I want to deviate from my series on the ten deadly errors police officers make to talk a little scripture. The verses of 2 Peter 1:5-10 is a passage I have heard preached on twice recently. Both times this passage spoke to me as a blueprint for how we should live our lives. I also began to think of this passage as career advice. Even a career in law enforcement.
“…make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble.”
The writer of Peter was warning his readers against corruption and false teachers in the church and how to combat it. The next few verses details how. I think these verses also make excellent career advice for everyone. Let me apply this to my chosen career. First, we must have FAITH. Not just in God, but in our system and ourselves. When we took our oath of office, we swore allegiance to the rule of law and to our system. It gets things wrong and it gets things right. But, on balance it the best system in the world.
Faith is not enough, though. We have to add GOODNESS. We are the good guys, after all. The white hats who fight for the helpless. We have to have such a positive outlook on our mission. We have to be different. We may “walk in the valley of the shadow of death,” but we can’t allow the evil that lurks in the alley to affect us.
After goodness, we are to add KNOWLEDGE. We can’t stop at the police academy or field training. If we are not learning something nearly every day we are like stagnant water. Suitable only for the growth of disease spreading bacteria and mosquitoes. Do you know stagnant officers? If you have too many you have a stagnant agency no matter how many good officers there are. Keep up the learning. Keep up with the new court cases on search and seizures. Know your use of force cases and standards. Read up on new techniques being used across the country to address the problems in your patrol area. Keep with the regular law changes. Start reading those free police magazines that are sent to your office every month. Subscribe to law enforcement web sites. Attend training with a positive attitude. In my experience, when you are knowledgeable both your superiors and coworkers will seek your advice.
Next is SELF-CONTROL. This means minding your tongue, your manners, and your temper. Do not give in to temptation, but remain steadfast. In our careers we are subject to much temptation. This is everything from cheating on a relationship to lying about the details of a traffic stop. Integrity is hard to gain and easy to lose. It is a slippery slope and in my opinion all inclusive in our lives.
After this comes PERSEVERANCE. We will hit walls. We will get stuck in the mud and spin our wheels. We will see the bad in humanity. Maybe even so much bad we begin to doubt there is any good still left. We have to soldier on. There is good in people. Remember, we are the good guys. We stand for good.
This is why the next thing is GODLINESS. Church and worshiping God is a refuge from the chaos of the world. It should not be a surprise that the worship area of a church is commonly called a sanctuary. For me, this faith is essential in keeping me grounded. It keeps my life largely uncluttered. I am but a sinner, who is not always a good witness, but I am forgiven. There is something higher at work in this world. You should become of a part of it.
Next up is MUTUAL AFFECTION. We fight so much among ourselves sometimes it’s a wonder we get anything done. When this happens it is the citizens who pay our salaries who suffer. We need to care enough about our fellow officers that we hold them accountable. Tell your coworker to slow down and not drive 100 mph to low priority calls. When we see that prisoner start getting on that last nerve, don’t wait until after the civil rights violation has occurred to step in. Make your move before that and take over. I have found that can lower the temperature dramatically. It keeps your fellow officer out of trouble and keeps your agency from needless bad press. Set the good example enough times and people will follow it. Be the calm voice in the storm.
Finally there is LOVE. Love for your job. Love for your community to make it better. Love for your neighbors to protect them. Love for your agency to not tolerate bad policing. The US Navy SEALS have come up with a creed called the SEAL Code. It reads:
• Loyalty to Country, Team and Teammate
• Serve with Honor and Integrity On and Off the Battlefield
• Ready to Lead, Ready to Follow, Never Quit
• Take responsibility for your actions and the actions of your teammates
• Excel as Warriors through Discipline and Innovation
• Train for War, Fight to Win, Defeat our Nation’s Enemies
• Earn your Trident every day
I could do a whole post on this creed and how it should apply to us, but I will save that for another day. Right now I want to focus on that last line. Insert the word “badge” in place of trident. Now make that last bullet point a one sentence creed to tell yourself as you get ready for work. Tell that person in the middle to earn his badge every day.
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