Are you aware of your situation at all times? The reason I ask this question is quite simple. Violence in America has become so commonplace I am afraid we are becoming desensitized to it.
Will the murders, rapes and robberies ever stop? Will we as God-fearing, law-abiding citizens help stamp them out? The answer to these questions should be as follows: We must end this war for the very souls and lives of our youth. You may be still be asking what is the answer? I will attempt to answer this question.
The first and foremost issue is to simply be aware of your surroundings, 24/7, 365 days of the year.
Recently our church, Burge Terrace Baptist, held a seminar on this very subject. My cousin is in charge of security for our church. We lovingly call our security team, “Nehemiah’s Guardians.” Gene invited me to sit in on the seminar. I will not describe all of our security measures. Just know that our congregation is aware of most of them. Why does a church, God’s House, need to be concerned about security? Simply because they are so-called “soft targets” and perhaps someone might try to take advantage of that. Jeff Patterson, a training officer from IMPD, conducted it for our school and office staff.
I recently read an article in the Indianapolis Star. This was only two days after the seminar. Essentially, the article stated facts about shootings in our public schools. The article chronicled shootings for the past 20 years. I looked at research on various shootings. The results are mind-boggling. For example, in August 2015, The Washington Post reported that the United States was averaging one mass shooting per day. Also in that same year, shootings had killed or injured 1,464 people. People, we are not talking about some third-world, lawless country. We are talking about America.
So the question is what are we going to do to stem this violence? Do we ban handguns? Do we continue to have prayer vigils? Do we advocate for mental health reform?
The answer to the entire above is yes. With one exception: No, we do not ban guns.
I am a man of faith. Prayer does work. But it has been said that God helps those who help themselves.
One thing that stuck in my mind as Officer Patterson spoke was this: Know your surroundings. He went on to say that most, if not all of us are creatures of habit. We basically all take the same route to work each day. We tend to socialize either at work or on the way. The in-class assignment he gave was simple. He suggested that for the next three days concentrate on your every movement. For example, when you leave your driveway please look to the left, rather than the right. Try this for three days. Thus, you will be made more aware of your surroundings.
Gentle reader we are creatures of habit. Dr. Timothy J. Legg, Ph.D., Psy.D. , states that it takes 19 to 254 days to change a habit. According to C.O. Montgomery, BA, MS, it takes only seven. Regardless the amount of time it takes one to form a habit, the jist of Officer Patterson’s assignment was to make us more “aware” of our surroundings.
To my point, can wl we stop violence in America? I submit that we can stem the flow. Each one of us should take a course in self-protection. This could be either a gun safety program, or a martial arts program. Is prayer effective? You bet it is. Whenever America has been threatened, by either a foreign power or from within, she has prayed and then taken action.
I submit that America is taking action. For example, the Daily Reporter ran a front-page story detailing Sheriff Brad Burkhart’s proactive response to this violence. The Hancock County Sheriff’s Department held a mock drill in the Hancock County Courthouse. A detective from the department “posed” as an active shooter. He fired blanks as he made his way through the courthouse. The article went on to describe how the shooter was subsequently subdued. I do know that these drills are being held all over America.
So when my wife and family lay our heads on our pillows at night, we can be thankful.
Thankful for prayer, thankful for America, and above all thankful for organizations like Nehemiah’s Warriors, and thankful for the brave men and women who answer the call to protect us.
C.O. Montgomery of New Palestine is a former teacher, Sugar Creek Township trustee and co-director of the Hancock County Character Council. Send comments to dr-editorial@greenfield reporter.com.
