My King has a great love for all those who serve to protect our country. That includes our military, our highway patrolman, the undercover police and even our SWAT. I pray that someday our all of our government leaders will love those who serve us as much as President Trump does. My King now wants me to minister to our SWAT. Monday, I was asked to go down and talk to the Denver SWAT. There were 78 people who showed up when I arrived.
This group that I met is just one of the many shifts of SWAT. They are like a big family. Many times they have barbecues together, go hunting and fishing together and go on vacation trips together like one big family. They all know about Jesus Christ but most of them do not have a personal relationship with him. Because of this, they have moments of jealousy and marriage problems. My King wanted me to go to talk to them so he could renew their hearts to have that personal relationship with him that they are missing.
I had no set agenda planned. After I prayed over the meeting, they started asking questions. One of the biggest questions was on forgiveness. They know about how much I forgive other people that have beaten me. I did not want it to be about me so I took their thoughts when our King was beaten. I said, “When they arrested Jesus, they took him to a place where a Roman guard beat him with a whip that had bones in the tip which was physically ripping skin out of his back as they beat him. Even after 39 times, our King was praying to the Father to forgive for the people for what they were doing to him.” I then said, “After this treatment, they demanded that he carry his Cross for his own crucifixion. He lost so much blood and the pain of the weight of the Cross on his wounds made him drop to his knees. Simon had to finish the job of carrying his Cross. Still, Jesus had no animosity towards anyone. I am sure he was still praying for those around him.” I then looked around the room see many eyes tearing up. I continued, “They then nailed his hands and feet to that Cross where they continued to mock him until he was ready to release his Spirit. At the end, Jesus pleaded with the Father to forgive everyone there because they did not realize what they were doing.” At this time he was taking on the sins of the world and our Father had left Jesus to be away from all that sin he took on himself. This was the first time Jesus experienced the pain of being away from the Father. No man has ever been totally away from the Father except those who have choose the Lake of Fire.” They were beginning to understand what true forgiveness was about.
They began asking about the Holy Spirit and doing God’s will. I held my Bible up and said, “Read and study this book. It will tell what God’s will is in your life.” One of the men who had more knowledge of the Holy Spirit began asking me questions that he knew other people were thinking. I answered all his questions about the Holy Spirit for the benefit of the others. This opened up a slew of questions.
One question was, “Why did Jesus say ‘Take this cup from me.'”? I said, “Jesus came as a man and like us he would rather take an easier and less painful path. But because of the love for our Father in heaven he chose the Father’s will over his.”
Another question was, “How did the thief on the Cross get baptized?” I said, “When Jesus died on the Cross it rained on the thief and washed him. The act of baptism is to show your surrender of you life to Christ. The water represents the washing away of our sins. There can be Salvation without baptism. Many have given their lives to Jesus on their death bed and water was not present.”
The last question asked was, “What is it to give your heart to Jesus Christ?” I said, “To truly give your heart to Jesus Christ you need to ask him to forgive you of all your sins first. After you do that, just ask him to come into your heart. You will want him to become the ruler of your life. From now on you will want to serve and please him. After you turn your life over to him, you will experience what true freedom is Jesus Christ is all about.”
The Holy Spirit has been working the crowd while I have been speaking. Most everyone was becoming teary-eyed. This was basically the last time I said anything. From now on, the SWAT members took over the conversation. One women stood up and said, “I have been a jerk to my husband I want him to forgive me for what I have done to him. I also want a true relationship with Jesus Christ. I am tired of being a weekend Christian.” Her husband tearfully responded, “I too ask my wife to forgive me for all the things that I have done to her. ” This started a chain reaction and soon 60 couples beginning to ask for forgiveness from their spouses. There were some very personal things that were being said that they wanted to be forgiven from. Others were jealous because some were better at something then they were. Our King gives each man certain skills. The enemy wants us to desire another man’s talents over what God gave us. God is pleased if we are greatful for the talents we have and use them to do his will. Besides, Isn’t God really the only one who we need to please with our talents. They continue to confess their sins to our high priest Jesus Christ to release them from this bondage. Towards the end, they ask me one more question.
The asked, “Sonny, how do you forgive others?”
I said, “Once you see people the way God sees them, it is easy.” Before I could say anything else, one of the men there who knew me pretty well stepped in and and said, “Sonny used to see gang members as a lions when he first witnessed to the gangs. Now he sees them as young boys who are looking for the Father.” This was the last question they asked me. They started praying for each other. Then they wanted to pray for me. A lot of emotion was shown even among the macho men as the Holy Spirit was moving in the room. It was midnight as we finished praying for each other. They all rededicated their lives to Jesus Christ tonight. I arrived at my apartment at 1AM. My King wanted me to see some of the Captains tomorrow night.
It was Tuesday evening and I headed down to where the captains were supposed to meet me. I was told that I would be meeting five captains but when I arrived there ended up being 12 captains. As I introduced myself to them, their wives showed up 20 minutes later. That was not expected either. I found out the wives of the captains had conversations with the SWAT wives the night before. Their testimonies were so powerful that they convicted the wives of the captains. They just had to meet with their husbands to ask them for forgiveness. They lined up along the wall and began confessing things that needed to be forgiven in front of everyone. Boy, did that ever bring tears to the eyes of the men. The confession of their wives convicted them. They realized they needed to do the same. The men also lined up along the same wall and begin confessing things to their wives in front of everyone. Soon everybody was crying. Up to this point, I have been silent. The men and their wives physically took over the meeting with their confessions to each other. I can feel the freedom they were experiencing after they confessed to each other.
The most serious question they asked was, “What if I cannot forgive someone one?”. My King gave me the answer even before he asked the question. When I arrived my King said, “Sonny, pick up those three stones that are laying on the sidewalk.” I was clueless about why he asked me to do this but I know now they were for a demonstration. I picked the stones up and placed them in my pocket and proceeded to walk inside. Immediately, when he asked that question, I knew what the stones were for. I remember in the Bible when Jesus who was to be trapped and turned it to challenged those there about forgiveness. I quoted:
{At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. 3 The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4 and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” 6 They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.
But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.
9 At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. 10 Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”
11 “No one, sir,” she said.
“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”}
I pulled the stones out that God had me put in my pocket. I laid them on the table and said, “Those of you without sin throw the first stone against those who you cannot forgive.” When we begin to realize that we are not sin free ourselves and God does not rate sin like humans do. We want to rate sin to make ourselves superior to those who we say commit worse sins. Our King looks down on all sin and he wants us to see sin the way he does.
Everyone in the room understood the Kings message and were silent. I said, “Not only do we need to forgive those who have sinned against us, we need to leave our own life of sin.” I then said, “Both the men and the women have asked for forgiveness with each other. We should now ask God to forgive our sins against him.” The men started first to ask God for forgiveness followed by the women. After they were done they all wanted to rededicate their lives to Jesus Christ to become the men and women that he wants. This is something that my King wanted to have happen in their lives. My King gets the Glory in the Victory.
Monday, I had a chance to meet with the SWAT again. My King has transferred their lives immensely since last week. It was an awesome blessing to be able to serve our SWAT. My King wants me to continue to meet with SWAT on a regular basis.