Category: Salvation


  • Shelter

    Shelter

    ,

    The rural crossroad is only a mile long. Yet two tornados struck this road in one day. I have never  seen separate tornados hit the same spot within a matter of hours. Yet here we were.  We responded after the first tornado destroyed a mobile home. While we checked for victims, another tornado arrived. After…

  • Seeing Clearly

    Seeing Clearly

    Being off duty doesn’t always exempt me from strange encounters. One night while driving in a light rain, I noticed an old lady in front of me having difficulty keeping her car in the lane. As we continued down the highway, her driving became progressively worse.     Suddenly, her car veered onto the median. She drove right…

  • Searching

    Searching

    In the 1990s, during the crack epidemic, we often searched vacant buildings in high-crime areas for users and dealers. One night, three of us stopped at an empty two-story apartment. The door was open so we searched it room by room. Once we cleared the apartment, we ended up on the second floor. We lingered…

  • Lost and Found

    Lost and Found

    “I once was lost, but now I’m found, was blind, but now I see.” (Amazing Grace) Ironically, one of the worst scares of my life occurred at a National Night Out Against Crime. I brought my 4-year-old daughter to the event that showcases all the technology law enforcement uses to fight crime. I had no…

  • Relief

    Relief

    The man screamed and fell to the floor in agony. Two others tried to catch him but he was too heavy. He hit the floor and writhed in pain. His body and face contorted. My friends and I stood in the corner, laughing hysterically. We shouted, “We’re not laughing at you, we’re laughing with you!…

  • Men of whom the world is not worthy

    On Easter Sunday 1973, Pastor Kefa Sampangi was targeted for assassination by Ugandan dictator Idi Amin. Kefa had just preached in his town’s soccer stadium to over 7,000 people. After the service, three of Amin’s Secret Police followed him back to his small church. Kefa had just finished praying when the soldiers entered the room…

  • Even Kevin

    Even Kevin

    Kevin was a taker, not a giver. He lived to consume, yet contribute nothing. For the poor soul who loved Kevin, he brought only drama and misery. Kevin’s mission in life was to be a bad example. Needless to say, Kevin was a frequent flyer with law enforcement. Not surprisingly, a domestic violence call involving…

  • Gospel

    Gospel

    Once when I was a teenager, my grandmother sent me to the store with a hand-written grocery list. I drove her 1974 Ford LTD to the Piggly Wiggly in Alberta City for a quick errand. Or so I thought…. When I got to “The Pig,” I found the first few items on the list with…

  • Godspeed

    Godspeed

    Early in my career, I jumped at a chance to ride along with an older patrol deputy. One night, however, I picked the wrong deputy. This guy was angry, at the boss and the world. He expressed his anger in a most terrifying way.