IV – Know

Self-Defense & Church Security Training Directory

Personal Training Resources  |  Church Security Training Resources

The knowledge you acquire when you learn how to drive a car translates into safety and confidence every time you use the car. The same is true with firearms and their use in self-defense. Just as cars are dangerous machines when driven irresponsibly, so, too, are firearms when handled without the proper care, attention, and education they deserve.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, The 4 Basic Rules of Gun Safety ]

A gun is only as good as the training of its owner. Firearm triggers don’t pull themselves; they require someone to interfere with the physics law of inertia: if a body is at rest, it will remain at rest unless it’s acted upon by a force. That force (us) should be responsibly trained in basic—as well as advanced—gun safety rules, and self-defense principles and law. The following resources offer that training.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, A Directory of Firearm Podcasts & Video Channels ]

Questions to Ask Yourself

Thinking that you have an answer for everything may be evidence that you’re part of the problem.

Asking intelligent, probing questions is among the foundation characteristics of effective leadership. By observing current conditions and asking “what if…” and “why not…,” your thinking is expanded, your horizons are opened, and you generate better solutions to solve intricate challenges. That’s true both professionally as well as personally (self-assessment). Asking questions moves you out of the judgmental, status-quo realm into the learning, improvement realm.

The following is a partial list from ZeroHedge.com of suggested questions to ask yourself to assist you in creating a working inventory of mind, body, and equipment for living in dangerous or uncertain times. SemperVerus has added questions for soul development.

Soul

  • What am I doing to intentionally strengthen my soul?
  • Am I obeying the greatest commandment (love God) and the second greatest commandment (love people)?
  • Do I believe Jesus—whom historians have proven to actually have lived—was a liar, lunatic, or Lord? (see the SemperVerus Good News page)
  • What am I doing to regularly read and understand the Bible?
  • How often do I pray?
  • Are my prayers big enough? Are they others-focused?
  • How often do I meditate?
  • Am I quick to confess and repent of my sins?
  • What am I doing to feed my faith?
  • Am I being sensitive to daily count my blessings and show gratitude?
  • Do I live for a higher purpose than merely myself?
  • Am I being generous enough?
  • Am I quick to forgive?
  • Is my leadership vision spiritually oriented?
  • What books are on my reading list to spiritually grow?

The 4 Basic Rules of Gun Safety

An image of the four gun safety rules

Col. Jeff Cooper (1920–2006) was a US Marine, the creator of the modern technique of handgun shooting, and an expert on the use and history of small arms. He introduced the concept of the mental alertness color code which indicates the degree of peril a person is willing to act upon and which facilitates a person to move from one level of mindset to another (situational awareness) to enable the person to properly handle a given situation.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Checklist: Matters to Consider When Deciding on a Handgun ]

As a way of encouraging universal firearm safety, Col. Cooper also advocated a simple 4-point set of rules anyone can understand:

  1. EVERY gun is loaded until proven otherwise.
  2. Point the muzzle ONLY at what you want to destroy.
  3. Put your finger on the trigger ONLY when you’re ready to fire.
  4. KNOW your target and what’s behind and around it.

USA State Constitutions Providing for Armed Self-Defense

According to the National Archives, “the USA Constitution might never have been ratified if the framers hadn’t promised to add a Bill of Rights. The first ten amendments to the Constitution gave citizens more confidence in the new government and contain many of today’s Americans’ most valued freedoms.” One of those is the Second Amendment:

“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”  THE BILL OF RIGHTS, AMENDMENT II

Get your free digital Guide to the Constitution from The Heritage Foundation.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Important Judicial Decisions Regarding Self-Defense Law ]

See USCCA's interactive Concealed Carry Reciprocity Map & Gun Laws By State

Source: USCCA interactive Concealed Carry Reciprocity Map & Gun Laws By State

[ Read the SemperVerus article, The 5 Elements of Self-Defense Law ]

Below is the right to keep and bear arms as expressed in each USA state’s constitution: