Monday, May 07, 2007

Class 359 Colors Run

The following is a prayer I offered at the site of Deputy Jake Kuredjian's memorial, Tuesday, on the occasion of the LASD Academy Class 359 Colors Run.

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Gracious, heavenly Father, we are gathered here this morning to pay tribute to our fallen brother behind the badge, Deputy Jake Kuredjian. We thank You that while you have allowed us to experience various degrees of healing during the last several years, you have also not allowed us to forget our brother.

It is good that we honor his memory and his sacrificial service. And it is good that those who will soon join the law enforcement family look to their future careers by first honoring our family’s treasured past—a past that includes deputies who gave the last full measure—deputies like Jake Kuredjian.

Lord, I pray for the men and women of class 359. I pray that they will finish well the race they have begun with there academy training. I pray that they will not lose sight of the fact that although graduating from the academy is an important and necessary accomplishment; their academy training is only the beginning of their law enforcement education. Keep them humble with the realization that the best leaders are good students throughout their careers.

Father, I pray that you will guard their hearts and their minds. Protect them from the hardening of the heart that is all-to-common in our noble profession. Give them and help them to maintain hearts of compassion, courage, and integrity.

Help them to remain meek throughout their career; understanding that the true definition of meekness is not weakness, but rather power under control. Help them to exercise appropriate power, while maintaining appropriate control, as they protect and serve the citizens of our county, with honor and dignity.

Lord, we do not know if anyone in Class 359 will be called upon to make the kind of sacrifice Deputy Jake Kuredjian made. We pray that we never lose another brother or sister behind the badge. We pray this knowing that every fifty-seven hours, somewhere in this nation, one of our brothers or sisters is called to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Give the members of Class 359 the wisdom and discernment to clearly see what is in front of them and to be constantly and keenly aware of their surroundings. Give them the wisdom and discernment to remove the word “routine” from their vocabulary as they work the jails, handle calls, contact citizens, and stop cars.

And give them the wisdom and discernment to keep the primary mission of every deputy sheriff at the forefront of their minds—that mission being to see to it that they and/or their fellow deputies make it home at the end of every shift. In doing so, they will follow the lead of heroes like Deputy Jake Kuredjian, who gave his life so that his brothers and sisters behind the badge could make it home.

We thank You, Lord, for this day. Now, Lord, we humbly ask that You bless Class 359 as they finish this run and begin the race that is the life of a Los Angeles County Deputy Sheriff. It is in Your Most Holy Name that I pray. Amen.

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