and went home. That’s how much God loves the mentally ill, I tell these Tulsa Christians, who live at the buckle of the Bible Belt. ‘Stop acting like the world does. We have the answer; we have the power. We are the hands and feet of the Lord Jesus. If he would cross a lake and battle a storm to free a madman, should not the saints of God be willing to do what we can to set the captives free?’ ”

Churches face any number of secu-rity challenges today, from shootings to fraud to child abuse, both outside and inside their ranks. “We must not stick our heads in the sand and have the at-titude it could never happen here,” says Newell. “Nor can we become militant in our stance, distrusting everyone. Jesus told us to be as wise as serpents and harmless as doves. So be educated, be prepared, and stay abreast of crime trends affecting churches in your area. Take steps to minimize loss and protect yourself, but never forget this truth: We belong to the one death fears, and he has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him. Whether it’s putting policies in place, installing alarm systems, or hold-ing revivals in dangerous places, the Holy Spirit has got to be the leading force in our decisions, and the love of God our motivator. When we do what we can and put our trust in God, he always responds in supernatural ways.”

Learn about the National Organization of Church Security & Safety Manage-ment at NACSSM.org.

Kelly Givens is a research assistant at the Sagamore Institute in Indianapolis, Ind.

5

Kelly Givens H ands & Feet

Safety CopThe prophet Zechariah describes the New Jerusalem as a place where “men and women of ripe old age will sit” safely in streets “filled with boys and girls playing” (8:4-5). Zechariah’s vision suggests peace and security, two things that were decidedly absent from the Jerusalem of his day, which was defined instead by slavery, starvation, and sin. God used his prophet to paint a picture of what God desires for his people—a world of peace, safety, and joy, free of discord and violence.

Major Carole Newell, a division commander at the Broken Arrow Po-lice Department just outside of Tulsa, Okla., is inspired by a similar vision.

She’s been a police officer for 26 years now, but before entering law en-forcement, Newell, a new believer at the time, struggled to understand God’s di-rection for her life.

“Like so many Christians who get born again,” Newell says, “I immediately thought, ‘Well, I’ve got to go to the mission field. That’s where God has called everyone, right?’ But my whole life I had a desire to be in law enforce-ment.”  

In spite of her initial doubts and a pastor who told Newell that her desire to be a cop was “fleshly” and counseled her to renounce it, she eventually came to understand why her yearning to be a police officer was proving so difficult to shake.

“I finally realized that God had put in me that desire from the time I was probably in my mother’s womb.” At 5’1” and 104 pounds, Newell may not look as if she was designed to deter crime, but she says God assured her that he was using what looks foolish to hu-mans to express his divine wisdom in the world. Newell employs her skills as a policewoman, combined with her gift for teaching, to advance God’s king-dom—upholding peace, protecting the innocent, and preventing crime. And in recent years Newell has found a way to work for the kingdom beyond the boundaries of her law enforcement job.

Several years ago, when a serial

rapist was at large in Tulsa, Newell of-fered to teach a Bible-based self-de-fense course at a church in the area. Requests began pouring in from other churches, and Newell found herself with a new ministry. In her classes, Newell focuses more on what the Bible prom-ises about personal safety and the im-portance of pursuing wisdom than on defensive moves, although some tactics are taught. “My goal is to make Psalm 91 a reality in people’s lives,” she says.

Then a prominent pastor in the Tulsa area was assaulted during a prayer service. The assailant had already com-mitted a similar crime at another church. These assaults prompted church secu-rity staff from several large churches in the area to form the Tulsa Ministe-rial Security Association (TMSA). The TMSA coordinator approached Newell to see what expertise she could con-tribute. Having worked as a crisis ne-gotiator for 14 years, particularly with people living with mental illness, Newell did indeed have expertise to share. She taught some 80 church leaders in the area how to identify people living with mental illness, how to reach out to and communicate with them, and how to defuse situations and protect congre-gants, all without abandoning Christ’s call to hospitality.

“I always start out my teaching with the story of the Gerasene madman,” says Newell. “Jesus crossed a lake, set him free, then got back in the boat

Hands & Feet profiles extra/ordinary Christians who embody the gospel. Send your nominees or essays to kkomarni@eastern.edu.

Carole Newell shows women how to prepare for and fend off an attacker.