Why Strength for Service matters
By Dan Ramsey
A few weeks ago we were confronted with a terrible evil event that has affected the lives of many. It seems that throughout this country we have seen too many lives taken too often.
Having been a Houston police officer for 30 years, I have had the unfortunate experience of being part of many Houston police officer funerals.
It is said in the law enforcement community that police officers and families bleed blue.
We spent more time with our partners and other officers than we did with our own families.
Many long hours and confrontation with evil challenges our communities.
Whether it is confronting bad events or trying to comfort families, police officers see too much of the hurt in the world.
How do officers deal with these difficult times?
We all became so numb to the hurt and pain that sometimes it appears as if we let it pass over our heads. That was not and is not true.
We have to find a way to draw our strength to continue moving forward.
As I looked at this last funeral for Deputy Goforth of the Harris County Sherriff’s department, I asked my wife if I still had “blue blood.”
I remember singing with our Houston Police Gospel Quartet at many funerals and feeling the pain that thousands of officers and their families and friends have as they entered Second Baptist Church in Houston for the funeral of a brother or sister officer.
Sometimes this was the only time many of these people came to a church. I knew that they came to gain strength from God to make it through difficult events.
This is why Strength for Service to God and Community devotionals make a difference. The devotions come from first responders for first responders and their families and friends.
These devotions are about our communities and events that change people’s hearts. God makes a difference in the way we face our challenges, whether they are good or evil. Strength for service to God, is what we all should strive for. I hope you draw your strength from a risen savior. It makes a big difference.
Oh by the way, the pain of the funerals is still real, and I still bleed blue.
Because He Lives!
Dan Ramsey, president
National Association of Conference Presidents