Today Matters: My Heartfelt Cry to Fellow Families of Law Enforcement Officers

Writing through tears makes it difficult to edit and proofread. You’re sure to see more typos and errors than normal in this post, but I felt that timeliness was more important than perfection today. If you’re not a wife, but a husband or other family member of a law enforcement officer, this is for you, too. May it encourage your hearts. 

Law enforcement wives, 

I can’t believe it either. Police in Dallas were sniped. They were sniped. Murdered in cold blood with no way to defend themselves as they protected others. They were targeted and taken out with malicious and evil intent. 

My heart breaks. The tears flow freely and, like you, I ask, “Why?”  Why has our nation come to this point? Why are there colors associated with love and hate? Why, why, why?

We, too, are called

Some of you didn’t marry cops. You married teachers, and real estate agents and construction workers who felt a call to serve others. So they risked a lot. They gave up careers, established income and reasonable work schedules to serve. And they took your family along for the adventurous and extremely difficult ride of a law enforcement career. 

Maybe you weren’t fully on board. Or maybe you fully supported his decision but didn’t completely realize what you were in for. Either way, you’re in it now and darlin', there’s no going back. 

When your husband accepted the call to serve, so did you. And today of all days, we - as law enforcement wives - need to stand firmly in that role and hold our heads high. We mustn’t cower in fear today, even when we want to bury our heads under the covers and cry ourselves to sleep. Today, when one of the hardest things we’ve ever done is to get up and live, that’s exactly what we must do.

We have work to do

It would be easy to be consumed with fear today and allow ourselves to cave into the paralysis we feel. It would be easy to allow hatred to overwhelm us. And to allow our disbelief and anger to drown out our love.

But we can’t. Because we’re called too. And we have work to do. 

Today, our job is to encourage our cops. To let them know that while it seems the rest of the world hates them, WE will stand with them. WE will pray for them and WE will take courage too. 

We will not spew more hate on social media. We will fight hatred with love. We will pray for those who hate us and for those who hate our husbands. 

We will continue to support our law enforcement officers as they serve our communities and we’ll do our part to shine for our communities too. We will not cower. We will band together to stand firm. 

As those who live this life every day and see the ins and outs of police work from a unique perspective, we know that not all cops have rotten hearts. In fact, very few do. Most cops accepted the call to help others. To be public servants. Some - a very small contingent - have seen the ugliness in people for so long their hearts have become hardened. A FEW of our officers have struggled to cope with the stress, violence and hatred they witness every day. They need help. They need our prayers. May they receive both.

When we crave justice

Years ago, I received an encouraging word from a detective who faced a court case he wasn’t certain would bring justice. He assured me with his knowledge of God as the higher judge. He reminded me that the Lord sees all. God alone can judge right from wrong because He alone sees the whole story. God alone can see every detail of every side and angle of every story. 

So today when you can barely stand because of the grief you feel in your hearts, lean on the God of the universe and trust that in His glorious and perfect timing, all truth will come to light. 

Our world is declining. We have leaders in the highest positions who are spurring on hatred and violence and the most troubling thing of all is that we don’t see any measure of relief coming. But, police wife, keep your mind focused on God and the things above. Trust and know that He will not allow justice to go unserved. 

We don’t have to retaliate. We can walk in love - because that’s why our husbands took their oath of service. To protect. To serve. To uphold the Constitution. Even when the people they serve hate them. Our husbands continue to serve and protect even when they, themselves are being protested. They put on the uniform and stand to protect those who demonstrate their disapproval. And we love our officers for it. Our hearts rejoice in their conviction and morality in this still-noble profession, even when we’re terrified.

Today Matters

Our actions today matter greatly. So what can we do, today, to navigate this pain and support those we love?

1. Pray - if you can do nothing else today, pray without ceasing. When words won’t come, pray through your tears and pour out your broken heart to the Lord. Pray for the families who lost someone dear. They need our prayers. Let’s be generous with them. Pray for protection over our officers and for peace in our nation.  Humble yourselves. Pray and seek God’s face. He promises to hear from heaven and heal our broken land. 
2. Forgive - I know this is easier said than done. Today, decide to forgive and trust that the feelings and heart change will eventually follow. Each time anger and hatred rise up in you, remind yourself that you’ve decided to forgive and ask God to remove the feelings and emotions that display otherwise.
3. Support - your man needs you today. Be there for him. It will take all you have, but be strong and courageous. Do it for him. Do it for your families. Please don’t say, today, that you can’t take it any more. It’s okay to feel that way, but for today, try to hold those words back. Today your husband needs to know that you’re still with him and that together and with God’s help, you can navigate through it. Your support will bolster his courage on the street. Yes it will.
4. Encourage - reach out to other police wives today and encourage one another. Use only uplifting and wholesome words and don’t allow negativity to breed among you. Commit to one another to show love and to keep serving others. There is strength in unity and we need each other to help resist the evil in our world. 
5. Love - Draw on the love of Christ in those moments you feel you have no love of your own to show. He has enough for all of us and has plenty to share. He IS love, so use Him as your source of strength and your shield, and your refuge.

I’m praying for your strength and courage today. Will you pray for me too? When we've done all we can today, let's get up and do it all again tomorrow. 

Together and with God’s help, we can navigate this chapter of life and turn the page to find a hopeful future. Stand firm, my sister. In Jesus name.