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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…
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“Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the LORD understand it completely.” (Proverbs 28:5) Patrolling in the County late one night, I saw a car sitting in a cotton field. When I turned in to check it, its headlights came on. I activated the blue lights and a guy stepped out of…
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Sunday is the day everything changed. The risen Son of God walked out of the grave. He left behind an empty tomb. Angels asked those who sought Him, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?” The grave was not an appropriate place to find Him. “He is not here, He has risen.” (Matthew…
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As a kid, I attended a very old church. The floors were made of old wood that creaked when you walked on them. One morning after Sunday School, my friend Richard (maybe his real name, maybe it’s not) and I were coming down the stairs from the loft. Just as we were about to take…
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Friday is the day the sin debt was paid. Soldiers led Jesus to the place of crucifixion. They nailed Him to a wooden cross as a public display of Rome’s wrath. God, however, was working out something much bigger. This was planned “before the foundation of the world.” (Ephesians 1:4) Seven hundred years before the…
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It’s Thursday. Jesus ate His final Passover meal with His followers. When He broke the matzoh, the unleavened bread, He said, “This is My body which is given for you…” Then He lifted a cup, choosing the third cup of the Passover Seder, called the Redemption Cup. He said, “This cup that is poured out…
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“Why must they all be naked?” I thought. Dispatch gave out a call involving a large, muscular man standing naked in a busy roadway threatening motorists. He was covered in his own blood and suffering a drug-induced mental health crisis. Law enforcement responded to remove him from the road, restrain him, and get him the…
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I once attended a mega-church in another state. The worship service was a television-worthy production. Sound amplifiers, stage lights, and a live band, all created a flawless performance. Staff members were dressed in expensive suits with skinny-fit pants and designer shoes. Every haircut was trendy and pomaded to a high spike. Nothing was out of…
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Willie was already old when I began my career. After he spent years in prison, our paths crossed at the County Jail where I worked as a guard. Other inmates called him Pop, as they did any convict over age 40. Pop had an eye that pointed off to one side. I didn’t know which…
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In September 2019, our swat team volunteered to participate in Tuscaloosa’s 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb. The event honored the FDNY, NYPD, Port Authority Police, and EMS who lost their lives on September 11, 2001. It sounded like a good cause, so I joined them. I thought I understood the assignment… At Coleman Coliseum, the organizers…