reflecting His character in our interactions. Galatians 5 says:
13 For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.
14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
15 But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!
This is a great template for the child of God, as we are called to love the Lord with our entire being, from the heart, and living as He has intended for us and empowered us to live. We are to possess the heart of a servant, and not allow our preconceived notions or stereotypes to hold us back from doing ministry. There may be an occasion to step outside a comfort zone and reach out in a bold and courageous way in order to accomplish an assignment that builds the Kingdom.
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James chapter 2 challenges us to reach out to people who are different than we are, not showing
partiality, but being people of compassion:
8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself," you do well;
9 but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.
It really was like a scene of a movie or a television drama, riding a train through some areas of a large city that you feel like you've seen before - the Bronx, Harlem, the characteristic high rise, neighborhoods full of cars and shops. And, then, I arrived - Grand Central Station - the heart of New York City.
Such was a moment just a week ago, walking the streets of the Big Apple to meet other family members who had flown in earlier in the day. And, then, I rounded the corner to find, yes, the bright lights of Times Square. Truly, unlike anything you've seen before.
Of course, one of the concerns of visiting a big city as a tourist is safety, and apparently, New York has stepped up its game in that department. I noticed the police presence there, and in one instance, saw an officer in conversation on the street. This was not coincidental, but part of an effort to ensure the safety of people in the Midtown area. A PIX11 story from last year reported:
The NYPD will start community policing in the area with the same cops working the same beat everyday.
"We have a lot of police presence already," says Michael Greene, manager at Hard Rock Cafe.
He says he can't wait to see more women and men in blue in his hood. "We always someone checking on us. So we've always had a great relationship with the cops," said Greene.
The NYPD is starting a new task force of 100 officers in Midtown with a goal of beefing up protection and building contacts.
The same officers will work Midtown every day talking to everyone from small businesses and residents throughout all of Midtown, and not just pedestrian plaza.Building relationships seems to be a dominant theme in law enforcement, especially in light of recent high-profile incidents involving police, some resulting in people losing their lives at the hands of officers, other involving the deaths of policemen. FBI Director James Comey was talking about relationship recently in Birmingham at the 16th Street Baptist Church at the Race and Law Enforcement Conference last week.
According to a story from a Montgomery Advertiser reporter that ran at USA Today, "In partnership with the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, Comey was on hand to address one of the most vexing problems plaguing the nation: how to heal the racial rift between law enforcement and the community." He is quoted as saying, referring to the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: "I think he would tell us to have open hearts, open minds and to see each other more clearly, because it is hard to hate up close," adding, "It’s hard to hate somebody you know, somebody whose life you understand."
As the story says: "To combat the anti-police culture perpetuated in low-income, high-crime inner communities, Comey said a bond must be formed between the community and its local law enforcement."
There was a story this week about this year's first graduating class of the Montgomery Police Department's Citizens' Police Academy. A Montgomery Advertiser story says that:
Having citizens with a knowledge of police procedure means some not-too-serious situations can be handled properly by neighborhood groups before reaching out to police. Academy graduates can also relay information to and from the MPD when necessary.Chief Ernest Finley is quoted as saying: "We need buy-in for how we improve the community and have real conversations with citizens that know us, and they did this training so they know something about how the police department works and the resources that are available,” He added, "These are die-hard community folks. When we think about dedicated, spirited individuals who just want to help us, when we get that spirit in the community, it’s a win-win for us."
MPD has also enlisted the help of the faith community. We have reported to you before about the Operation Good Shepherd, in which church leaders partner with police to address issues of crime in their neighborhoods and communities.
The critical component here is relationship. And, it's encouraging to see people in the law enforcement community speaking out on the importance of building trust between those who enforce the law and citizens who are called to follow it.
I want to return to FBI Director Comey's very simple phrase: "It’s hard to hate somebody you know, somebody whose life you understand." That speaks so strongly, and for followers of Christ, that can be a stated goal - we can be challenged to be people of understanding, to model a sense of conveying the love of God, without preconceived notions - loving unconditionally. Our own biases and hangups can become barriers to doing ministry, and perhaps God is calling you outside your comfort zone to do something really bold, really different, but really effective for the Kingdom. After all, it's about lifting up His name.
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