Our neck of the woods has the sun shining down, not very warm, mid-50’s but nice to see anyway.  Wind, however, makes it a bit more uncomfortable, especially when the sun ducks behind a cloud.

Had a stress test this morning.  Still feeling the after affects.  They didn’t have to go as high as I had when I last had it done, but it was high enough – actually, as far as I was concerned, quite high enough and then some.

If I had felt the pressure I did at the height of the test at home, we would have headed to ER.  Heart is doing fine, but it definitely didn’t appreciate the speed with which it was expected to go and stay for a bit.

Still a bit of uncomfortableness about my chest, however, I took an afternoon check on my readings and my heart rate was the lowest it has been since I started battling A-fib.  It was in my ‘old’ normal range.  We will see how long that lasts.

It took me a few moments to recognize the tech.  She did a procedure on me back in 2013.  Nice woman, Christian and conservative. 

Her daughter, 18, goes to college this fall in Salem on an athletic scholarship.  She is already missing her and having difficulty adjusting as she plans for graduation, etc.

So we shared some of those feelings.  Told her my feelings when Vicki went to college and then when Ken went into the Corps.  The rest of the kids are close by, so even though they left the nest we see them often, and the loss, while heavy, wasn’t as great.  -  That is until Steven, Celinda and CeeCee moved to Kirkland so he could finish school, and the emotions work their way up again. 

I told her I feel sorry for my son, my granddaughter is graduating this year and she too will be heading off to college.  Wendy will feel the pangs too, can’t be helped, but Ken will feel it more like his Dad did, I think. 

It took me a while, but I finely realized when these things come about what we are feeling is a grieving process; not unlike the death of a loved one; not as deep, of course since we have communications with them.  However, our lives change and it can be hard on us.

I shared my experience of seeing the sun shining in all corners of the Gorge as we passed Mosier coming home from dropping Ken off.  God is watching over them and there is no where they go that they are out of the sight of our Lord.  (‘course it brought tears to my eyes, as those memories always do.)

As my mother-in-love told me, it doesn’t get any easier; and, as all too frequently, she was right.

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 “Just as a servant knows that he must first obey his master in all things, so the surrender to an implicit and unquestionable obedience must become the essential characteristic of our lives.”  Andrew Murray

Romans 5:6-7 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

⁷ For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.

⁸ But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Earlier this year one of the Secret Service Agents basically said she would not take a bullet for the President.

It is rather doubtful she is still working that detail – or any other for that matter since their primary duty is protecting the President and his family.

They do this out of respect for the Office not necessarily the man.  They are sworn to do this, it is their job.  If it means that they have to go into harm’s way they must do it.

Every police officer basically takes the same oath – they must defend the innocent, even if it means putting their own life on the line.

They don’t get to choose who deserves it or not, who the victim is, what the crime is, they must do their job.

Many good officers have resigned their commissions because they cannot fulfill that duty.

A police officer sees the dregs of society every single day.  He sees the worst in people, he can become calloused and as a protection from having to continuing to walk through that mire mentally, he seeks avenues of relieving the horror he sees.

It not only can, but will change their lives forever, even if they leave the profession after a short time.  It is very difficult to erase those scenes from their lives.

A very good officer, a man I spent many months training and working with, realized he was taking his frustrations out on his wife and kids, he chose to leave the profession and do something else.  

Others, unfortunately men and women, had to go through divorce because they were unable to cope with the stress of the job and the stress of being a spouse and parent and not letting the job interfere with their family.  

Others turn to alcohol, or even drugs undermining their health and their careers, not to mention their family life.

Those that have activities outside the department, where they can put things in better prospective have a better chance of going through their career without succumbing to the all too frequent us vs the world mentality and becoming indifferent to the plights of others.

When I first came on the department I had a senior officer tell me that the only friend I will have is another police officer – a police officer is the only person that will have my back.

I didn’t believe that then and I don’t believe it now.  Part of that is because Christ is my Lord and I have fellowship with other Christians that reinforce God’s hand in my life.

From my observations, the officers that did have a personal relationship with Christ were more able to make the proper adjustments.  Not that they (or me) are perfect, but they have a confidence within that only Christ can give.

Being a Police Officer, for most of us, is a calling and something we do as a service, not only to the public, but to God. 

And, yes, many officers do go through their career doing well, without that relationship, but most of them do have outside interests.

Being an officer is not being able to turn the job off when we go off work.  We carry what we know, what we see and how we do things with us for the rest of our lives.  It is in our blood, but it can be properly balanced with being able to work with others and seeing them as friends, not potential ‘enemies.’

But the bottom line is WE can make our own decisions.  If we find we cannot protect those that need protection - that they are not worth giving up our life over, we can quit.

But while in uniform we must be obedient to the laws of our jurisdiction and enforce them, even if it means putting our lives on the line for someone we do not like.

Christ could not make that choice.  He couldn’t choose to say, I will save these people, but not these.  While He came to the Jews first, walked with them and taught them using the scriptures to show them He was the Messiah, he didn’t die just for them.  He died for every sinner, no matter how vile, that would bow before Him and accept His sacrifice as the cleansing from sin.

Christ was obedient to God the Father even to His death.  It was not the way He chose to die, we know that He asked not to die, but “not My will but Thine be done.”

Every Christian, not just the police officer, has an obligation to Christ.  For some it is to teach, preach, become missionaries, or some other similar “full-time” profession.

For the rest of us, it is being obedient to God in spreading His gospel, to obeying the Holy Spirit as he guides us in our work for Him.  It doesn’t matter if He leads us to the poorest of the poor, or the richest of the rich – we must obey, just as Christ obeyed.

By the acceptance of God’s gift to us, we owe Him total allegiance and servitude.  It is a life time commitment.

The alternative is disobeying God and placing our own salvation on the line. 

Lord, please give me the wisdom and courage to do what You tell me to do as a willing servant; obeying even onto death.

Later, Art (-: