spiritual fitness – Page 4

Church Security: How to Identify 25 Common Mental Health Behaviors

Church security teams serve their congregations by overseeing the safety and decorum of church gatherings. Part of the training for team members includes the ability to quickly and correctly assess the reasons behind the disruptive behaviors of individuals during those events.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Self-Defense and Church Security: Make Scanning Your Priority ]

Determining whether a person is unruly due to a mental health crisis or to an intentional violent motive will influence the proper response required to keep the peace.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Chart: The Spectrum of Potential Threat Personas in Self-Defense and Church Security ]

The ministry Spiritual First Aid^™ offers the free PDF resource, 25 Common Mental Health Fact Sheets, that helps identify the signs, symptoms, and triggers of mental health conditions people may struggle with; it’s a tool that can assist security team members in ascertaining whether de-escalation tactics or more extreme measures are necessary.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Gentle Response De-Escalation Training for Church Security Teams ]

For example, the fact sheet on Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED) states that this “is a mental health condition characterized by recurrent, sudden episodes of impulsive, aggressive, violent behavior, or angry verbal outbursts that are disproportionate to the situation. These episodes are typically brief and may result in physical harm to others, damage to property, or significant emotional distress, and they often lead to feelings of remorse or regret afterwards.”

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Tactical Training for Individuals and Church Security Teams to Thwart Active Violence Incidents (Part 2 ]

This comprehensive set of 25 fact sheets offers insights on the following topics:

Every Small Decision Leads to Winning or Losing in Spiritual Warfare

Our lifetimes are lived second by second (86,400 in a day), minute by minute (1,440 in a day), hour by hour (24 in a day), day by day (7 in a week), week by week (52 in a year), month by month (12 in a year), year by year (365 days in a year), and decade by decade (8 decades in an average lifetime; which is the same as 4,174 weeks or 29,220 days). The manner in which we live depends entirely on each and every decision we make in each of those limited spans of time.

Witnessing worldwide hateful motives and malevolent behavior in the news every day, it’s self-evident that we’re in the middle of a cosmic war between good and evil (Ephesians 6:12). Every decision we make—every one of them—determines whether we win or lose in that spiritual warfare—every moment of every day.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Situational Awareness: Spiritual Self-Defense ]

This applies even in subtle ways. Today’s culture has broadly normalized what for millennia has been understood to be abnormal. One mere example is the recent Summer Olympics, where, among a variety of indecent cringe-worthy incidents during the Games, the USA women’s gymnastics team, on the world’s media stage, jokingly gave themselves the NSFW nickname of “F.A.A.F.O.,” which translates to “F*** Around And Find Out.” This decision to self-identify by lightly applying an obscene and fractious word to an inspiring and worthy female sport activity was odious to common decency; what’s perhaps worse is that the world’s media and their audience enjoyed the usage.

Let it not be so with those who commit to the SemperVerus way! What the Apostle Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome in the 1st century directly applies to us in the 21st century:

“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.” Romans 12:1-2 (MSG)

Perhaps you’re thinking right now, “I don’t swear that much. I can tell a little white lie every now and then. I use profanity only infrequently. Probably only 5% of my vocabulary is vulgar. It’s a minor amount.” Consider this: You’re presented with a treat by a friend. He says, “I know how much you like brownies so I made this batch for you. I mixed into the ingredients only 5% of cow manure. It’s a minor amount.” Will you want to eat it? Of course not! You want the ingredients to be pure, devoid of any toxicity, no matter how small. The same purity should be reflected in the decisions we make every moment.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Spiritual Fitness Self-Defense: Seeing Temptation as a Threat ]

Will you decide to…

Church Security Book Review: A Gentle Response

With the title taken from Proverbs 15:1, “A gentle response defuses anger, but a sharp tongue kindles a temper-fire,” the book A Gentle Response: Conflict De-Escalation With A Ministry Mindset is written to guide staff and volunteers of all faiths and houses of worship in proven ways to defuse tense and potentially dangerous situations. Its author, John Riley, is an Army veteran, retired police officer, consultant, trainer, and founder/president of Gentle Response, a consulting company specializing in very dynamic, realistic conflict de-escalation training seminars which are specifically designed to help students develop stress inoculation, muscle memory, self confidence, and confidence in colleagues.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Gentle Response De-Escalation Training for Church Security Teams ]

The book is filled with practical insight and examples by the author, gleaned from 20 years of road patrol experience, observations, and training as a certified crisis intervention specialist through the National Anger Management Association of what can be said and done by law enforcement officers to more effectively and successfully de-escalate a situation to ensure that everyone goes home safe. While it’s written to church security team members, it’s principles can be equally applied to individuals as part of your personal self-defense toolbox.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, A Prayer for Church Security Team Members ]

The following are highlighted quotes from the 90-page book:

Statue of Billy Graham Unveiled in Statuary Hall of US Capitol

Salvation in Christ Jesus was offered in National Statuary Hall May 16, 2024 at the unveiling of a 7-foot tall bronze statue of the iconic late global evangelist Billy Graham (who died at age 99 in 2018) which has John 3:16 and John 14:6 carved in its base.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Spiritual Fitness: How Long Does It Take to Read the Bible? ]

US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson, other congressional members, dignitaries, and the Graham family and friends officiated at the hour-long ceremony, which was carried live on C-SPAN.

In his prayer of invocation, US Senate Chaplain Dr. Barry Black described Mr. Graham’s life as “the light of morning at sunrise on a cloudless day, and like the brightness after rain that brings the grass from the earth. Lord, we celebrate his laudable example of blameless living, of obedience to your commands, and of telling your good news of salvation around the world. Inspired by his great and sacrificial life, may we emulate his commitment by refusing to deviate from integrity, living above reproach, and striving to transform dark yesterdays into bright tomorrows.” [Editor’s Note: These expressed characteristics are the same advocated by living the SemperVerus life.]

By semperverus
Posted on 05/17/202405/18/2024