Send me.

“I’m proud to say that the ‘those who can’t do, teach’ concept didn’t apply to me.”

I’ve been instructing law enforcement and now private citizens for nearly 12 years. At this point in my career, I can easily say this: NEARLY 100% OF THE TIME, people either drastically overestimate their natural abilities, or more likely, portray themselves as better-equipped than they actually are. Does that make my job harder? Absolutely. Does it make the final product that much more satisfying? ABSOLUTELY.

1…Hearing and Doing Aren’t the Same Thing.

Firstly, my faith has peak influence over my life and my approach to challenges. My articles won’t be a whipping post for those that don’t believe how I do, but the effects of scripture will show up in my writing from time to time in the same way an athlete will use sports analogies or a literary scholar may reference Shakespeare to further drive home their points. God’s Word is just one foundation I write upon.

In the book of Isaiah Chapter 6, Isaiah, an Old Testament Prophet, had a vision of the Lord. He saw the Lord fill the temple, shaded by angels above HIM. As the angels sang praises to the LORD, the “foundations of the thresholds shook” at the voice of the LORD, and the temple filled with smoke. Isaiah, understandably, was shaken and began to cry out to the LORD, “Woe is me…I am lost…a man of unclean lips" and so on. An angel flew to Isaiah and, touching his lips with a burning coal, declared him clean and whole. Following this is verse 8.

“And I heard the voice of the LORD saying, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here am I! SEND ME.” -Isaiah 6:8

But what happened next? God gave Isaiah a command. Let’s make it simple (paraphrasing)…”Tell my people…stay dumb…keep your blinders on…care about nothing…don’t believe the truth when you hear it…ignore the facts in front of you…UNLESS…you plan to use what you hear, see, and understand AND TURN and be made whole. Did you catch that? God said if you don’t plan to DO WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE with what you’ve been given and what you’ve been taught, you might as well not even hear it. You might as well not even see it. And if you do hear it and see it, you might as well not even understand it. That’s heavy. I know.

When I was in high school, I wanted to be a teacher. I thought it was an honorable profession, had the potential to be very fulfilling, and I knew for a fact it was a challenge, if for no other reason than the fact that I’d have to deal with little terds like me every day. Then I found out I had to go to college for that. “No problem. I can do that” I said. Fast forward to 18 months after graduating high school and the letter I received from the University I attended said otherwise. Who knew you had to go to class to get good grades? Who knew you had to complete assignments and go to lab periods and converse with your instructors and deans to graduate? I mean, I did, but I ignored that little bit of insight and exchanged it for extra time in the local coffee shop and playing HALO or watching movies in my buddy’s dorm (that’s right, Chad, I failed college because of you).

So I moved on and did small jobs. I learned how to weld and do all the little necessities around a fabrication shop. I got married to the girl of my dreams who, in spite of all of her intelligence, still saw something in me. I got laid off and became a security guard and then ultimately got the chance to go to the CLEET Academy to become “a real cop”.

Man. I love being a cop. Truly. There’s nothing like it. Sure, there are other fields I’m sure I’d enjoy, but nothing quite does it like police work. From patrolling the streets looking for those intent on doing evil, those who care more about finishing a pitcher of beer before the drive home than protecting other motorists, those who would dare to peddle narcotics in neighborhoods surrounded by kids, and those who would prey on the weak and helpless…that’s a CALLING. I believed that then, and I believe it now. However, after a few years in, I saw a need.

2…”doing” is easy. Leading is hard.

The FTO (field training officer) program of the small agencies I worked for were, to put it nicely, ineffective. They tended to shy away from police work and lean toward being glorified taxi services for command staff and supervisors, constant dismissal of pertinent information, social visits with other units on duty, and ranking the best Mexican food in town. And the worst part? It showed. Trainees after 16 weeks of instruction got thrown in a car and it was like day 1 all over again…LOST LITTLE PUPPIES. It was in light of this that I found my true calling in the law enforcement profession. This breakthrough would solve all the issues. Jumping head first into this new thing would make me and my agency the best there ever was…I was going to become (pause for dramatic effect) an INSTRUCTOR! Cue the applause! Focus the spotlight! Fade in the inspirational music! I had arrived…or so I thought.

See, over the next 12 years, I gathered every instructor certification I could find. I wrote curriculums and/or taught classes on everything from report writing to search warrant preparation, evidence collection, domestic violence/sexual assault investigations, active shooter response, less-than-lethal weaponry, firearms, and many things in-between. I’m proud to say that the “those who can’t do, teach” concept didn’t apply to me. I taught concepts because I was good at those concepts, and I got better at them the more I taught them. It was really working. The only problem was this…

Cops struggled to care.

Now that’s a bit unfair. Many of them cared…maybe even most of them. However, no matter who I taught or how much I prepared for it, there were always those who’d just show up for the continuing education hours and donuts (that’s not really a cops/donut joke…donuts are objectively good and most training starts in the morning). They’d hear what they needed to hear and they’d leave, and 30 days later they’d come to me wanting to know why the judge won’t sign their search warrant or why the DA won’t file those domestic violence by strangulation charges. It didn’t matter that I’d just taught them everything they needed to know mere days earlier, they were stuck nonetheless and it was my job to assist them out. Training was taken for granted…a thing you HAVE TO DO instead of a thing you GET TO DO…a task to complete rather than an opportunity to get better. Because of this, if LEOs were honest with themselves, they’d have to admit that a very “healthy” chunk of those continuing education hours and all those weeks sitting in an FTO’s car and all those months in the academy were useless. Why? Because we weren’t ready to admit that WE NEED TO BE BETTER.

3…SELF-IMPROVEMENT FOLLOWS THE ADMISSION THAT YOU NEED IT.

“Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.” Isaiah 6:9

It is no-brainer that our society isn’t getting any safer. Even with all of the technology and public safety initiatives that we have in place, this world continues to breed more predators, and when predators thrive, those of us who once considered ourselves “reasonably safe and prepared” eventually join the sheep as PREY.

Beginning in 2024, while continuing to teach law enforcement in the various aspects of their industry, I began to teach classes to private citizens as well. Mainly centered around firearms and firearms safety, I began teaching classes such as Handgun Basics, Rifle Basics, a Master class of both weapon styles, as well as medical, maintenance, and other types of classes. And here’s the difference I found:

THEY WANTED TO BE THERE.

These were hard working people…small business owners, teachers, preachers, bankers, salesman, IT specialists, advocates, medical professionals, and many many more. They were spending their hard-earned money, and not just on class cost…also on ammunition, hearing and eye protection, weapons, fuel, food, medical supplies, etc. They were arriving early to an already-early 8AM class, and they were leaving late. They were asking for more classes. They were bringing their children to youth safety classes. They were telling their friends. They were sponsoring class costs for others to be able to join in. In a word, they were COMMITTED. They wanted to be there.

“Lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and TURN and BE HEALED.” -Isaiah 6:10

Say it with me. Seeing and hearing does not equal understanding and knowledge. Watching the news every night and hearing of yet another senseless killing in the city near you or another child victimized by an authority figure in their life doesn’t innately keep you out of harms way or your children’s innocence intact. It is the act of TURNING…the ACTION taken as a result of seeing and hearing that removes the hold evil may have on you and those you care about. Just as the preacher may tell you “Jesus loves you” during the Sunday message, it’s not until you explore and study what the love of Jesus truly is and what it truly cost that you can ultimately understand and grasp the value of and the need for His LOVE in your live. Likewise, in the context of range time, I can tell you grip structure and a smooth trigger press are important, but it’s not until you engage in live fire and see your rounds everywhere but center mass that you finally begin to appreciate the need to actually implement the tools and knowledge I’m giving you.

So what’s that got to do with “Here am I. Send me?”

We teach men and women, most of whom plan to use their newly found knowledge and skill to exercise their rights to self-protection as they move throughout everyday life, to effectively and efficiently deploy a deadly weapon to preserve their lives and the lives of those they care about. In short, they plan to carry a gun. They plan to have a gun in their home. They plan to take a gun on long trips to distant places. Above all, they plan to USE IT should the need arise. I applaud that. I applaud the willingness to take responsibility for your own personal preservation. As the saying goes, when you need the police now, they’re only minutes away. This isn’t new. So I, along with the vast majority of law enforcement officers, at least in my state of Oklahoma, are pleased (and even appreciative) when we meet an armed citizen.

That said, I rarely have a student show up to a basics level class with what I would consider an acceptable level of skill. That’s just truth talking. Rounds hitting every extremity except center mass at 5 yards, or missing the target altogether, doesn’t instill a ton of confidence. BUT…they show up. They spend their time, usually on a weekend, usually when the weather is nice and they could be on the lake or enjoying family time, to not just HEAR how to become better protectors, but to PUT IT INTO PRACTICE. They don’t just show up and watch me shoot. They get on the line, check their stance, grip, sight alignment, and trigger control, and send rounds downrange. They evaluate themselves. They tell themselves hard truths. They engage in self-talk, sometimes positive, sometimes not (everyone is motivated differently). Then they reload, reset, and re-engage. Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

The LORD told Isaiah it’s not enough for His people to hear, see, or be taught. They must understand. Exposure isn’t enough, but rather taking action toward physiological, muscular, and mental evolution is REQUIRED in order to truly understand and perceive what is being offered.

I had one of many SEND ME moments years ago when I began teaching law enforcement. I had it again several years later when I decided a passing qualification score on the range wasn’t enough and wasn’t even remotely acceptable. Do you hear that fellow LEOs? It’s not acceptable just to “pass”. I had another SEND ME moment a little over a year ago when I decided to begin teaching private citizens due to seeing the absolutely massive gap between gun ownership and weapons ABILITIES. I took the steps change my mentality, to add muscle memory, and immerse myself in the mindset that I WILL MASTER THIS.

Have you experienced your SEND ME moment? Have you made the decision to turn from just one who hears and sees to one who understands and perceives? Have you made the decision to turn from just a gun owner to a protector? Have you taken the steps to change from just moving through life oblivious to what’s around you to remaining at a higher, yet still sustainable level of vigilance? Have you considered what your lack of skill and your lack of mindset means for those that depend on you? I HAVE. And while I have a long way to go in many aspects, I am lightyears ahead of where I was just years ago. Can you say the same? If not, are you willing to start the journey that direction?

Below is a short prayer (or statement, if prayer isn’t your thing). You can pray this, or you can simply verbalize it as a way of burning it into your brain. Write it out and put it on your fridge. Screenshot it and use it as your phone background. Write it on your bathroom mirror…whatever you need to do to refocus daily. It’s time to plant that seed and watch it grow.

SEND ME…to a higher level of awareness.

SEND ME…to a higher level of care for those around me.

SEND ME…to a higher level of humility, recognizing when I need to make moves for the better.

SEND ME…to a higher level of commitment.

It’s my hope that this article, the first I’ve ever written, came across with the true purpose and meaning it was intended. I’d love to have a conversation about it going forward…to answer your questions, gather your insights, or just for you to tell me I’m wrong. I’m fine with that too. Hit me up through the Contact Us tab at the top, or send me an email to blacklabops@gmail.com. Do you have another topic you’d like for me to write about or do a video on? Please send those as well!

I hope to see you on the range soon! Until then…

Be Safe. Be Dangerous.

-Ben