches us in 2 Timothy 1:7

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

911 Hang-Out

I did 5 hours of training for new Fort Wayne Police Dept. Chaplains today. We talked about being safe while riding with an officer, responding to a crisis and making a death notification.

I told stories. But they were not very happy stories. At one point, as I told about responding to the scene where an SUV turned over and the driver was partially ejected, one of our youngest Chaplains leaned back in his chair, threw up his hands and said, “Whoa.”

But law enforcement Chaplaincy is not all trouble and heartache.

I was riding with officer Mike Perisak in Haltom City, Texas several years ago. Officers there and in Fort Wayne respond to every 911 call. Even when people dial 911 and just hang-up.

We responded to a 911 hang-up and a young man answered the door. Mike asked, “What’s going on?” The young man said nothing. Mike said, “We’re coming in.” The young man said, “No, you’re not,” and started to close the door.

Mike pushed against the door and entered the apartment. Yes, that would have been illegal, but Mike saw roaches. Not bugs, but the ends of marijuana cigarettes on a coffee table. Enough to give him cause to enter the residence.

Here is the back story: Four young men were hanging-out smoking a little weed. The resident stepped into the bathroom. One of his friends decided to leave, but before he did, he dialed 911 and hung-up.

His host was given a ticket that cost him over $100 in fines for possession of paraphernalia.

With friends like that …

Buford and Me

In my last blog I wrote about going to Gulfport, Mississippi to minister to Gulfport Police officers as a Chaplain following Hurricane Katrina. I told about meeting Officer Aaron Fore and Buford.

While I was on patrol with Aaron, he was dispatched to retrieve a stolen car. The report was that a black Chevrolet Suburban had been taken from a dealership. The SUV contained a GPS device that pinpointed its location.

We went to the address, spotted the Suburban and parked four houses away and waited for backup. The backup was one other officer.

Things had been hairy for nearly three weeks at this point. Aaron and his co-workers had been dealing with looters and armed robbers at an incredible rate. He would have liked to have more backup. All he had was me.

When we got out of the car, Aaron opened the trunk and took out Buford. (You may see a photo of Aaron and Buford in my last blog.) He showed me the switch to change between a single shot and a burst of three shots for each pull of the trigger on the .223 caliber H&K MP5. He set it to a single shot.

Then he handed me the assault rifle. I have shot rifles, shotguns and handguns. This was my first assault rifle. I held it the way I had seen Aaron hold it. It felt good. It felt awkward. Still, awkward was better than standing there in the street with my hands in my pockets.

Aaron told me to stay with the car, but be ready to back him up if anything happened.

Nothing happened.

The vehicle had been legitimately purchased the day before. The owner produced the paperwork. Evidently, in all the confusion following the storm, someone forgot to remove the GPS device.

It was disappointing to have to put the rifle back in the trunk.

I have experienced many such situations, as a Chaplain, as a minister, as a son, as a husband, and as a man. Feeling good and feeling awkward at the same time. Ready for something to happen. Hoping nothing will happen. Disappointed when nothing happened.

The Apostle Paul teaches us in Romans 5:5 that “hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”

When we hope in our power, our strength, our cunning or in someone else, we will so often be disappointed. When we hope in God, the God who “poured out his love into our hearts” we are not disappointed.

Buford

In my last blog, I promised to tell some stories.

Because I am a member of the International Conference of Police Chaplains and am included on their disaster response team, I was invited to go to Gulfport following Hurricane Katrina to work with police officers there. One of the officers I had the opportunity to get acquainted with was Aaron Fore.

In Aaron I saw a very sharp contrast in responses. Although the wind topped 100 miles an hour, it was the 35 foot tall wall of water that did most of the damage in Gulfport. Aaron told me that at his house the water was 29 feet deep. There were 13 feet of water on top of his house. He and his wife lost everything.

Aaron worked long shifts every day for weeks. In the days immediately following the hurricane, he and his fellow officers worked bravely to stop looters.

Dealing with looters, in the aftermath of a hurricane, when there is no electrical power, is not simple. Aaron told me he began carrying the H&K MP5 assault rifle the department issued him every time he got out of his car. He found he got a lot more respect when Buford was with him.

He told me the story about naming his rifle. He said he was spending a lot more time with his rifle than he was with his wife, so he thought it ought to have a name. He chose the name in honor of the Sheriff in the movie Walking Tall. Buford T. Pusser got respect and so did his automatic rifle.

Several Gulfport officers told me they encountered people coming out of a Wal-Mart with food and diapers they had not paid for because although the store was not locked, there was no power and the registers did not work. The officers did not prevent those people from taking what they really needed to survive.

However, from the same store, they encountered people with shopping carts loaded with televisions, DVD players, cameras and other electronics. Those people went to jail.

In my next blog, I’ll tell about the report of a stolen car Aaron and I responded to.

Telling Stories

Donna and I participated in the International Conference of Police Chaplains annual training seminar last week. It was one of the best I have attended.

One of the reasons I enjoyed it so much was that I was a presenter. I was invited to lead a 2 day seminar titled Pastoral Crisis Intervention. I love to teach, I am enthralled with the topic and I am invigorated by law enforcement Chaplains.

The material was developed by and I was trained by the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation (ICISF.) The experts in Psychotraumatology (a word coined by Dr. George Everly) present the basic principles. ICISF has worked for decades with people coping with the symptoms of stress caused by trauma.

This particular material welds together psychological principles and the unique ministry we bring as pastors.

What I bring to the training are my stories.

Stories have a remarkable power.

The principles assembled from the research, data, surveys and studies are foundational. But they don’t mean much in their raw form. People attending the training want to know this stuff really works.

In 24 years of pastoral ministry and 10 years of law enforcement Chaplain experience, I have put these principles to work. When someone teaches me, I appreciate the benefit of his practical experience.

I always hear good response to stories. More importantly, my most influential mentor is a story teller. Jesus tells phenomenal stories.

Please continue to visit my blog. I’ll tell some stories.

The Vice-President

I am always proud of Donna. That was especially true as she stood on stage before nearly 800 people to be sworn-in as the vice-president of the International Conference of Police Chaplains Auxiliary last week in Indianapolis.

There are nearly 3,000 members in the International Conference of Police Chaplains (ICPC). Almost 500 Chaplains attended the Annual Training Seminar last week. More than 70 attended the Auxiliary activities.

Donna’s sweet disposition and genuine concern for others made her both a natural and popular choice for VP.

The Auxiliary provides very significant ministry to the spouses of the Chaplains. These spouses are often left with half-eaten meals, interrupted plans and an empty place in the bed in the middle of the night as their “other half” races off to the scene of someone else’s tragedy.

To encourage and strengthen one another, they have daily devotions, workshops and fun outings at the Annual Training Seminar.

Through the ICPC Auxiliary, Donna has found another way to exercise her very special ministry.

Working Together

My wife, Donna, and I just returned from the International Conference of Police Chaplains annual training seminar. I have forged very good friends with several people at this training over the past several years.

When we arrived in Indianapolis, I hugged my friend Dan, who is Lutheran. I hugged my friend Colin, who is Jewish. I hugged my friend Rickey, who is Baptist. And I hugged my friend Wesley, who is – well he is Wesley.

There were male and female Chaplains there from six countries – USA, Canada, Ireland, South Africa, Kenya and Jamaica.

For four and a half days we set aside our gender, race, theological and all other differences to work together to help each other meet the emotional and spiritual needs of law enforcement officers.

Two weeks before, I was in Louisville for the North American Christian Convention. For four days we talked about one issue that keeps followers of Jesus Christ from working together. People who don’t use musical instruments in worship won’t work with people who do. People who do use musical instruments in worship won’t work with people who don’t.

I came away from the two conferences baffled. How is it that some followers of Jesus can overcome huge obstacles in order to provide ministry? How is it that other followers of Jesus cannot overcome minor disagreements to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ to a dying world? Why do we grumble that we can’t work with someone who worships with a guitar or his hands raised or blue carpet in the church building?

I know it doesn’t sound profound and probably isn’t original, but maybe if we hugged. If we opened our clenched fists to shake hands; if we open our crossed arms to embrace; if we set aside our rhetoric to talk to each other we might discover we can work together.

A Ray of Sunshine

I was making some neighborly talk with a married couple today about the weather. I asked if they were out to enjoy the sunshine today. It was a gorgeous day. Warm but not hot. A gentle breeze blowing.

She had been outdoors with some small children playing in the fresh air. She asked if I had been outside. I gleefully admitted that I had been.

I was less gleeful about where I was while soaking up the rays.

There was no traffic on the residential street where we were standing. And several of us knew each other. But there wasn’t much time to chat; not even about the weather.

A 27 year old man lay dead in a vacant lot just a few yards. Our city’s 12^th homicide of the year took the breeze out of our sail.

I have told a family member of the death of a loved one more than 50 times. It is one of the roles of a Police Chaplain. It isn’t easy. It is emotionally and physically draining.

Yet, there is a ray of sunshine to it. I was able to offer some comfort to some people who were in terrible distress. I offered more than the police officer with me could. He had some information about times and places. And that helps.

I was in a position to offer some quiet words, a hug and a prayer. Perhaps that ministry was even a ray of sunshine to some people in a very dark place.

A Ray of Sunshine

I was making some neighborly talk with a married couple today about the weather. I asked if they were out to enjoy the sunshine today. It was a gorgeous day. Warm but not hot. A gentle breeze blowing.

She had been outdoors with some small children playing in the fresh air. She asked if I had been outside. I gleefully admitted that I had been.

I was less gleeful about where I was while soaking up the rays.

There was no traffic on the residential street where we were standing. And several of us knew each other. But there wasn’t much time to chat; not even about the weather.

A 27 year old man lay dead in a vacant lot just a few yards. Our city’s 12^th homicide of the year took the breeze out of our sail.

I have told a family member of the death of a loved one more than 50 times. It is one of the roles of a Police Chaplain. It isn’t easy. It is emotionally and physically draining.

Yet, there is a ray of sunshine to it. I was able to offer some comfort to some people who were in terrible distress. I offered more than the police officer with me could. He had some information about times and places. And that helps.

I was in a position to offer some quiet words, a hug and a prayer. Perhaps that ministry was even a ray of sunshine to some people in a very dark place.

A Day in the Sun

Shortly before 2:30 last Sunday afternoon, a car pulled out in front of a motorcycle on St. Joe Center Road. An otherwise warm summer afternoon turned tragic.

As of this writing, the motorcycle rider is in critical condition.

Shortly after arriving at the scene, I was directed to the young woman who was driving the car. I spoke to her for a few moments and offered a little comfort and some encouragement.

The majority of the time I invested at the scene was with officers. The girl had family to support her and my ministry is primarily to officers. We chatted and I met some people for the first time.

Then I performed what might have been my most significant ministry of the day. On a Sunday, after teaching and preaching, after having people hug me and tell me the sermon was stirring, my most significant ministry might have been to walk to a Walgreens and buy a dozen bottles of water.

The officers who were interviewing witnesses, directing traffic and taking photos of the aftermath were very grateful to get the water.

I am taking the statement of Jesus a little out of context to apply it here, but I could not help but remember what the Savior said:

“If anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward.” (Matthew 10:42)

Family Gatherings

Donna and I went to her dad’s family reunion today. The event was at the park in Redkey, Indiana. 53 people attended, which seems pretty good for the packed schedules most people keep today.

It was refreshing. As a Police Chaplain, I have had very good training, mostly from officers I was with while they were on patrol. They have taught me some very good lessons about personal safety.

Today there were no pressures. No need to peek around corners or watch what people were doing with their hands.

Officers on patrol don’t like to have the people around them put their hands in their pockets; too many possibilities lurking in there. Not once today did I hear anyone say, “Keep your hands out of your pockets.” (My mother used to tell me that and not to slouch -- but that was different.)

Times to relax and unwind are so valuable. The Scripture teaches us that.

Acts 3:19 says, “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.” We usually think about other people who need to repent of adultery, murder or bad fashion. Have you considered repenting of your packed schedule in order to enjoy a time of refreshing from the Lord?

I’m glad I did.

By the Grace of God

As I look between the camera and radar, I realize that as my experience with law enforcement brings balance to my life and ministry. Still, I need to keep all things in balance.

I often hear officers quote the television character Berretta. The tough guy cop often said, “Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time.” Not bad advice. Law enforcement is about justice. We should have justice.

Our God is just. He does what is right. At the same time, is love and grace.

This evening at Lake James Christian Assembly, I spoke to the 8^th & 9^th grade campers about a sinful woman who came to Jesus. She came to express her love by pouring perfume on him and washing his feet with her tears.

The by-standers wanted justice. Our just God had other intentions.

Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven." (Luke 7:48)

I think the campers benefited from learning about God’s grace. We had 12 decisions out of 50 campers. Four want to follow Christ and be baptized; eight committed themselves to full-time Christian service.

It is my prayer that the reminder is a benefit to you, as well.

Wear Your Own Clothes

I am at Lake James Christian Assembly with kids entering grades 8 & 9. I’m having a great time! I am the evening chapel speaker and I get to sleep an air conditioned room all by myself.

Yesterday I ate breakfast at a table with a girl in a yellow sweatshirt. There were names and such written all over it, even on the hood. I asked, “Did you friends sign your shirt on the last day of school?”

She looked at me blearily and said, “Huh?” (Cut her some slack. It was breakfast on Tuesday and she was already short on sleep.) Then she said, “Oh, no.” Pause. “It’s not my shirt. I borrowed it from a girl in my dorm.”

Kids at camp do that. We did when we were kids. It was cool.

Cool for campers. But maybe not so good for everyday life. In my sermon tonight, I warned the campers that when faced with a challenge they need to be genuine. Even as a young man, David understood that.

As he was going to face Goliath, King Saul wanted to put his own armor on David.

"I cannot go in these," he said to Saul, "because I am not used to them." So he took them off. Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd's bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine. (1 Samuel 17:39-40)

David fought Goliath just as he was – a simple shepherd boy who depended on God.

When we are faced with challenges, we will do well to follow David’s example. Be who you are. Be the best you are. Go with God.

My Version of a Children's Story

There is a trend in our culture that says, “Everyone is good, there is no evil.”

I told the 13 & 14 year olds at camp a story that illustrates that philosophy.

For nearly ten years, I have been a volunteer police Chaplain. Among the things that I do as a Chaplain is occasionally ride with officers on patrol. Several years ago I was with an officer in the suburb of Fort Worth, Texas, where we lived at the time.

The officer stopped a vehicle that caught her attention because it turned off a major street into a residential neighborhood without a turn signal and much too fast for a street with houses.

The car pulled over and the officer went to talk with a young man who was about 19 or 20. He could not produce a driver’s license and his registration sticker was expired. After running a check, the officer discovered the reason he could not produce a license was that it had been revoked.

A word to the wise: if you get caught driving revoked, you will go to jail. So after the young man was out of the car and handcuffed, the officer asked him if he had anything in his pockets she should know about; stuff like guns, knives, a bazooka. He said no, nothing like that, but he did have a little pot.

A little pot turned out to be two quart-sized zip-locks stuffed with marijuana. After he was stuffed into the back seat of the cruiser he said, “I don’t know why you’re doing this to me. I’m really a good person.”

Can someone cheat by not paying to register his car, violate a court order by driving revoked, carry enough of a controlled substance for it to be a felony and still be basically a good person?

Jesus had something to say about that.

Matthew 7:17-20

¹⁷Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. ¹⁹Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

Plenty of Time

Looking at the world between the camera and radar devices on the windshield of a police patrol car has shaped me. I have seen the world from a different perspective. In many ways, the changes have been positive. My education is broader, my experiences varied and my skills refined.

At the same time, I have realized from the first few months that I began to volunteer as a Police Chaplain that not all of the changes were good. For example, although I am more aware of my surroundings, I am less trusting. Although I still have empathy for people, I am more skeptical.

I am at church camp this week at Lake James Christian Assembly, near Angola, Indiana, with kids going into grades 8 & 9. Lee Bracey is in charge of the program for the week. Lee was a “dorm dad” when I was here for a week when I was in Jr. High.

It has been great working with Lee. He has been a real help. He is bringing some balance to my lopsided attitudes. Lee is the Executive Director of the Woodburn Christian Children’s Home. He loves and understands children.

In response to some wisecrack I made, Lee said something profound. Get a pen, you will want to write this down. “They have plenty of time to develop their own bitterness.”

His point is, we need to fill the hearts and minds of the young people we encounter with hope for the future. They will have many opportunities to choose attitudes of joy or bitterness. Our role is fill them with enthusiasm and optimism for their future.

Please Lock Them

Here is a simple reminder.

Donna’s great-niece came to stay with us last night. It is so wonderful being near family again. Donna and Stephanie were going to visit Stephanie’s great-grandmother today.

Stephanie is a wonderful child. At 10 she is a genuine joy. Happy, helpful, trustworthy. She has never gotten into anything at our home and always asks if she wants something.

Still, before she arrived, I put locks in our guns.

We don’t frequently have children in the house and we like having the option of effective home defense. So, it was a hassle and took a few minutes.

Stephanie would never rummage around in my sock drawer or reach up on a high self in Aunt Donna’s closet. But we always lock the guns.

Just a reminder.

My Friend Dan

Dan Coffey was the Sr. Chaplain for the Fort Wayne Police Department for 13 years. I met him last September when I started talking to the leadership of Christ's Hope Ministries and Church about being their Sr. Minister. I contacted Dan because I wanted to continue serving as a Police Chaplain.

Dan is a very gracious person. He was excited about the prospect of having someone new join the team. He is a natural encourager. We worked well together, accomplished some projects, made some plans and had lots of laughs.

In mid-April, Dan left us to be the full-time Chaplain for the Indiana State Police. It was a great opportunity for Dan and his family. It is a really good move for the ISP.

I could write several pages about all that Dan did and the sacrifices he and his family made for FWPD. However, I think I can summarize it better this way:

As I introduce myself to one of the 400 sworn officers of FWPD, I put on my most winning smile, stick out my hand and say, “Hi, I’m Erick Riddle.” This is usually accepted with a well practice, but genial, glare. I continue to identify myself with my title: “The Chief recently appointed me to be the new Sr. Chaplain.” The glare softens. The officer shifts his/her gaze. Sometimes there is an inarticulate grunting sound.

I soon realized I needed some help to “win friends and influence people.”

Now I add, “I’m taking Dan Coffey’s place!”

The first time I said that, I felt what a Las Vegas slot machine player must feel. The officer’s eyes flashed like strobe lights and he began making very happy sounds. The litany usually begins with, “Oh yeah, Chaplain Coffey. He’s a great guy. I like him.” And it usually concludes with them looking at my size 9 Rockports and saying, “You’ve got some really big shoes to fill!”

So - Dan, have a great time with the ISP. Continue to do great ministry with wonderful people. May God bless you. And please – be careful where you leave your footprints. Someone will be following you.

It’s the Little Things

The Fort Wayne Police Department is blessed with a great liaison officer. Tom Rhoades is always available when I need something and works really hard to make the Chaplain program a success.

He returned a phone call to me to day just as I pulled up to a substation. We talked about our business and then he offered some encouragement. He told me he had been hearing good things about my ministry with the department. He talked to some people I had ridden with on patrol. A Deputy Chief mentioned to him that he liked the results of a project I had completed.

He just wanted to pass that along.

That meant a great deal. It was especially meaningful because I am new with this department and still trying to learn my way around. Police officers are not generally trusting people and it is often challenging to be accepted in their ranks.

I wanted to post this because it was a really good thing for me. I also want to encourage you to encourage someone today. Simply comment on something in a positive way. Tell someone he or she is doing a good job. Say thank you.

Encouragement is fun to receive and to give!

Sharing the Joy

I wish I could bottle what was on those two faces Friday night. They were so excited about what they had seen, heard and learned.

Two young men in our congregation want to pursue careers in law enforcement. One just finished his first year in a college criminal justice program and the other leaves next month for the Army.

Austin witnessed two arrests and Adam was in a high speed pursuit. They want to ride again and are even more determined to seek careers in law enforcement.

It is invigorating to be around young people who are excited about learning and the future.

Looking at the world between a camera and a radar for ten years has tinted that vision I once had. I still want to minister to officers and learn from them. I don’t look forward to high speed chases anymore, but I am a little bit of “an adrenaline junkie.” I still look forward to the future, yet I’m a little concerned about the road that will take me there.

Where’s The Justice

My pager sounded at 1:30 AM on Sunday. A southbound driver was struck by a vehicle that ran a westbound stop sign. The southbound driver was probably killed on impact. Preliminary investigation indicated the southbound driver was intoxicated. He was also unharmed.

Someone at the scene said something like: “Once again the drunk walks away and an innocent person dies. Where’s the justice?”

A conversation illuminated only by the halogen flood lights of a fire truck is not the best situation to launch into a theological diatribe. I tried to offer the assurance that in God’s time there will be ultimate justice.

The good people working the scene nodded in polite agreement. They had probably heard the explanations about the Fall of Man and cursing of the ground recorded in Genesis 3. They could probably recite from childhood Sunday School classes or a Star Wars movie that in the end good triumphs over evil. I suppose I might have pulled out my pocket New Testament and read a few verses about the sovereignty of God.

Later, just a few minutes before 4:00 A.M., I was standing on a dark porch, pounding on a stranger’s door, trying to plan how I would tell him someone he love died on the side of the road just a few miles away.

At that moment, reason, logic and theology did not mean much. I’m not sure which drowned it out. The boom of pounding on the door or the silence of a stilled heart.