I Can (series)

As mentioned in a previous episode, September 1, 1984, was an extremely difficult day for me. That’s the day I officially resigned from the Detroit Police Department. After ten years of reporting for duty on uniformed patrol, I once again proceeded to the 13th Precinct station house and with very little attention and fanfare, cleaned out my assigned locker. After packing away everything I had accumulated into a cardboard box, I sat down on the bench in front of my locker with my belongings on my lap and immediately was hit with a wave of raw emotion. Was it true? Was I really ending my career in law enforcement to begin what I believed to be a divine call to fulltime church ministry?

The employee termination paperwork had been signed; my police-issued badge, gun, handcuffs, nightstick, and rain gear were all turned in and accounted for; the goodbyes and well-wishes had already been communicated. The only thing left to do was walk away—it was the loneliest and most lamentable walk of my life.

Not long after that, I started my new position as a youth pastor at the church I had been attending. On my first day the senior pastor greeted me and took me around the building for a tour. He then escorted me to my office. It was a small room on the outside of the main building that was being utilized as the church library. At the opposite end of the room, there was a desk for the librarian and then another desk for the personal ministry volunteer. For the time being, all three of us would share the same room.

My office used to be part of the outside breezeway—a wall had been added to enclose the space. I knew that because the floor covering in my office was that bright green indoor/outdoor carpeting, the same as the breezeway, and a bunch of dead leaves lined the inside walls. The pastor apologized for not getting the room ready prior to my arrival. He said he had hoped to divide my office from the library to give me a little privacy, but it was “one of those things.” After the pastor left, I sat at my desk, hung my head in my hands, and thought to myself, “What in the world have you done?”

A few days later, one of my volunteer youth leaders who happened to be a very successful businessman stopped by the church to visit and congratulate me on my new position. As soon as he stepped foot in my office, he broke out into hysterical laughter—I don’t blame him at all, it was pretty comical. About a week after that, a floor covering contractor knocked on my office door. Come to find out, my youth leader buddy (the one who came to visit me) hired the man to install the nicest piece of plush carpeting you can possibly imagine. After a dividing wall, a little bit of paint, furniture upgrades, and designer flooring, my office was the envy of the entire staff. I even had my own coffee maker.

The transition from police officer to preacher was not an easy one. On patrol I was used to criticism; after all, that was 99.9 percent of the job—people lodging a complaint of some kind. I mean who flags down a scout car or stops a cop to thank or compliment him on his service? During 10 years of police work, it never happened to me, not even one time.

Flak and fault-finding on the streets were part of the territory, but I never expected it to occur in the church. Wasn’t church work supposed to be a dream job, filled with encouragement and loving Christian support? That’s not exactly what I experienced—not by a long shot. Oftentimes my efforts to mentor students and connect with them on their level was met with a good deal of dissension and disdain. I remember on one occasion, Terese and I opened our home for an all-night student event. These kids trashed our house, ate up all our food, and refused to go to sleep. At some point during the night we offered a movie marathon and watched one of the Rocky movies. The following day, I received a phone call from an angry parent demanding an emergency meeting. This guy was not happy with me at all. He said by allowing his 17-year-old daughter to watch Rocky, I was promoting violence. I almost laughed out loud; I told him that was not my intention.

The next Sunday he saw me in church and once again pushed for the meeting. When I appeared disinterested, he grabbed my arm and repeated his request in an elevated voice. I looked him right in the eye and said, “You might want to let go of my arm.” I reached for my police nightstick, but it wasn’t there. That’s when I realized we were in church—not on the streets. We never did have that meeting; however, he did set up an appointment with the senior pastor to express his deep concerns about me.

Let me ask you—and I’m just spit-balling here—when was the last time you encouraged your ministry leaders and mentors? If you have children or students, are you someone who is quick to lodge a complaint with the leadership, or do you genuinely express heartfelt gratitude? During that time, 35 years ago, I discovered student pastoring was an extremely challenging assignment—almost as dangerous as police work, LOL. Preaching biblical values, promoting parental expectations, all while attempting to relate to students in their world can be pretty tricky. It takes a truly gifted servant of God to safely and effectively perform that particular three-ball juggle cascade. (Thank you Pastor Adam Baltz, Tyler Green, Zack Merren and all our devoted student and children’s ministry volunteers. I sincerely appreciate you!)

In student ministry, what greatly helped me persevere and stay on course spiritually was an occasional word of thanks or a note from a parent letting me know how much they appreciated my efforts. I cannot accurately communicate to you just how significant and timely those kinds of gifts can be.

Proverbs 15 (TPT)

1 Respond gently when you are confronted

and you’ll defuse the rage of another.

Responding with sharp, cutting words will only make it worse.

Don’t you know that being angry

can ruin the testimony of even the wisest of men?

4 When you speak healing words,

you offer others fruit from the tree of life.

But unhealthy, negative words do nothing but crush their hopes.

13 A cheerful heart puts a smile on your face,

but a broken heart leads to depression.

18 A touchy, hot-tempered man/woman picks a fight,

but the calm, patient man/woman knows how to silence strife.

28 Lovers of God think before they speak,

but the careless blurt out wicked words meant to cause harm.

30 Eyes that focus on what is beautiful bring joy to the heart,

and hearing a good report

refreshes and strengthens the inner being.

31 Accepting constructive criticism

opens your heart to the path of life,

making you right at home among the wise.

32 Refusing constructive criticism shows

you have no interest in improving your life,

for revelation-insight only comes as you accept correction

and the wisdom that it brings.

33 The source of revelation-knowledge is found

as you fall down in surrender before the Lord. 

Don’t expect to see Shekinah glory

until the Lord sees your sincere humility.