A Few Good Persons

Qualified for Church Safety Ministry

An article based on the Safety Member Certification training module "Safety Team Fundamentals" [1].

From the Bible –

"Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens;" ... And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens (Exodus 18:21, 25).

"Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business" (Acts 6:3).

Likewise must the deacons be grave, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre; Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience. And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being found blameless. ... Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife [literally: "one-woman men"], ruling their children and their own houses well (1 Timothy 3:8-10,12).

Introduction -

In a 1779 enlistment advertisement for the United States Marine Corps, a captain in Boston, Massachusetts called for "a few good men." The slogan caught on and has been used repeatedly not only by the USMC, but also by others [2].

In 1990, the Gaither Vocal Band recorded and released an album with the song "A Few Good Men" written by Bill & Gloria Gaither's daughter, Suzanne Gaither Jennings, and her husband Barry Jennings. Most of the verses end with, "He just needs a few good men" [3]. In a way, this reflects what Jesus said in Matthew 22:14, "For many are called, but few are chosen."

Not everyone drafted or volunteering for military service in World War II was inducted. Several were disqualified for various reasons, such as poor eyesight, poor hearing, or other physical disabilities. Some of those inducted flunked out of boot camp.

Not everyone volunteering to serve in a church safety ministry can be on the team. There are certain qualifications to meet. To put it another way, the Church Safety Team needs a few good persons.

On the Web -

Risk Strategy Group - In one article, "Church Safety Team: Regular Training for Optimal Security," Cody Martin writes, "The primary responsibility of a church safety team is to protect the congregation from potential threats, respond to emergency situations, and create a secure environment for worship." The members of the team need to be qualified and be regularly trained. Volunteers on the safety and medical response teams should have "diverse backgrounds" [4].

In another article, "Who Should Lead a Church Security Team?" he says, "The success of a church security team relies heavily on its leadership, and selecting the right individual for this critical role is essential." He goes on to say that the Church Safety Director will select qualified persons to serve on the Church Safety Team [5].

Church HR Network (CHRN) - In a CHRN article, "Establishing A Safety & Security Team For Your Ministry," one section is "Selecting And Vetting Safety & Security Team Members." This includes "Key Qualities" and "Screening and Background Checks." They closely match qualifications and checks listed by Sheepdog Church Security [6].

Christian Warrior Training - In Keith Graves' article, "A Guide To Building an Effective Church Security Team", the section "Identifying Ideal Candidates" includes the "Characteristics of Successful Volunteers," "Recruiting from Diverse Backgrounds," and "Vetting Process" [7].

Recruiting the Few Good Persons -

So how do you get the "few good persons" you need for the safety team? If you already have a team in place, you don't need to recruit as many persons as you would when starting a new team. Two basic means of soliciting candidates are advertising and personal invitation.

Advertising does not have to be a radio or TV ad or a paid ad in the local newspaper. It does not have to be on banners or mailed flyers. An advertisement can be as simple as a notice in the church's bulletin or newsletter or included in the Sunday morning announcements. A suggested announcement is, "Persons interested in joining the church's safety team or medical response team should contact Bruce Smith." An announcement can also be posted on a bulletin board.

Some persons considered qualified by training and experience may be personally asked to join the team.

Qualifications -

The Bible gives us several qualifications for church leaders - elders, overseers, pastors, and deacons. Members of a church safety or medical response team fit into the last category, deacons. The first deacons were selected to meet the material needs of widows and orphans (that can be extended to all needy persons in the church and the community). As we can see with two of these first deacons, Stephen and Philip, they were also able to preach, to teach, and to defend the faith.

So today, deacons in the church have materially practical roles, including property management, charity work, office work, ushers and greeters, safety & security, and medical response. Besides being able to do the work, there are also spiritual and character qualifications.

To put it briefly, not just anybody will do. So many times help is so short that it is tempting to settle for just anybody. We have seen news stories resulting from getting "just anybody" - embezzlement, fraudulent credentials, excessive force, child abuse, etc. When we place persons in responsible positions, they need to meet certain qualifications.

Biblical Qualifications:

In Exodus 18:21, Jethro told his son-in-law Moses to choose "able men" as judges in Israel. They were to

1. Fear [respect] God,
2. Be men of truth, and
3. Hate covetousness."

When the Apostles in Jerusalem admitted they could not do all the legwork and also their spiritual leadership responsibilities, they asked the non-Aramaic members of the church to choose seven deacons to administer charity to their own needy persons. They were to

1. Have a reputation as honest,
2. Be Spirit-filled, and
3. Have wisdom.

Note how these mirror Moses' qualifications for judges and add wisdom (discretion).

In his letters to Timothy and Titus, the Apostle Paul expounds on the qualifications for Christian leaders and deacons in more detail:

For overseers and elders:

• Be blameless,
• Be faithful to spouse,
• Be sober-minded,
• Have self-control,
• Be hospitable,
• Be able to teach,
• Do not be addicted to alcohol (or drugs),
• Be kind and gentle,
• Don't be argumentative or quarrelsome,
• Do not greedy,
• Be a good manager at home (see qualifications for husbands in Ephesians 5:25-33 and Colossians 3: 19 & 21),
• Don't be insubordinate (resisting authority and accountability),
• Do not be reckless,
• Be holy,
• Be faithful to the Scriptures.

Added for deacons:

• Be tested (prove themselves as capable, have a good work record),
• Do not be double-tongued,
• Don't be gossipers or slanderers (they need to keep confidence).

Job-Specific Qualifications:

There are some special expectations for Safety Team Members. Here are some of them from the training course ("Safety Team Fundamentals"):

• Be a member or regular attendee of that congregation,
• Be physically able to do the job,
• Have no disqualifying criminal convictions,
• Fill out an application,
• Submit to and pass background check and reference check,
• Be reliable and timely,
• Be able to understand and follow policies, guidelines, directions and directives.

There are also expectations for those already on the team. They are to

1. Attend and pass initial orientation and training,
2. Continue training -
1. New training,
2. Refresh previous training,
3. Keep all required certificates, licenses, and registrations up-to-date,
4. Attend church services and classes faithfully.

If you think this a lot to go through, apply for a job in a state or regional corrections system, even for a kitchen or office job. There's a lot there to go through.

Induction Is Not Automatic -

No matter how a person becomes interested in church security and safety, becoming a part of the team is not automatic. Just as a military recruit has to go through the induction process, so does a church safety team candidate. The process is not exactly the same, but it does involve an application and consideration of qualifications.

Application:

Each candidate for a Church Safety Ministry position, even on the Safety Committee, must fill out an application. If those at the top need to apply, obviously so do those on the other levels: Safety Director, Deputy Safety Director, Team Leader, and Team Member.

Reference Check:

The Safety Ministry candidate lists personal references on the application. The Safety Director (or the church's director of personnel) checks these references, but not just these.

• If the applicant is new to this church, contact the previous churches attended, especially if that person was a staff member or volunteer there.
• Don't just write, but call. Someone he or she worked with may say more over the phone than what they're willing to put in writing. You may also note the tone of voice in their answers to questions.
• Contact places of employment. Does the applicant have good work habits? Is he or she competent?
• Contact schools attended. Does the applicant have the claimed diplomas, certificates, and degrees?

Background Checks:

The first thing we think of is a criminal background check. That is a concern for any position in the church, but there are other background checks, depending on the position in the church.

Criminal Background Check,

This is a must for every position in the church. How it applies first depends on how open and honest the applicant was about any criminal record he or she may have as well as what the charges were.

• A minor misdemeanor or petty offense conviction may be embarrassing, but we should be able to acknowledge it when asked if there were any criminal convictions.
• If it was a FACE conviction for praying on the "wrong" street corner, that should not disqualify them (I'm not kidding - currently that's a real possibility in some cities).
• If it was a juvenile conviction and the applicant has changed and has never done that again, we may show grace. We need to exercise discretion.
• There are offenses which would make membership on the Church Safety Team inadvisable.

Sex Offender Background Check,

This is a very sensitive area for many positions in the church, especially for the Safety Team and for children's workers. Here again, a lot depends on the person's openness and honesty. A well-known megachurch pastor has stepped down because of an offense decades ago which he had not acknowledged. It was not in the reporting system, but the victim finally spoke out.

The Justice Department has a site for making sex offender registries available to the public, not just to law enforcement. It is the Dru Sjodin National Sex Offenders Public Website (NSOPW). You can look up an applicant's name to see if that person is a registered sex offender. Here's a clue: They're not all men. Beware: some names are so common it is easy to find several registered sex offenders (RSOs) with that name, even within one state. For instance, there are six John Smiths on Ohio's RSO list. Fortunately, Ohio provides their photos. If you use a vetting service, such as Protect My Ministry, they will use re-verification to see if the person on the RSO list is really the applicant. False alerts can be embarrassing to the church [8,9].

Financial Record Check,

Positions with access to church finances require a financial background check. Bankruptcies are a red flag, but discretion is advised since not all are because of financial mismanagement. Look for financial crime records, but there is the possibility of a thief getting in anyway. In one case, a person who had been convicted of embezzlement got a treasurer's job at a church by applying under her maiden name. A Protect My Ministry check may have uncovered this if the state had revealed aliases of convicted persons, including maiden names.

Driving Record Check,

Any person driving for the church, whether in a church vehicle or in their own, should undergo a driving record check. This is for the safety of church members and attenders of church events using church-provided rides. Consider this if driving will be part of the Safety Team work.

Interviews:

That's right - interviews (plural). We need to interview the applicant twice, right after submitting the application and after reference and background checks. In the first interview the applicant answers questions based on the application. The second interview uses results of the checks if they raised new questions. It's not unfair to compare the applicant's statements in the two interviews. In a face-to-face interview you can gauge the applicant's demeanor and openness.

It's best to use more than one interviewer. One may come up with questions not thought of by the others and they can share their observations.

Qualified?

The goal of the application and vetting process is to assure that staff and volunteers in the church, including Safety Team members, are qualified.

Training -

The goal of training is to further qualify members of the Church Safety Ministry, to keep them qualified, and to increase their qualification.

The key Sheepdog Church Security (SDCS) training instrument is Safety Member Certification. Five of the eight training modules have been upgraded, with four of them completely rebuilt and renamed. They are now available.

There are other SDCS training resources, including follow-up services for certified safety members. Also available are SDCS articles, including the Church Security Guide, Lessons Learned, Team Briefings, Expert Resources, Guest Articles, and the Lott & Moody Study.

Conclusion -

The Church Safety Team needs a few good persons.

References -

1. Kris Moloney, Safety Member Certification, Sheepdog Church Security, 2025 [https://sheepdog-church-security.thinkific.com/].
2. Marion F. Sturkey, Warrior Culture of the U.S. Marines, © 2001, quoted in "Selected USMC Slogans," USMC Heritage, Heritage Press International, after 2001 [https://www.usmcpress.com/heritage/usmc_slogans.htm].
3. Various contributors and editors, "A Few Good Men," Genius, undated [https://genius.com/Gaither-vocal-band-a-few-good-men-lyrics].
4. Cody Martin, "Church Safety Team: Regular Training for Optimal Security," Risk Strategy Group, no date [https://riskstrategygroup.com/church-safety-team-regular-training/].
5. Cody Martin, "Who Should Lead a Church Security Team?" Risk Strategy Group, no date [https://riskstrategygroup.com/who-should-lead-a-church-security-team/].
6. CHRN Staff , "Establishing A Safety & Security Team For Your Ministry," Church HR Network, March 12, 2025 [https://churchhrnetwork.com/news-articles/establishing-a-safety-security-team-for-your-ministry/].
7. Keith Graves, "A Guide To Building an Effective Church Security Team," Christian Warrior Training, November 11, 2023 [https://www.christianwarriortraining.com/p/a-guide-to-building-an-effective].
8. Staff, "Search NSOPW," Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Website, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice [https://www.nsopw.gov/search-public-sex-offender-registries].
9. Sheepdog Affiliate Link, Protect My Ministry, [https://www.protectmyministry.com/sheepdog-signup/].