Guardian Angels come in blue

They were more than heroes. When several members of the Norwich Police Department came onto the scene of the Peach Tree apartment fire last Saturday morning they didn't think. They just went to work. The fire was moving so quickly that there wasn't time for debate or to ask what the protocol was. They knew that at one o'clock in the morning many people would be asleep and unaware of the danger they were in.

They began knocking on doors, breaking into apartments and carrying the helpless to safety. Their first instinct was to save lives. They didn't think of their own safety, or maybe they did. Maybe they asked themselves what would they want to happen if this was their home. Then they went to work. One officer shrugged off the heroic nature of what they did. "We were only doing our job."

I thank God for them. Too often we make fun of the police and make jokes about donut shop runs. We are afraid of them because we have heard of shake-downs or traffic stops. But the truth is that these guys and gals do a tremendous job and when their is a crisis, there is no one we are happier to see. They offer us protection and give us the promise of safety.

Our relationship to the police officers is a lot like our relationship to God. So many of us have all kinds of feelings about Him. He makes us feel guilty. We don't like his rules. He won't let us have any fun. But when the tough stuff comes we often turn to him and seek safety in the shelter of his arms. One friend of mine who was battling cancer said, "I have never talked to God so much." This morning I am giving thanks to God for members of our Norwich Police Department. God sent them as angels in the night to watch over the residents of that apartment complex and in doing so he reminded us that he watches over us at all times.

Cal